North Carolina State University Athletics
Tough Week Looms for Pack Hoops
12/1/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 1, 2010
RALEIGH, N.C. -- The NC State men's basketball team (4-1) is still six weeks away from its ACC opener against Wake Forest, but it's highly doubtful the league schedule will offer up back-to-back challenges any tougher than what the Wolfpack faces this week.
Wednesday's ACC/Big Ten Challenge game at Wisconsin will be followed by a quick turnaround road to trip to Syracuse Saturday. That's consecutive road games against a pair of nationally recognized opponents that are perennial contenders in their respective conferences and regular qualifiers for the NCAA Tournament in March.
No doubt, the rugged week ahead raised more than a few eyebrows when the Pack's 2010-11 schedule was released a few months ago.
"I was excited," was the reaction of NC State freshman guard Lorenzo Brown when he saw the schedule. "Those are two teams who have always been ranked. If you're a college basketball player, you want to play those two teams to put your name on the map. It's the two teams I've been wanting to play the most other than UNC and Duke."
The game at Wisconsin's 17, 230 seat Kohl Center on Wednesday is set to begin at 7:17 p.m. Airtime on the Wolfpack Sports Network will be 6:30 p.m.
The Badgers are 4-2 following a 58-51 loss to unbeaten Notre Dame Sunday night in the championship game of the Old Spice Classic in Orlando. Leading by as many 11 points midway through the second half, Wisconsin was ultimately undone by a 15-0 Fighting Irish run down the stretch.
The late-game collapse was unusual for a Wisconsin program that is renowned for its tough man-to-man defense and deliberate, concise offensive style. Interestingly, the Badgers lost despite turning the ball over only four times against the Irish.
Under veteran coach Bo Ryan, the Badgers usually don't give up anything easy and rarely beat themselves, which is why Sunday's loss to Notre Dame was an aberration.
"They're well-coached and the Kohl Center is one of the toughest places to play in the nation," said Wolfpack forward Scott Wood, an Indiana native who grew up in Big Ten country. "We're definitely going to have go up there and play well early."
The real matchup headache for everyone who faces Wisconsin is 6-10 senior Jon Leuer, who averages 18 points and seven rebounds per game. Not only a force inside, the physical Leuer can also step-out and shoot the ball from the perimeter. Through six games, he's 12-of-25 (48 percent) from 3-point range.
Also solid for the Badgers is point guard Jordan Taylor, who averages just over 13 points per contest. Taylor makes very few mistakes with the basketball in his hands, having tallied the third best assist-to-turnover ratio in the nation after taking over the starting point guard position midway through last season.
"They're a great team," said Wolfpack head coach Sidney Lowe. "They execute their stuff well, both defensively and offensively. What they really are is just high energy. They work extremely hard, they work together and they talk. They're a very good basketball team."
With senior big man Tracy Smith still sidelined after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery, NC State is adjusting to the short term loss of its best player and top scoring threat in the post. But the Wolfpack is also a team that is also searching for some more consistent on-court chemistry, something that should come as no surprise with the addition of freshmen C.J. Leslie, Ryan Harrow and Brown.
"They haven't quite figured out yet where each guy is going to be, what kind of pass he likes and the little tendencies that you learn as you play together a little longer," said Lowe. "The more they play together and work together, they'll figure it out."
NC State has four players averaging in double-figures, led by the 6-5 Brown, who is putting up 12.6 points per game. The rookie from Georgia also leads the team in assists with 21 and is tied for second with an average of 5.2 per contest.
