Tony Haynes: Costner Questionable for Maryland

BY TONY HAYNES

Raleigh, N.C. When NC State (15-7, 4-4) kicks off the second half of its ACC schedule at Maryland (15-8, 5-3) Saturday night (8 p.m.), it may be without forward Brandon Costner for the second straight game. On Friday, Wolfpack coach Sidney Lowe said the redshirt sophomore's status was in doubt.

“He had X-rays done yesterday and we’ll see how he feels today,” Lowe said during his Friday morning press conference. “If he’s not feeling really good, I don’t think we should [play him]. We have to look out for Brandon more than anything.”

During NC State’s 73-63 victory over Virginia Tech on Tuesday, Costner sat on the bench in street clothes after taking an inadvertent shot to the ribs in practice on Monday. His teammates picked up the slack, putting together one of their most complete efforts of the year in the 10-point win over the Hokies.

Of course, opinions and speculation travel fast in the world of the internet and radio talk shows, and some of those opinions had apparently reached Lowe’s desk as of Friday morning. A first-team All-ACC pick in the preseason, Costner has come under criticism this season for not living up to those lofty expectations. On Friday, Lowe was ready to respond to that criticism without even being prompted by a question from the media.

“I’ve been hearing some things, comments made about Brandon and our team; how we’re better off without Brandon and it’s Brandon’s fault,” Lowe said. “That’s really unfair. We’re definitely not better off without Brandon, so that’s a stupid question if anyone’s ever asked that. Brandon is a good basketball player and when he’s healthy, he’s going to come back and help us. This negative stuff I’m hearing is just not fair. He’s doing what we ask him to do. Is he shooting the ball the way he was last year? No. But that’s just one part of the game. I just wanted to get that out there. We’re not better off without Brandon Costner and we look forward to him coming back.”

In his first full season with NC State last season, Costner was the Wolfpack’s leading scorer (16.9 ppg.) and rebounder (7.3). He was at his best at the ACC Tournament, averaging 22 points in four tournament games.

This season, with NC State adjusting to new point guards and the arrival of freshman post man J.J. Hickson, Costner has never been able to get into the same comfort zone he had last year.

Through 21 games this season, the 6-9 native of Montclair, N.J. is putting up 9.4 points and five rebounds per contest. After starting the Wolfpack’s first 18 games, he was replaced in the line-up by Ben McCauley four games ago.

Lowe said he approached Costner recently to gauge how much of the criticism he had actually been exposed to.

“I talked to him, but he knew we didn’t feel that way,” Lowe said. “I’m hearing it so I’m assuming that he’s hearing it. I hope that whoever is making those comments or statements that they understand that it’s not fair and that it bothers me. It bothers me that they’re going to try to pick on this young man and focus on him. Let’s focus on our team and make it clear that we’re not better off without Brandon.”

With or without Costner, NC State will certainly have its hands full on Saturday night. After stumbling through the first part of its schedule, a stretch that included losses to VCU, Ohio and American University, the Terrapins have righted the ship by winning nine of their last 11 games. Maryland certainly made it clear that its early problems were in the past when it went into Chapel Hill and knocked off North Carolina, 82-80, back on January 19.

The Terps handed veteran coach Gary Williams his 600^th career victory with a 70-65 triumph at Boston College on Wednesday. Point guard Greivis Vasquez had 25 points, and forward James Gist added 23 on a 9-of-11 shooting touch from the floor.

“We have to be extremely tough and active,” Lowe said. “They’re very aggressive, very physical and very active. We have to be able to match that and not allow them to get those easy baskets inside. Their big guys are very active and go after those loose balls and offensive rebounds. We can’t just stand behind and let them post up. We have to be physical and active for 40 minutes. They’re non-stop.”

Gist and Bambale Osby give the Terps quite a one-two punch in the paint. Not only do they score and rebound, they anchor an inside attack that ranks sixth in the country with an average of nearly seven blocked shots per game. Maryland’s opponents shoot only 38 percent from the floor, a figure that leads the ACC.

Like Maryland, NC State is trying to turn its season around. After suffering lopsided defeats at North Carolina and at Clemson to open the league season, the Wolfpack has battled its way back to the .500 mark at the halfway point. But to gain an upper division finish in the ACC and secure an NCAA Tournament bid, the Pack will have to work a little bit harder than everyone else since it is the only team in the conference that plays Duke and North Carolina twice this year. The Blue Devils and Tar Heels will both come to the RBC Center in the second half, as will Clemson, which currently occupies third place.

“We’ve been watching the standings and showing our players in the lockerroom where we are,” Lowe said. “We did it when we were 2-4. We said if we beat Wake Forest, we have a chance to bump up a notch. We talked about it again with the Virginia Tech game. Now we have a chance to play Maryland and bump ahead of them. This is a huge game for us and its going to be tough playing in that environment against those guys because they are hot right now.”

North Carolina State University Athletics

Related News

Related Videos