North Carolina State University Athletics
Towe Named 2009 ACC Legend
2/17/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Former Pack point guard Monte Towe is among the 12 Atlantic Coast Conference Basketball Tournament Legends announced Tuesday by Commissioner John Swofford.
The Legends will be honored at the 57th Annual Atlantic Coast Conference Basketball Tournament this March 12-15 in Atlanta, Ga. The Legends will be feted at the Annual ACC Legend’s Brunch, which will be held at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis Hotel on Saturday, March 14 beginning at 10 a.m. Tickets, priced at $35 each with tables of 10 available for $350, can be purchased from the Atlanta Sports Council by calling 404-586-8470 or by going to the ACC’s official websiteTheACC.com. Raycom TV personalities Mike Hogewood and Tim Brant will once again serve as co-hosts of the event.
The Legends will also be presented to the ACC Tournament crowd at the Georgia Dome at halftime of the first semifinal game on March 14, which will have a 1:30 pm tipoff.
Monte Towe (Marion, Ind.), the catalyst as the point guard of the NC State teams that went two years without losing a conference game in 1972 and 1974, helped the Wolfpack compile a remarkable 79-7 three-year record (1973-75) including a 57-1 mark in 1973 and 1974. One of the most popular NC State players because of his leadership and intensity on the floor, he helped State compile a 24-0 mark in the ACC in 1973 and 74, and capture back-to-back ACC Championships. Playing alongside the legendary David Thompson and Tommy Burleson, Towe, who earned first-team All-ACC honors, helped guide the Wolfpack to the 1974 National Championship, snapping UCLA’s seven-year national title string and avenging State’s only loss in the two-year span. He was named to the 1974 Final Four All-Tournament team and led the Wolfpack in assists in each of his three varsity seasons. Following his senior season, Towe was honored as the winner of the Frances Pomeroy Naismith award winner which goes annually to the top player in the nation who is less than six feet tall. After leaving NC State, Towe was drafted in the 4th round by the Atlanta Hawks of the NBA, but chose to play instead with the Denver Nuggets of the ABA for two seasons. He rejoined his college coach, Norm Sloan, as an assistant at State in 1977-80 and for nine seasons at Florida. After spending five years as head coach at New Orleans, he returned to the Wolfpack on the staff of current head coach Sidney Lowe, who he originally helped recruit to State in 1978. He currently resides in Raleigh, N.C.
