North Carolina State University Athletics
Pack's Next Test is at UAB
3/19/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
NC State Continues NIT Run: NC State continues its late season run in tournament play, as the Pack travels to Birmingham, Ala., and faces UAB on Saturday at 5:00 p.m. (eastern). The Pack has won six of its last eight games, including a last second win at South Florida, 58-57, in the first round of the NIT on Tuesday.
The game will be broadcasted on ESPNU with Dave Armstrong and Joe Dean, Jr.
Pack Downs South Florida in 1st Round: Richard Howell's layup with 8 seconds left proved to be the gamewinner, as NC State won at South Florida, 58-57, in the first round of the NIT Tuesday night. South Florida held a 26-22 lead at the half, but the Pack opened the second half on a 19-8 run to build a lead of 41-34 with 12:08 left. The game would go through two lead changes and three ties before the final minute. Dominique Jones hit a layup with 41 seconds left to give USF a 57-56 lead. Howell would then make the layup after a halfcourt scramble, and USF had their final shot blocked with one second left. Dennis Horner scored a career-best 25 points, including the Pack's first 12 points in the first 12 minutes, and Tracy Smith added 14 points.
Pack's NIT History: This is the Wolfpack's 11th appearance in the National Invitation Tournament, its first since 2007. NC State posts an all-time record of 16-12 in the event.
The Pack will be playing on the road in the NIT for only the fourth time, as NC State is 2-1 in road games in the NIT. In 2007, NC State won at Drexel and then lost at West Virginia, and and won at South Florida on Tuesday. NC State is also 9-4 when playing at home, and 5-7 when playing at a neutral site.
The Wolfpack has made one appearance in the NIT finals, losing to Texas in 1978. In 2000, State advanced to the semifinals in New York, losing to Wake Forest in the first game and then lost to Penn State in the consolation round.
In Coach Sidney Lowe's first season in 2007, the Pack advanced to the quarterfinals of the NIT. NC State first won at Drexel then returned home to defeat Marist. The Pack's season would end at West Virginia however.
In 1951, NC State actually played in the NIT and the NCAA Tournament in the same year. Following a win in the Southern Conference Tournament, the Pack traveled to New York, where it lost to Seton Hall in the NIT, then played in the NCAA Tournament back in Raleigh, defeating Villanova and then losing to Illinois and St. John's. Here's a look at NC State's history in the NIT:
Year Opponent Site Res
1947 St. John's New York, N.Y. W, 61-55
Kentucky New York, N.Y. L, 42-60
W. Virginia New York, N.Y. W, 64-52
1948 Depaul New York, N.Y. L, 64-75
1951 *Seton Hall New York, N.Y. L, 59-71
1976 Holy Cross New York, N.Y. W, 78-68
UNC-Charlotte New York, N.Y. L, 79-80
Providence New York, N.Y. W, 74-69
1978 South Carolina New York, N.Y. W, 82-70
Detroit New York, N.Y. W, 84-77
Georgetown New York, N.Y. W, 86-85
#Texas New York, N.Y. L, 93-101
1984 Florida St. Raleigh L, 71-74
1997 SW Miss St. Raleigh W, 77-66
W. Virginia Raleigh L, 73-76
1998 Kansas St. Raleigh W, 59-39
Georgia Raleigh L, 55-61
1999 Providence Raleigh W, 92-86
Princeton Raleigh L, 58-61
2000 Tulane Raleigh W, 64-60
Arizona St. Raleigh W, 60-57
Mississippi Raleigh W, 77-54
Wake Forest New York, N.Y. L, 59-62
Penn State New York, N.Y. L, 72-74
2007 Drexel Philadelphia, Pa. W, 63-56
Marist Raleigh W, 69-62
West Virginia Morgantown, W.Va. L, 66-71
2010 South Florida Tampa, Fla. W, 58-57
# - National finals
* - NC State went to the NCAA Tournament in 1951 following its NIT appearance
The History of the NIT: The NIT was founded in 1938 and was originally made up of six teams. In 1941, the field expanded to eight and grew to six in 1969. All rounds of the tournament were played in Madison Square Garden until 1977, when the first rounds began to be played on campus, with the final four teams only playing in New York.
In 1979, the field was expanded to 24 teams, upped to 32 in 1980 and 40 teams in 2002. In 2005, the NCAA took over the administration of the NIT and narrowed the field to 32 teams in 2007.
Lack of Experience in the Postseason: Prior to the Pack's first round game at South Florida, senior Dennis Horner was the only current Wolfpack player to have playing experience in a postseason tournament. In Horner's freshman season in 2006-07, Horner was part of the Pack team that advanced to the NIT quarterfinals in Coach Lowe's first season. Horner came off the bench in all three of those games, and averaged 6.7 points and 3.0 rebounds in 17.0 minutes. Horner's best game was 13 points in 15 minutes in the home win over Marist.
Redshirt senior Farnold Degand had to sit out that 2006-07 season due to NCAA transfer rules.
The Series Versus UAB: Saturday's game between NC State and UAB will be the first matchup between the two schools.
Lowe Versus Conference USA: Coach Sidney Lowe will be facing a Conference USA foe for only the fourth time in his four seasons at NC State. Lowe currently posts a 2-1 record against Conference USA opponents, with all those games against East Carolina. The Pack downed ECU at home in 2007 and 2009, and lost at ECU in 2008.
NC State is 40-6 all-time against teams curently in Conference USA.
Lowe Finds Success in Tournaments: NC State has found success playing in tournaments under Sidney Lowe, as the Pack has captured team titles at both in-season tournaments the Pack has played in the last four years.
In Lowe's four seasons at NC State, the Pack is 15-5 in both in-season and post season tournaments.
The Pack started this season strong, as NC State was the only team to go 4-0 and win the Glenn Wilkes Classic. In the 2007-08 season, the Pack won the Old Spice Classic with a 3-0 record.
In postseason play under Lowe, the Pack advanced to the ACC Tournament finals and the NIT quarterfinals in his first season in 2007. This season, NC State won a pair of games at the ACC Tournament and reached the semifinals.
Horner the Leader: Senior Dennis Horner is the most experienced Pack player, as he is the only player to be in his fourth season at NC State. Horner signed with Herb Sendek and kept his committment after the coaching change.
This season Horner is proving to be one of the Pack's leaders. He is second on the team averaging 11.6 points a contest.
Horner was the offensive leader in the win at South Florida, as he led the Pack with a career-high 25 points on 6-of-10 shooting. Horner scored the Pack's first 12 points of the game in the 58-57 win.
He recorded three double-doubles during ACC play, the first of his career. His first career double-double came against Virginia Tech, as he had 13 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. In the home loss to Maryland, Horner had team-highs of 19 points and 10 rebounds. Then in the upset of No. 23 Wake Forest, Horner had 10 points and 12 boards.
One of Horner's most memorable games was in the Pack's win over Boston College on Senior Day. He left the game early in the second half to get stitches above his eye. He returned later in the half, and scored 11 points in the Pack's late 19-5 run to grab the lead.
He also set a new ACC best with 20 points in the win over No. 7 Duke.
