NC State 90 Wake Forest 69

10-11 Basketball88

Lots of great conversation from today’s game in this blog entry and also on our message boards.  NC State NEVER TRAILED and led a Big Four rival by 29 points with two minutes to go in the game when the Pack was up 90-61.  That is just fantastic.

Tracy Smith scored 23 points to help North Carolina State beat Wake Forest 90-69 on Saturday in the Atlantic Coast Conference opener for both teams.

Freshman C.J. Leslie added 19 points as the Wolfpack (11-4, 1-0) won an ACC opener for the first time under fifth-year coach Sidney Lowe. N.C. State scored the game’s first six points and led the entire day, dominating in the paint and on the boards to win its sixth straight against the Demon Deacons (7-9, 0-1) in Raleigh.

N.C. State led by just four early in the second half, but ran off nine straight points to push the margin back up to double figures. The lead only grew from there, reaching as many as 29 points late in an impressive second-half performance for a team waiting for its breakout year in the league.

You can click here for ESPN’s comprehensive GameCenter. 

The following stat lines tell the story of the individual players that elevated statistically, but every Wolfpacker made key contributions in their own roles & responsibilities on the floor: Tracy Smith – 23 points, 11 rebounds; CJ Williams – 16 points, 7 rebounds; CJ Leslie – 19 points, 6 rebounds.

 

Sidney & Wake Forest

One of my favorite things about Sidney Lowe has been his ability to consistently beat Wake Forest.  I know that sounds somewhat lame – especially to any Wolfpackers over the age of 40 – but it needs to be said after Les Robinson went 2-10 against Dave Odom  and Herb Sendek went 9-15 against the Demon Deacons.

Sidney Lowe has never lost to Wake Forest in the RBC Center and is now 6-3 overall vs the Deacs.  (The Wolfpack’s last loss to Wake Forest in the RBC Center came in 2005.)

NC State has now won 11 of the last 18 games against Wake, including the last six games played in Raleigh. NC State is 8-4 all-time against Wake Forest at the RBC Center.

Opening Nuggets

NC State is now 32-26 all-time in ACC openers, including a mark of 18-8 when opening conference play at home. This was the first time that NC State opened the conference season at home under Sidney Lowe, and it was Coach Lowe’s first opening game win while at NC State.

 

N&O

The N&O has some observations from Saturday available by clicking here and their photo gallery is available by clicking here.

One thing Tracy Smith could work on while he was rehabbing his left knee was his jump shot. Smith showed more range with his face-up game and more confidence in his jump shot against Wake.

He hit a catch-and-shoot baseline jumper from about 12 feet at 6:57 in the second half that was previously not part of his offensive arsenal.

"When I couldn’t practice, I worked on my shot," said Smith, who missed 10 games with a knee injury.

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10-11 Basketball

88 Responses to NC State 90 Wake Forest 69

  1. choppack1 01/09/2011 at 2:20 PM #

    “IMHO, with the recruiting successes Sid earned another year even if we don’t make the NCAA this year.”

    Lee Fowler – is that you?

    I can’t believe this, let’s not take a victory where we played pretty well and use it as some kind of statement game.

    This Wake Forest team almost lost to UNC-G – a team that hadn’t won a game all season. This Wake Forest team has lost to Stetson, VCU, Winthrop and Presbytyrian.

    All this win proves is that Lowe shouldn’t have been fired after the game yesterday.

    Keep in mind, in every season Lowe has coached at NC State – at some point, we’ve looked really good. The problem is that we don’t see those kind of efforts in enough of the games that he is coaching.

    As far as recruiting, he’s proved he’s a solid recruiter, but very little else – and to date, it’s an insult to Paul Hewitt to call him a poor man’s Paul Hewitt.

    We do owe to Lowe and these freshman – to see how the rest of the season flushes out. Harrow, Lowe and Leslie are exceptional talents – and we’ve got a solid foundation to build upon. We have depth, speed and talent. We’re a little short in the post, but not so short, slow, weak and unathletic that we shouldn’t rebound well.

