December 5, 2011
NC STATE BASKETBALL
JP GIGLIO (N&O)
Pack loses lead, game
With each trip to the foul line by Stanford, Lorenzo Brown could feel N.C. State unraveling.
By the end of the free-throw parade on Sunday at Maples Pavilion, there was nothing left of the Wolfpack after a 76-72 road loss to the Cardinal.
Stanford (8-1) hit 29 free throws, out of 34 attempts, to erase a 12-point Wolfpack advantage and send N.C. State home with its second-straight loss to a major-conference opponent and second-straight loss in which it held a lead in the final 8 minutes.
“We lost our heads towards the end of the game,” said Brown, who finished with 12 points and six rebounds. “The calls got to some of the players on our team. We started pouting. You can’t do that.”
JP GIGLIO (N&O)
Observations: Fouls and cramps hobbled Wolfpack
Junior guard Scott Wood fouled out for the second straight game, and that’s a pattern Gottfried would like to nip in the bud. Wood picked up three fouls in the first half, his third on a mindless offensive foul with 2:32 left in the half. He fouled out with 5:03 left after head referee Jamie Luckie called a double foul on Wood and Stanford guard Chasson Randle for getting tied up in the post. Gottfried said Wood, who finished with eight points, needs to play smarter. ”If you have four fouls, you can’t put yourself in that spot,” Gottfried said.
EDWARD G. ROBINSON III (N&O)
Holston lifts Wolfpack
N.C. State senior Bonae Holston has scored 1,286 career points, but it wasn’t until Sunday afternoon that she scored her first game-winning shot.
With the score tied 53-53 headed into the final six seconds, Holston, a 5-foot-11 forward, took a pass inside, turned and splashed a short jumper through the nets, handing the Wolfpack a 55-53 victory against South Carolina at Reynolds Coliseum.
Holston, who scored a game-high 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds, helped the Wolfpack (5-2) snap a two-game losing streak.
“When you’re a little kid, you dream about hitting the game-winning shot,” Holston said. “That was the first one in my life.”
N.C. State coach Kellie Harper, who called for a set play after Holston made a steal on defense, said jokingly, “That might have been something I would’ve liked to have known.”
Harper then said, “Maybe I didn’t need to know.”
ACC FOOTBALL
ANDREW CARTER (N&O)
8 ACC teams headed to bowls
N.C. State won’t have to travel far to play in its third bowl game in the past four seasons. The Wolfpack, who became bowl eligible with a wild, come-from-behind victory against Maryland in its regular-season finale, will play against Louisville in the Belk Bowl in Charlotte on Dec. 27.
N.C. State is one of eight ACC teams that will play in a postseason game. North Carolina will play against Missouri on Dec. 26 in the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La., and Wake Forest will play against Mississippi State on Dec. 30 in the Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tenn.
For the first time in the 14-year history of the Bowl Championship Series, the ACC will have two teams playing in BCS bowls.
JIM YOUNG (accsports.com)
Second Thoughts On The ACC Title Game
Virginia Tech came into the ACC title game on roll. Clemson essentially backed its way up I-85 to Charlotte, thanks to three losses in its last four.
Clearly, the Hokies were going to roll to the Orange Bowl, right?
Not in the ACC.
The league where the unexpected is expected delivered another plot twist on Saturday night, as the Tigers dominated Virginia Tech in the second half on their way to a 38-10 win.
Much like the Hokies, I find myself slightly dazed and asking “what happened?â€
I’ll try to collect a few of my thoughts, though.
