NC State
High Point
Wolfpack Takes On Unfamiliar Neighbor Wednesday Night
12/15/2015 12:55:00 PM | Men's Basketball
| NC State (6-3) vs. High Point (8-2) | ||
| Date | Wednesday, Dec. 16 | |
| Time | 7 p.m. ET | |
| Location | PNC Arena – Raleigh, N.C. | |
| Tickets | GoPack.com | |
| Television | ESPN3 (Andrew Sanders, Chris Corchiani Sr.) | |
| Radio | Wolfpack Sports Network (Gary Hahn, Tony Haynes) | |
| Game Notes | NC State | High Point | |
| Season Statistics | NC State | High Point | |
| Live Stats | GoPack.com | |
| Social Media | @PackMensBball | Facebook | |
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There was also a long-forgotten NC State men's basketball game that was played in an empty arena, during the first season after men's basketball changed its name from the Red Terrors to the Wolfpack.
On Jan. 17, 1948, a game between the Wolfpack and neighboring Duke was canceled when Thompson Gym was condemned by order of Raleigh city building inspector Pallie Magnum because the building had inadequate fire exits for a crowd of more than 1,200. A game against North Carolina a year before was also canceled by the fire marshal because there were too many fans in attendance.
The Wolfpack was forced to move its final seven home games that year to Raleigh's downtown Memorial Auditorium. There wasn't enough time, however, to get the auditorium ready for the Pack's next home game, against High Point College, since the floor needed to be refinished, sidelines and free throw lines needed to be painted and baskets needed to be erected.
After initially canceling the game, officials from both schools agreed to play the game at Thompson Gym with no fans in attendance. Only a few reporters and college officials were allowed to see the high-scoring game.
All-America forward Dick Dickey had a school-record 29 points in the contest and teammate Jack McComas added 23. Everett Case's Wolfpack ran over the High Pointers with a 110-50 victory. It was the highest-scoring game in NC State history until David Thompson came along three dozen years later. It was also the last game Case ever coached in Thompson Gym, where he compiled a perfect 18-0 record in his one-and-a-half seasons as his first home court.
The vagabond Pack didn't seem to be affected by its home-court flux throughout the season. It was the highest-scoring team in the nation for most of the season and it earned the school's first No. 1 ranking in the national polls. Thanks to a 19-game winning streak from December-March, the Pack finished 29-3 overall, was a perfect 12-0 in the Southern Conference regular season, won the second of six consecutive league tournament titles, despite Dickey being out of the lineup with a case of the mumps.
Passed over by the NCAA in favor of eventual national-champion Kentucky for the eight-team NCAA Tournament, the Wolfpack accepted its second consecutive bid to the National Invitation Tournament. Without Dickey, the Pack lost to DePaul in the first round at Madison Square Garden.
Still, it was the most successful season in NC State basketball history until the 1972-73 team posted a perfect 27-0 record, when the stands were full for every game.
-- by Tim Peeler, NC State University Communications  (read original post HERE)
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THE STARTING 5Â -Â The Top 5 Storylines For This Game
1. 100 WINS AT STATEÂ Â Â Â
Mark Gottfried has now coached NC State to 98 wins in his first 153 games. Wins in the next two games (vs. High Point and at Missouri) would make him the second-fastest Wolfpack coach to 100 wins in school history. The legendary Everett Case reached 100 wins at NC State in just 120 games. Jim Valvano reached the mark in 156 games, meaning two wins over the next three games would tie Gottfried with Valvano for the school's second-fastest to 100 Wolfpack victories.Â
2. AT THE LINE SHOOTING 2...CAT BARBERÂ Â Â Â
Using his quickness and ballhandling, Cat Barber has found his way to the free throw line at a record rate. He ranks second in the nation in free throws made (84) and is also third in free throw attempts (97). Barber is on pace to break the school record for free throw attempts in a season (355 by Mel Thompson in 1954). Additionally, he draws 8.5 fouls per game, which ranks 15th in the nation and fourth among players playing in Power 5 conferences. NC State owns a 5-1 record when Barber, who averages 10.5 free throw attempts per game, shoots 10 or more free throws.
3. SO...HOW'S HIGH POINT?       Â
High Point, which won 23 games last season and has won a share of the Big South regular season title three years running, was picked to win its conference again this year. The Panthers are led by athletic 6-8 forward John Brown, the team's leading scorer (20.6 ppg) and rebounder (7.6 rpg). High Point is 14th in the nation in 3-point shooting percentage (.424) and HPU's only two losses (to Texas Tech and Georgia) have come by a combined seven points.
4. GETTING MORE FROM THE BIGSÂ Â Â Â
Mark Gottfried has said multiple times this season NC State will need more production out of post players, and in the last few games the Pack's big men have anwered. Lennard Freeman, BeeJay Anya and Abdul-Malik Abu have each had their best moments over the last two games. In the Bucknell win, Freeman recorded a double-double (10 points,13 rebounds). Against South Florida, Abu had a double-double that featured a career-best 14 rebounds and dunked four times. Anya had perhaps his finest outing as a Wolfpacker, totaling a career-high 17 points on 7-for-8 shooting with seven rebounds and five blocks.Â
5. HI NEIGHBOR, WELCOME TO RALEIGHÂ Â Â Â
 Long before the Pack played at Reynolds Coliseum, North Carolina State College and High Point College played five times in men's basketball. As college athletics evolved and NC State moved from the Southern Conference to the ACC, High Point spent many years competing at the NAIA and NCAA Division II levels. The two schools, located just 89 miles apart, played in 1948 and didn't meet again until November of 2008. Wednesday's contest is the seventh meeting between the two schools and the Pack has won all six of the previous meetings. This is High Point's first game ever at PNC Arena.