    All the tools are there this year – it’s just a matter if Lowe can use them and motivate them adequatelhy.

  2. packalum44 01/09/2011 at 2:55 PM #

    ^ Well said Chop. But is making the dance an automatic extension??? Hell scratch extension…I want Lowe gone short of an elite 8.

    He’s no good. We have so much talent relative to the ACC this year that a deaf, dumb and blind man could could this team to the tournament. We still might fall short.

  3. Phang 01/09/2011 at 3:11 PM #

    “Lee Fowler – is that you?”

    Nope, I want us to return to the prominence we used to enjoy. This was the way it was done “back then”.

    Most of you youngsters have short attention spans.

  4. wufpup76 01/09/2011 at 3:16 PM #

    ^I can’t see him being let go if we make the Sweet 16.

    Not saying I agree or disagree, but if a Sweet 16 did come to fruition (big ‘if’) I’d be very surprised if we made a change.

    But we might be getting a little far off topic.

  5. Lunatic Fringe 01/09/2011 at 3:17 PM #

    I keep hearing people state that BC will be the real test for this team, but is BC really that good.

    BC has lost to Rhode Island, Yale, and Harvard. Any self-respecting ACC school should be embarrassed to have TWO Ivy League losses on their resume. You get a pass for one loss say in Princeton’s hay day or the revamped Harvard Crimson with Tommy A leading the way, but TWO losses…sigh.

    The only team that they have beat that I would consider solid is Texas A&M (on the road).

    They did beat Maryland (on the road), but up to this point Maryland has not proven anything. I find myself agreeing with Debbie Yow a lot now a days and perhaps it is time for Gary Williams to hang it up. The fact is the ACC is down, way down, this year.

  6. mak4dpak 01/09/2011 at 3:23 PM #

    Great win for State, but looking at WFs record, and who they lost to, is nothing to get too excited about. Let’s see what we do on the road against BC, and VT, before I gain any faith in what Sid might accomplish this year.

  7. Wulfpack 01/09/2011 at 3:34 PM #

    No team in the ACC, outside the Duke Blue Devils, of course, is worth a damn nationally. We are as good as any of the others, and certainly have more talent than them. Of course, we won’t play like it but for maybe 5 or 6 games.

  8. packfan03 01/09/2011 at 3:51 PM #

    1-0.

    We did what we were supposed to do. BC isn’t Duke, but they aren’t Wake either. It will be a good road test for our team.

    It’s amazing that some of you can’t simply be positive after this performance.

  9. whitefang 01/09/2011 at 4:04 PM #

    “It’s amazing that some of you can’t simply be positive after this performance.”
    Performance? We beat a terrible Wake team at home by 21 points. I wasn’t that positive after we beat Western Carolina by 41 in football either. I got a lot more positive later in the season.
    We haven’t won any games of national significance yet. We are one hell of a long way from the NCAA tourney. Maybe we make it. I hope we do. But in the words of the immortal Winston Wolfe, “Well let’s not start…” Well you know the rest.

  10. packfan03 01/09/2011 at 4:22 PM #

    Beating WF, obviously, is not a season-altering moment. I understand that, and obviously most of the people on this site do. It reflects that we have reached a point, in this season, that we are expected to thrash the bottom-feeders of this conference. That, coupled with the fact that we have Tracy back and did indeed thrash this bottom-dweller, is positive.

    And it’s true, we have four years of experience with Lowe to be disappointed with, some of you will argue. But you know what? He’s still our coach, he’s still the leader of what seems to be a decent team this year, and we have a chance (hopefully you can acknowledge that) to really accomplish something this season. At this point, you can’t really control anything but your attitude towards the present.

    I have my doubts about BC, FSU, and Duke coming up, but I’m happy we demolished WF to a point that their coach kept them in the locker room for an additional 30 mins basically questioning their manhood.

  11. packfan03 01/09/2011 at 4:27 PM #

    NCcoastalwolf,

    We can all question Lowe to great extents, but to not acknowledge the good when it’s good (and for that matter the bad when it’s bad) is a disservice to the program. That’s my personal belief and is not meant to attack anyone.

