Georgia Tech Open Entry / NC State 79 Ga Tech 74

10-11 Basketball101

Would be very nice to get a home win today as two out-going coaches do battle.

———————————

NC State 79
Georgia Tech 74
(Link)

NC State now has five ACC wins for the season with two games remaining on the schedule. It isn’t what we hoped for when the season kicked off under the mantra of “The Stage is Set”…but, it isn’t the absolute unmitigated disaster it was looking to be the night of the Wisconsin debacle.

Scott Wood’s 20 points helped N.C. State to a 79-74 win over Georgia Tech on Saturday at the RBC Center.
Coming off disappointing losses to Maryland and North Carolina, the Pack got its fifth ACC win of the season but the Yellow Jackets made them earn it.

Every time State (15-13, 5-9 ACC) got hot and stretched out the lead, Georgia Tech answered back. It wasn’t until Wood’s steal and layup with 1:51 left that the Pack could breathe easy.

Tracy Smith added a free throw with 51.9 left to ensure the win, State’s 12th in 13 home games against the Jackets. GT (11-17, 3-11) remains winless on the road this season (0-10) despite 21 points from Iman Shumpert.

State led by 10, 11, 12 and nine at different points in the game but couldn’t put away the Jackets. Shumpert had 15 points in the first 24 minutes then went more than 8 minutes without a field goal attempt and almost 13 minutes between field goals.

State got Smith loose in the post against an over-matched Daniel Miller. Lorenzo Brown added 13 for the Pack.

Brown came out firing for State with three 3s in the first 4 minutes. He hadn’t made more than one 3 in a game this season since the opener on Nov. 12.

About StateFans

'StateFansNation' is the shared profile used by any/all of the dozen or so authors that contribute to the blog. You may not always agree with us, but you will have little doubt about where we stand on most issues. Please follow us on Twitter and FaceBook

10-11 Basketball

101 Responses to Georgia Tech Open Entry / NC State 79 Ga Tech 74

  1. VaWolf82 02/27/2011 at 6:15 PM #

    TOO LATE Luthor…too late.

    and too little

  2. swamppack 02/27/2011 at 7:05 PM #

    Scott Wood gets 20 yesterday, many of them off open looks, simply because it’s GT. Against the well-coached teams, he very seldom gets open looks, resulting in a lower point total on average.

    What am I saying? Sid simply does not know how to counter that well-coached team to get Wood open. We all know Scott is not good at creating his own shot. That’s where the coaching comes in to teach the players around him how to help get him in position for that good look.

    This is just one of many example of failure to utilize great talent.
    HOW LONG would the company you may work for put up with you if you were surrounded by all the necessary assets and still failed at your job?

  3. hball57 02/27/2011 at 7:17 PM #

    The above mention of Scott Wood is one of the reasons I get frustrated reading posts of people judging from the outside.

    Did Scott Wood get open because of the opponent? Or did Scoot Wood get open because he took 2 point shots instead of forcing only 3’s?

    Did Tracy shoot 8/10 because he was playing Ga. Tech? Or did he shoot 8/10 because he was more decisive with the ball?

    Did Lorenzo Brown hit his threes because it was Ga. Tech? Or did he hit the threes because Tracy passed teh ball out quickly before the defense adjusted?

    It is easy to blame it on a Coach, and I am not trying to defend Sidney. But so much of basketball at this level is a learning experience and people learn at different speeds. On top of that, it is not about knowing what to do but making it instinctive.

    Here is an opinion. If Lorenzo Brown had made it to State last year, we would have won a game or two more last year and 4 more games this year. That would be one more player who would be more prepared physically and mentally and we would have had one less player going through he freshman learning curve.

    And someone earlier in the thread asked about Painter. Does this really need an answer? If Vandenburg plays well, where would Painter’s minutes come from? And Painter has not been able to play without fouling lately.

