Deploy the Panic Button (Clemson 70, NC State 54)

Press it, pound it, or beat the ever-loving piss out of it (my choice). But it’s time, my friends. It’s time.

UPDATE: Oh, and Ben gets hurt in garbage time. Like I’ve said before – the motto of every NC State fan should be “It can always get worse – and it usually does.”

About BJD95

1995 NC State graduate, sufferer of Les and MOC during my entire student tenure. An equal-opportunity objective critic and analyst of Wolfpack sports.

07-08 Basketball NCS Basketball Sidney Lowe

176 Responses to Deploy the Panic Button (Clemson 70, NC State 54)

  1. packbackr04 01/16/2008 at 12:24 PM #

    newt^ and our pgs are going to get better while the rest of the acc gets worse? no my friend, we are truly behind the 8 ball. we are not a good basketball team. period. i would love to hear from Shootinguard or someone else taht might know if anyone is planning on transferring? it really would help us out if Javi would pack his bags and it would really help if costner would stop eating for 5 minutes and get in shape. it freakin january. the knee injury excuse, is just that. An excuse. and excuses are like assholes, everybody’s got one and they all stink!

  2. wallacepark 01/16/2008 at 12:28 PM #

    There seems to be a lot of confusion about this, but Julius Mays is actually a PG.

    He’s only listed as a SG on scout because he can score it and because he’s playing SG on his high school team. His team has other guys who can run the point for them, so Mays plays SG due to his scoring ability. That’s just the position they happen to need him to fill this year. But at the college level, Lowe recruited Mays as a point guard and that’s what position he will play for us.

  3. BladenWolf 01/16/2008 at 12:28 PM #

    The biggest disappointment (I won’t use the word “problem”) so far has been our team’s effort and knowing how to play the game within Lowe’s system.
    Yes, we have a miserable point guard rotation, yes, we have injuries, and yes, we cannot shoot the ball into the ocean while standing on the pier, but the consistent thread throughout the ugly wins and even uglier defeats is our lack of effort and NOT knowing where to be on the court and NOT getting there before the other guy or before the play unfolds.
    How many uncontested 3-pointers were taken by Clemson last night? How many layups did we witness by the smurfs that were only watched by our guys?
    Everyone saw our team last year and those are the same guys this year (most anyway) that beat the Holes and went to the Championship game. You can’t tell me that without Atsur we’ve completely lost all other weapons -while even adding a highly recruited player in Hickson.
    It is effort and knowledge of the game (Lowe’s system), or lack thereof, that is the underlying problem…er…disappointment this season.
    Those are issues that the Coach will have to resolve in the short term. Recruiting will solve them in the long term.
    The Miami game will not be any better unless we start to hustle for the entire game and know what the hell we’re suppose to do.

  4. redfred2 01/16/2008 at 12:33 PM #

    “We would have had to rely on Grant and Fells at PG and that is bad bad news.”

    I’m not disagreeing with your point about Lowe being wise to bring in another PG, but everyone keeps pushing the point about GG or Fells being so terrible at the PG spot in comparison.

    I’d like to ask in comparison to what? The stellar NCSU PG play that we’ve witnessed already this season?

    GG is a 6’7″ or 6’8″ player who wants to run and push, play aggressively and force it on the offensive end, but that’s not an option in Lowe’s scheme at the moment. Fells wants to stand outside and shoot the three. Neither of those two players can play their games when the offense is so slow and deliberate, and there is no movement away from the ball. Those two players can run effectively together, they showed it in the NCAAT game against Cal., when they brought us back from a big deficit and won the game. They just haven’t ever been in a system that required it and they apparently haven’t practiced it either.

    I say Lowe needs rethink this group of kids and make some huge changes in his own current philosophy. Yesterday, wouldn’t be too soon either.

  5. haze 01/16/2008 at 12:41 PM #

    In case it needs clarification, I think Javy has some talent and could blossom into an OK ACC PG. If anything, MJ has more potential and Degand, IMO, more still. However, I also think that offering Javi AFTER having secured Degand, MJ & Julius Mays makes his presence a questionable decision from the standpoint of scholarship management.

    I mean, Mays is a PG/SG guy, so you’re looking at 4PG’s next year and a staff going hot an heavy after another (Wall/Brown) for 2009. That’d be 5 PG’s on the team in 2009 and only 1 that likely has the skills to rotate smoothly to SG (i.e. Mays b/c Wall/MJ/Degand/Javy aren’t serious shooters, don’t know about Brown). That’s almost 40% of your scholarship load at one position. That should, at least, give one pause.