    We were terrible against Wisc., etc. (even without Tracy) and that is a concern. As a fan, I expect our teams to play hard regardless of their backs being against the wall.

    We have played well since Tracy has returned. I can acknowledge that we are trending upwards. I hope Lowe succeeds, but I’m sure even he realizes deep down that he has to make measurable progress this year or else Yow will can him, and rightfully so.

    I’m still optimistic, but am willing to call a spade a spade.

  12. choppack1 01/09/2011 at 4:30 PM #

    “Nope, I want us to return to the prominence we used to enjoy. This was the way it was done “back then”.

    Most of you youngsters have short attention spans.”

    Uh, I’m 40 years old – and my attention span is plenty good, and a I have a great memory. And I can tell you, in the last 4 seasons, at some point or another, I’ve thought to myself, “You know, this Sidney Lowe thing just may work out” at some point in every season.

    We beat a team that is pretty awful yesterday. We looked good doing it. However, you don’t make it to the dance – or advance in the dance by beating up on the worst teams in the league AT FRIGGIN’ HOME. You do it by beating the bad ones at home and on the road. You do it by beating the good ones at home – and a couple of good teams on the road. You do it by being well prepared and executing for at least 13 of your 16 league games – and then, just then, maybe you’ll be on the bubble.

    I enjoyed yesterday’s win. But it was exactly what a team that will qualify for the NIT will do.

    Beating Wake Forest this year at home is the equivalent of showing up for work sober, shaved and properly dressed: It just means you don’t get fired for showing up. You don’t get a raise, you didn’t do anything special, you’re just better than the dregs who don’t do that.

  13. Phang 01/09/2011 at 5:23 PM #

    “I enjoyed yesterday’s win. But it was exactly what a team that will qualify for the NIT will do.”

    So what would the eventual ACC Champion have done?

  14. triadwolf 01/09/2011 at 5:36 PM #

    What I know from yesterdays game:

    – We took care of business and never allowed a inferior team to gain confidence or threaten;

    – We are 1-0 in the conference and one game closer to the 9 or 10 wins it will take to get in the tourney;

    – We looked more like a team and played with more energy than we have since Georgetown;

    – I was concerned that Tracy Smith would have some rust and have to get up to speed – not a worry now.

    Now we need to be prepared for BC and play with the same energy and get to 2-0 and then maybe I’ll know a couple additional things.

  15. Wulfpack 01/09/2011 at 5:49 PM #

    After 4 years of shoddy play, there is enough evidence for me to form a reasonable opinion of Sidney Lowe. We were great yesterday. No doubt. We are much better with Tracy Smith in the lineup, no question. But there is a very steep hill to climb. We didn’t do squat against the 4 teams we needed to do well against in the early season. In fact, in a couple of them we were downright awful.

    I will give credit where credit is due yesterday. But folks, it was Wake Forest, probably one of the worst “major” programs in basketball this year. Reasonable minds understand that.

  16. NCcoastalwolf 01/09/2011 at 6:08 PM #

    choppack1, I don’t know why you would have thought the past four teams would be decent when they only had one true ACC caliber player, and he wasn’t a point guard. So you really expected something from nothing. At this point we have something. Alot more than the past 4 years. I also am over 40 and remember our glory days very well. The past 20 years no team we had has had this much talent. Not even close. If you don’t see progress since the Wisconsin game then you are not looking for it. People complain because we don’t destroy a cupcake. Well we destroyed one convincingly. If we beat BC the argument will be they we overrated and lost to ivy league teams. I know that 85%of having a good program is talent. We have it. Let it play out. Trust. He won’t learn how to coach this year. The difference will be who he’s coaching.

  17. 61Packer 01/09/2011 at 6:46 PM #

    “He won’t learn how to coach this year.”- NCcoastalwolf

    Just how much longer do you think it’ll take? I’m over 60 and I’m way past the age of believing the coach just needs another year or two. This team still can’t (or won’t) play solid defense, they still have long lapses (i.e. the first half of the Wake game), they still have too many turnovers, yadda yadda yadda.