  4. VaWolf82 02/27/2011 at 7:47 PM #

    At this point in the season, there is plenty of evidence to suggest that the answer to all of your questions is “GT”.

  5. mak4dpak 02/27/2011 at 7:55 PM #

    TOB4PREZ, you certainly have a undying loyalty to Sid, not sure why, but there is no way the majority share your sentiment. Hope you can handle a new coach for the red and white next year. It is coming, unless of course we win the “National Championship”. That would be a big “NOT.”

  6. TOB4PREZ 02/27/2011 at 9:36 PM #

    I admire your optimism that Sid will be gone, and will respectfully keep mine with the camp that says he’ll get it done.

  7. GoldenChain 02/27/2011 at 10:00 PM #

    We’ve clawed our way onto the NIT bubble!

    ….can’t take that away from Sid.

  8. hball57 02/27/2011 at 10:11 PM #

    VaWolf, I respectful think your answer is a cop out to simply prove something that you already believe.

    I think a lot of things worked against us this year. The first I mentioned – Lorenzo Brown not making it to school last year. I think Tracey’s injury put the team behind in their growth and development. I think the schedule being front loaded hurt the confidence and development of the team (a little aside, I don’t think you should play a conference team twice until you have played everyone once). But from the thoughtful responses through the smart-assed one liners, I believe no one on this site really understands the process involved from going from HS to College in basketball.

  9. VaWolf82 02/27/2011 at 10:39 PM #

    I don’t play games in the “World of If”. In the real world, State has a grand total of 3 wins this year against teams in the Top 100. GT is currently ranked #181. It’s neither wishful thinking nor rocket science to conclude that State looked better because they played a terrible team.

  10. swamppack 02/27/2011 at 11:52 PM #

    FUN FACTS for 2010-2011 NCSU basketball

    0-9: record against teams that are or have been ranked this year
    172-226: combined record of all teams we have beat this year
    2-4: record against teams that have not been ranked this year,
    not including WF and GT

    Does this finally prove to you bunch of nay-sayers that Sid is getting it done? Well, does it?

  11. swamppack 02/27/2011 at 11:58 PM #

    ^^2-4: record against teams that have not been ranked this year, not including WF and GT, within the ACC

  12. TOB4PREZ 02/28/2011 at 12:14 AM #

    More Fun Facts, while we’re on the subject….

    10: Games missed by the returning leading scorer (1st team pre-season ALL ACC), and senior leader
    2: Games missed by best option at PG and #2 asst guy on the team
    4*: Games missed by 6’8″ athletic phenom (*- includes games he failed to show up in mentally 🙂 or was playing sick
    1: Game missed by one of the best offensive rebounders in the country

    Cool game!

  13. camel77 02/28/2011 at 2:03 AM #

    Come on guys. We have waited this long what would one more year hurt. We iare getting the players in place were you can count on contribution from most of the roster. Next year if a player or the team as a whole is not hustling, he has enough quality of talent to yank out the whole 5 players at a time and sit them on the bench like Roy does with the tar holes when his starters are playing crappy and let them watch from the bench. Sidney couldn’t do that this without a big drop off in talent.

    You have to admit that they are playing better ball the last five or six games. You may say that GT ain’t all that but they are one of the tar holes loses. The two bad loses to Dook and the first Tarholes game, we did’t have all our key player

  14. Hamlet 02/28/2011 at 4:55 AM #

    Huh, I had no idea Monte Towe, Pete Strickland, and Larry Harris posted on this site.

  15. wolfpackbball 02/28/2011 at 7:11 AM #

    I have never been a big contributor to the quality discussion that take place on this site, but I have had my share of soapbox sermons on Lowe over the last couple of years. I have explained every reason why Lowe should get more time to make this thing work. I have listed every excuse as to why things haven’t worked up until that particular point. I have played the ‘he is one of us’ card until it no longer holds any “punch” when I try to pull it now.
    Bottom line: after watching this season, I don’t have any real idea how anyone can say that Coach deserves or should get another year. It has become obvious to the average blind man that the same problems, no matter the talent level, are still occurring.
    I’m certainly not saying that I won’t support Lowe if he gets another year. I don’t see that happening, and I don’t want it to happen. I’m also not trying to ruffle anyone’s feathers. I just wanted to say that another former ardent supporter of keeping Lowe has finally had to switch camps after the obvious finally punched me in the gut this season.