  6. BladenWolf 01/16/2008 at 1:10 PM #

    redfred2-
    Exactly the point. You nailed it. Fells and Grant are great athletes but need to understand what is being asked of them and to respond with hustle and knowledge of Lowe’s system. I agree…it doesn’t look like they even practice together.
    Costner has had just a complete meltdown and shows no interest in playing college ball anymore. Pathetic is too nice of a word to describe his effort thus far.
    The second/third string guards show promise, but are not mature enough (read raw) to play successfully in the ACC.
    Horner continues to play off and on but frankly I expected (hoped for) much more.
    McCauley is also one that has completely bewildered me with his inconsistent effort.

  7. BillyVest 01/16/2008 at 1:12 PM #

    When Sid came in he was recruiting for the ’07 class – this years freshman.

    There weren’t a lot of options available, especially considering the botched nature of the coaching search and how it put any coach behind the rest of the NCAA’s, in terms of recruiting for ’07.

    Given the mess in the program, landing Johny Thomas was a big first step. Degand was Sid’s first recruit and Thomas the first high school player to sign. Sid did a good job in getting Smith and Hickson.

    Some scholarships were questionable, but no more questionable than Mike O’Donnell. Luckily for us Atsur was also a freshman that year, when he became eligible to play in December.

    This is not the place for on-the-job training.

    Given the incompetence of this coaching search, we have no choice but to settle for someone with no college head coaching experience.

    Hopefully Sid has a faster learning curve than Herb, with regards to what needs to be done to win in the ACC.

  8. Bynum State Fan 01/16/2008 at 1:29 PM #

    It all goes back to needing that tough mentality. You knew when you played Washburn & Shackleford that they were going to play you physical. And if they didn’t like the results on the court, they may pay you a visit off the court, and everyone knew you didn’t want that. They played good on both ends of the court (basketball court and court-of-law). We simply do not have that now with the passive nature that our players exemplify. We gotta get back to those championship ways! And given the “street-cred” that Sidney and his son possess, I forsee us getting there pretty soon.

  9. redfred2 01/16/2008 at 1:53 PM #

    Last season McCauley and Costner complimented one another, but those opportunities are rarely there with Lowe’s new lineup adjustments. Why not run a high low with a great passer in 6’9″, Ben McCauley at center, posted out, and feeding it inside to JJ, Costner, GG, Smith, Horner etc., and play OVER THE TOP of the defenders. We definitely have the height. I mean, if your guards can’t start or generate any offense, why not have McCauley in control and lobbing to the big’s or giving the guards an opportunity to slash to the basket mand contribute.

    Uh oh, did I really just say???

    I think Dan, wulfpack, Mr O, etc,… might have something to say on that one.

  10. Ed89 01/16/2008 at 3:03 PM #

    Just saw where supposedly we’ve offered a teammate of Mays in Marion, IN, Scott Wood. He looks like a pure shooter, and I think he was the one Mays was feeding in alot of his video. Here’s some info:

    The number of college programs recruiting Wood indicates the kid can play. His best attribute is he perimeter shooting, and he recently tied the Marion High School record for his 3-point marksmanship.

    On Friday against Logansport, Wood made eight of 13 3-point attempts on his way to 28 points.

    Not sure if we actually did offer, but I think it’s always nice to have a guy 6’5″ that can hit the three.

  11. packgrad93 01/16/2008 at 3:13 PM #

    ^ he’s not on the top of our board, but on it as a fall-back guy.

  12. VaWolf82 01/16/2008 at 4:18 PM #

    Its comments like that from the contributors that keep this site from being taken seriously. Its even more of a joke when the contributors try to edit comments as to cover up any valid criticism or disagreement.

    If you don’t take the site seriously, then feel free to spend your time and energy elsewhere.

    There is a wide difference between valid criticism and some of the crap posted around here recently. There is also a difference between opinions and facts….though many appear to be confused on this issue.

    You lose credibility quickly when you claim that this site muffles valid criticism. In fact, there are State fans that refuse to come here because of the criticism leveled at the RECORD of HWSNBN. The key point being that facts and not merely opinions were used to support the criticism.

    Right now, there are way too many opinions and very few facts. For instance, your example of blocking out is one that I would consider a symptom…rather than the problem itself.

    The key point of my post was that finding and fixing the problems with this team is not easy…and thus may not be quick.

  13. VaWolf82 01/16/2008 at 4:37 PM #

    IMO, Lowe had no idea what he was doing, so he grasped at whatever straws he could find. This is not the place for on-the-job training.

    I agree that desperation likely played a big role in at least some of the PG recruiting decisions. But you and I both lack the details to determine if it was a calculated gamble or pure idiocy.

    There was absolutely no way that Sid could have added anyone to Horner’s class…there are rarely top recruits left on the board by the end of April….4 months before the fall semester starts.