  18. DucoPack 01/09/2011 at 7:31 PM #

    In the recent post about HWSNBN it was correctly pointed out that the cupboard was more than bare when he left. The same was true for TOB and the football program. Both Sid and TOB came to Raleigh with the deck stacked against them, now both seem to be turning it around. Has it taken longer than it should have? I don’t know. The post that detailed what CTC left us was sobering. Herb left the basketball program just as bad and his recruiting class that all jumped ship upon his departure haven’t exactly made headlines where they ended up (with the possible exception of C. Wright). We can’t miss the fact that the two headline programs were in miserable shape when their respective heads came in.

    TOB appears to have his type of players in place, this season’s outcome seems to demonstrate that. Sid finally has his players in place, but they are all essentially freshmen. His team’s performance has been spotty, but in basketball injuries count for more and T. Smith was a huge injury for this team. We did to WAKE what we should have done to that team. Indications seem to point to the fact that CJW had a break through game yesterday. Surely someone with that talent, playing at this level would see that and concentrate on his success yesterday by turning that into every game performance.

    As Phang points out Sid seems to use the regular season like V did. I used to get incredibly frustrated with some regular season losses that just should not have happened. But, his teams seemed to always be ready come tournament time. I know I want to win every game, but I am a fan. Coaches look at games differently.

  19. Wolfy__79 01/09/2011 at 8:28 PM #

    our defensive efforts have been improving.. turns are still a work in progress, well as is everything. let’s keep in mind we have javi, a senior that plays with a sophomore’s maturity, and a freshman pg combo. turnovers are going to happen.

  20. Wolfy__79 01/09/2011 at 8:34 PM #

    hold on though, hasn’t anyone been pleased with a couple of Sidney’s ACC tourney runs? i’m not trying to save anyone’s job here but all this talk seems a little one sided?

    i’m all in this year for Sidney Lowe! we need results, but we also should support the coach as well. very poor attendance thus far!

  21. Wolfy__79 01/09/2011 at 8:42 PM #

    what a perfect way to start the ACC season:

    wake, then a little step up with bc, and another step up to fsu both being on the road. great preperation into facing duke at home!

    last year people were saying beating duke was a “signature win” for us, this year’s signature win was as simple as a win against a weak wfu. its a little earlier than last year and plenty of oppurtunities remain to solidify our team into the ncaa 🙂

  22. Phang 01/09/2011 at 9:05 PM #

    Like NCcoastalwolf and DucoPack said, we are just this year getting the kind of recruits we used to get in the case-sloan-valvano era. That is a big step up over the last 20+ years.

    The only ingredients we are missing now at the high-skill positions is maturity and experience.

    Tracy being injured was a big set back. He’s the rock, and we struggled without him. But I can see improvement.

    Remember, the ’83 team would never have made the NCAAs if they hadn’t won the ACC tournament. They weren’t even a bubble team.

    We have more excellent players in the pipeline. Unless the team stinks it up royally for the rest of the season, MHO is that Sid gets another year. More if we do amazing things.

  23. Wolfy__79 01/09/2011 at 9:22 PM #

    meanwhile maryland is exposing duke’s weakness in the low post? suprised?

  24. Wolfy__79 01/09/2011 at 9:28 PM #

    ^^ i agree phang. he has an eye for talent. he’s all over guys early, before they pop up on the radar. unlike unc-ch recruiting which is pick and choose. f.e. see quintin thomas, larry drew etc.

    i like the idea that tracy can come in and carry the load or atleast get us started down low and all our guards/other forwards have to do is add to his game. makes a huge difference in the outcome.

    we had losses while tracy was gone but it allowed alot of playing time for both howell and painter making them the go to’s in the post.. despite the losses the team has continued to get better!

  25. packfan03 01/09/2011 at 9:33 PM #

    I think CJL will match up with Kyle Singler as well as anyone else in the ACC.

    I was very impressed with Zo’s D against JT Terrell for Wake. He didn’t have a decent look from 3 all game. Say what you want about Wake, but that kid is a volume scorer.

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