  16. Rick 02/28/2011 at 8:20 AM #

    I did some deleting on TOB as well. Apparently I have a lower tolerance than Va. I deleted a post referencing us a bad fanbase and one referring to the “haters”.
    I will keep doing so.

  17. mak4dpak 02/28/2011 at 8:38 AM #

    MEDICORITY! MEDIOCRITY! MEDICRITY! Is that what we long for? Not me!!!!!

  18. Rochester 02/28/2011 at 9:20 AM #

    More numbers:

    98.5 = percent sure I feel Lowe will be fired

    100 = percent sure I won’t be sending in any Wolfpack Club dues this year if he’s not

    Enough already. Excuses are for losers. We all saw this coming. The asterisk was ready at hand coming into this win-or-else season. “Our best players are freshmen.” If Lowe miraculously (can miracles be bad things?) gets another year, next year’s excuse: “Tracy’s gone and CJL went pro and our best guards were only sophomores.”

    Of course, when a new coach comes in and we immediately improve and make the NCAAT, we’ll hear “It would have happened with Sidney anyway.”

  19. hball57 02/28/2011 at 9:44 AM #

    VaWolf, again I am not advocating for the Coach or his staff. I am pointing out that there is not always a simple answer. Does who you play have something to do with it? Of course. But remember, Ga Tech did beat UNC this year, so it’s not like they are not capable. My point is you can not take a simple minded approach in the “real world”, as you put it. The truth requires some analysis. People who convince themselves of a certain agenda give more importance to posting items to prove their agenda and ignore factors that mitigate their agenda. That is normal. Just like many want to push CJL out the door to the NBA. What factual evidence do you see that he is going? I’ll give the answer – NONE! Unless you know the person, you have no idea. But it makes you argument better, so go ahead and post it.

    Some items are excuses. But if you don’t correctly analyze the reasons, you cannot make the right decision to solve the situation. So I wish more people would take a comprehensive look at the reasons we are here and what the next action should be instead of trying to prove their points by nitpicking items to prove their points.

  20. ms termeaner 02/28/2011 at 9:46 AM #

    ^camel77 Aim high, that is what we want more of the same.

  21. VaWolf82 02/28/2011 at 10:12 AM #

    What factual evidence do you see that he is going? I’ll give the answer – NONE!

    What evidence do you have that he is interested in staying in college?

    So I wish more people would take a comprehensive look at the reasons we are here and what the next action should be…

    As far as I know, no one here gets a vote on what the next action should be so there are no consequences attached to our conclusions. To me, it’s just not that complicated. We have 4.9 years of evidence to use when drawing conclusions. That’s more than enough for me.

  22. hball57 02/28/2011 at 11:36 AM #

    Answer to first question – family contacts.

    By saying what the next action should be, I don’t just me new coach or not, but the endless speculation of which coach and why. I think we could have a valuable discussion of the next step if we took that comprehensive look. Of course there are no consequences to our message board discussions. That is what is both fun about these discussions as well as frustrating about them.

  23. hball57 02/28/2011 at 11:39 AM #

    So VaWolf, what has he shown that CJL is not interested in college?

  24. VaWolf82 02/28/2011 at 12:17 PM #

    Nothing but rumors….but there’s not even that to suggest that CJL is interested in staying.

  25. TOB4PREZ 02/28/2011 at 12:35 PM #

    CJL is 90/10 ref- gone/staying…

    guar-on-tee it.

1 2 3 4 5

Leave a Reply