    Most of the top recruits commit over the summer before their senior year of high school. Which means that the coaches have been pursuing them through the junior year and likely during the sophomore year. Failure to acknowledge that this lack of early contact hurt Sid. (And you can’t blame Herb either…he finally got a verbal for ’07 and would have at least “cooled” on other options.)

    Who could Sid get in ’07 class? They did everything they could to get Chris Wright….but whatever he saw in Herb’s offense was obviously where he wanted to play. Who was passed over that showed any interest in State? (Note that this is an honest question….I’m not going to spend my life following the utterings of 16/17 year old kids.)

    The claim that Sid passed over better PG recruits deserves a little supporting evidence before I can accept it.

  14. BladenWolf 01/16/2008 at 4:46 PM #

    I would not play Costner again until he begged to come in. I wouldn’t even look towards him when substituting.

    His visions of playing in the NBA has f’ed up his game completely and the little dream of his would have a severe reality check while his ass got numb on the pine as he watched Hickson (C), McCauley/Fells (PF), and Grant/Horner (SF), and either Johnson, Harris or Smith playing the point and the other, the shooting guard – for the remainder of the schedule or until the begging started.

    IT IS A PRIVILEGE TO PLAY FOR THE WOLFPACK!

  15. Noah 01/17/2008 at 9:33 AM #

    “The claim that Sid passed over better PG recruits deserves a little supporting evidence before I can accept it.”

    If Degand, Johnson and Gonzalez represent the high-water mark of Lowe’s recruiting abilities…what’s the point of him being here?

  16. partialqualifier 01/17/2008 at 10:32 AM #

    Agree 100% Noah!

    Everyone keeps excusing Lowe b/c the PG’s suck, but hell we’ve got 3 on the roster that he recruited! How does he get a free pass for filling up 3 scholarships and not getting us one guy who can play at least at a Justin Gainey level (which I dont think is setting the bar too high!)?

    Another we sorely lack is three point shooting. Lowe has recruited 5 guards and not one of them can make a 3 if their life depended on it! Degand, Johnson, Javy, Trev, and even the Mays kid coming next year isnt regarding as a “great” shooter. I mean WTF?

  17. packgrad93 01/17/2008 at 12:13 PM #

    Mayes is shot over 40% from 3 his jr season.

  18. pakfanistan 01/17/2008 at 1:35 PM #

    Who is “Noah” and what happened to “noah”?

    F–, would not buy again.

    Who claims that Degand, Johnson and Gonzalez are Sid’s “high-water” mark?

    As has been stated already, we had no options for the 2006 and we missed on our top 2007 prospect. Besides, Johnson was supposed to be good, top 150 kind of guy, top 20-30 guard.

    I’m sick of all the rec league coaches saying what THEY would do, when the reality of the situation is what THEY would do is make Les Robinson look like Norm Sloan.

  19. Ed89 01/17/2008 at 2:23 PM #

    Bladenwolf, I think you’ve got a few players mixed up. Fells is good, but he’s no PF, and if we start playing Harris or Smith at the point, I will surely just start laughing.

  20. TNCSU 01/17/2008 at 2:31 PM #

    VAWolf,
    As to who could Sid get in ‘07 class? Who was passed over that showed any interest in State? I know we were interested in Jamelle McMillan (Nate’s son) who decided to stick with Herb and go to ASU. Also, Jai Lucas, who I feel is overrated and went to Florida. Next is Chris Warren, who is tearing it up at Ole Miss. Of these three, I think the Staff must have thought they all lacked size. Both Lucas and Warren are 5’10” IIRC. Not sure if Nate and Sid know each other well, but I thought it interesting that Jamelle chose ASU or State.

  21. TNCSU 01/17/2008 at 4:23 PM #

    http://northcarolinastate.scout.com/a.z?s=178&p=8&c=1&nid=2879370

    If we don’t get Wall in ’09 (which I hope we do), we may want to look at this guy. We could have a trio of C.J.’s.

  22. spanky 01/18/2008 at 10:26 AM #

    partial^ degand was shooting 50% from behind the arc (granted it was 8 for only 16) it’s still was far above anyone else….

  23. packgrad93 01/18/2008 at 11:53 AM #

    “I know we were interested in Jamelle McMillan (Nate’s son) who decided to stick with Herb and go to ASU.”

    he’s not doing much at ASU.

  24. packgrad93 01/18/2008 at 12:02 PM #

    ASU did beat Cal last night though

  25. TNCSU 01/18/2008 at 3:43 PM #

    I didn’t think so – I hadn’t heard much. At this point, we “have what we have” wrt PG’s, so our main concern should be to develop them as best we can, or to use our current players as best we can.

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