(8) State vs. (4) Louisville TV: Friday 7:37pm, TBS

MISTA WOLF wrote:

Are yall happy to be here, everything else is gravy, will be pissed if we lose or sacrifice a kitten if we don’t win the NC?

The team has exceeded all expectations and should be proud of their accomplishments. Everything from here on out is definitely gravy.

Two ways that I will be pissed:
If the State team that showed up against BC (and several other games) makes another appearance.
If State loses the game like they lost the ND game (4 pt lead and the ball with a minute to play).

Hell, yes I’ll be pissed!

Who you think is carrying my brackets?!

JesusHChristInaSideCar. Look around to see who’s left.

If you haven’t been entertained by the ride, I just don’t know what to say.

I do…but nothin’ but good medicine shall come off these thumbs.

“Just because you are a character, doesn’t mean that you have character.” I like Winston too.

I’ll be pissed if we lose because that will mean that our season is over. I’ve really fallen in love with this team/program (even though I criticize sometimes) and, as a fan, I want to keep watching them play.

I hope this has not been posted here…..if so, I apologize. Interesting reading….

http://www.gopack.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/032515aaa.html

In case you have NOT heard the story….back in 1979, Jimmy V (pictured in the Tim Peeler article) convinced the GM of Madison Square Garden to book Iona for two TOP 9:00 games. He actually crashed a cocktail party and literally charmed the guy into an appointment and then V took over and get his wish. Jimmy V played HS and was in the Garden for a Championship game.

First game….who cares. Second game….Iona is up against the NUMBER 1 team in the Nation….Louisville. Louisville would win the NCAA Tourney the next spring (1980). In that 9:00 game, late in the season, Jimmy V’s Iona lads took down mighty Louisville….77 – 60. Not a squeaker….and out and out drubbing.

I recall Jimmy V telling the tale in his audio book and if you google Jimmy Valvano Iona Louisville you will get several hits.

This one is cool….and I hope it works….

https://books.google.com/books?id=gbStu-wg1dIC&pg=PA234&lpg=PA234&dq=jim+valvano+iona+madison+square+garden&source=bl&ots=7Kd-OIqty1&sig=NWnxqfv4jXXkJeWi92OrKl5mE0s&hl=en&sa=X&ei=hGYTVZ62IYS1ggSMmoOQAw&ved=0CDYQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=jim%20valvano%20iona%20madison%20square%20garden&f=false

It is LONG. Bottom line, it was part of a series….greatest 100 Sporting Events – NYC. There is an “honorable mention” for every position. So, when you get to #67….it is V’s Iona team vs Kentucky….and the REAL newspaper article reads just like V’s ad libbed comments.

We are at a Time Share in Williamsburg with the GK….the ONLY reason we are not headed to ‘Cuse. We have a 24″ tall “Mr. Wolf” stuffed animal…that I picked for less than a dollar at a Yard Sale. It has been to about every NCSU FB and BB game (including the women…who are STILL playing) since 2012 or so. It graces the steering wheel of whatever car we drive or it is out in the den when we are watching or listening to a game.

Mr. Wolf is WITH US. He is perched atop (sort of behind….peering over) the Flat Screen in the Villa den. Looking down at the TV and watching the action. I did it as a gag and my wife said….”I LIKE IT….it is staying there”. Will have on all our RED (probably no white) and will be cheering with the GK’s.

GO Pack….have a good vibe….and have not had that since you know when…..

IF and I say this very quietly, we advance to a certain unnamed city in the mid west to play some BB, I and my BIL’s wife are going…..whether her husband (my BIL) or my wife goes….is of little consequence. I wanted to go to ABQ in 1983 and she did also…but the DW and BIL voted no….this time….it is a DONE DEAL…

GO PACK….

The LSU game was hell to watch, but the payoff was great. The Nova game was a different experience, but great to watch as well. This week has been great, with all the press (and lack of believers therein, ha). All my Canuck buds know how much I dig NC State sports and they’ve all contacted me about State winning 2. It’s amazing what those first 2 games can do for a program.

I think my favourite moment so far was the Anya block and the subsequent Lacey three before the half in the Nova game. BJ’s heroics in game one is a close second.

So… happy? Yes. Am I done? Nope, and I think the team feels the same way. I’ll let you know how happy I am on Friday evening.

As to the Louisville game, I said right afterwards that I think we have a better than even chance at beating them (though it’s close).

– We’re two teams trending in opposite directions. Pitino can talk all he wants about them becoming a smarter basketball team, but since the loss to State, UL lost to Syracuse, scraped by Miami, GaTech, and UVA by 1,1, and 2 points respectively, and lost by 10 to UNC in the tourney. Before the State game, KenPom ranked them 11th nationally. They’re now ranked 19th (that doesn’t seem like a lot, but it takes a big change to make a major late-season swing). That’s not just the stretch since the State game, it’s the stretch since they lost Chris Jones, a senior and one of their 3 best players. UL is a different team without Jones. We’re obviously on a great run essentially since the loss to WF. We had slip-up at BC, but other than that we’ve been a drastically differently team since the Cataissance/Freeman coming back into the starting lineup.

– We match up extremely well with them. They excel at creating turnovers and we are (and I know this is hard to believe about an NC State team) very good at not turning the ball over. Not only are we good at this over the course of the season, but we’ve been markedly better since Cat’s emergence. With the exception of the Clemson game, our turnover rates have been pretty tiny every game. Louisville is also a very poor shooting team, shooting only 30.8% from 3 on the season (and Jones, at 34%, was their best shooter). They score a large percentage of their points on 2PT shots. We are fairly mediocre defending the 3 (33.1% allowed, 109th nationally). We are excellent defending the paint. Opponents only shoot 43.2% against us from 2.

– Lennard Freeman is great matchup for Montrezl Harrell due to his combination of strength and quickness. He did an awesome job covering Harrell in the first game, and I find no reason to believe he won’t in this game. While Harrell most likely won’t struggle as much as he did in the first game, there’s a good reason why he struggled so much.

– We beat Louisville soundly on the road (which is a much bigger factor than most people think), and since then we’ve continued to play at a high level and they’ve lost ground. I don’t really have any reason to think they should be favored.