University of North Carolina Athletics
NC State Game Guide
February 21, 2007 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 21, 2007
By Lauren Brownlow
The Basics
No. 5 North Carolina (23-4, 9-3) is coming off a 77-72 win over Boston College in Chestnut Hills on Saturday. The Tar Heels sit in first place in the ACC standings, tied with Virginia but since they hold the tiebreaker, they control their own destiny. NC State (14-11, 4-8) is coming off an 81-56 drubbing of Virginia Tech at home on Sunday to sweep the series against the Hokies. The Wolfpack shot 66.7% for the game and 73.3% from the three-point line. It was NC State's first victory since its 83-79 win over North Carolina on February 3rd.
Game Time: NC State at North Carolina, 9 p.m.
Last Time: NC State defeated North Carolina 83-79 in Raleigh on February 3rd. NC State shot 60.5% for the game and 76.5% in the second half. The Wolfpack led by as many as 12, and a Carolina comeback that fell short got it as close as 80-77 with 1:08 left.
Four out of five Carolina starters scored in double figures for the game. Reyshawn Terry had just two points. Tyler Hansbrough led the way with 24 points on 9-of-16 shooting and added eight rebounds. Ty Lawson had 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting and added seven assists, one steal and just one turnover in a then-season high 31 minutes. Brandan Wright added 15 points and six rebounds and Wayne Ellington had 11 points on 3-of-9 shooting.
All five NC State starters scored in double figures. Courtney Fells led the way with a career-high 21 points (4-of-5 from the three-point line) and added four rebounds, two steals and three blocks in 35 minutes. Ben McCauley had 17 points on 6-of-6 shooting from the field. Gavin Grant had 16 points (including 2-of-3 from beyond the arc), three rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal in a team-high 39 minutes. Brandon Costner added 15 points and 11 rebounds. Engin Atsur had 12 points, 10 assists and three steals.
Radio Coverage: Tar Heel Sports Network coverage begins at 8 p.m.
Storylines
Dictating the flow and tempo: Carolina had been involved in a back-and-forth game with Boston College the whole night. At one point in the second half, the Tar Heels even had a nine-point lead but the Eagles managed to cut it to two points with 11:21 to go. The home town crowd was on its feet, but they wouldn't stay there long because four seconds later, Ty Lawson had already driven the length of the court and was preparing to shoot two free throws. With 9:26 to go, a Tyrese Rice lay-up cut the lead to one point and Ty Lawson drove the length of the court yet again in six seconds to make a lay-up.
"We did that like three or four times today. Reyshawn (Terry) got a three-point play off of that and I got a lay-up," Lawson said. "When they're coming back like that and they're only down two, it is kind of demoralizing. It's like, `Man, they keep coming at us.'"
After that first Lawson lay-up attempt that resulted in free throws, Coach Williams saw that his team was finally doing what he has been asking it to do all season - attack, attack, attack.
"One of the big plays of the game to me was that they make a basket to cut it to two, the crowd's going crazy and we took it out-of-bounds and attacked and Ty got fouled and made two free throws," Roy Williams said. "There was a timeout, and I said, `That's the way we've got to be. If somebody scores against us, we have to attack.' I've said that all year long and every day since I've ever been a coach, but this team has an ability to get it and get it in."
The Boston College game stands in stark contrast to Carolina's loss at NC State, when the Tar Heels were not able to force a fast tempo to exploit their vast depth advantage against the Wolfpack. "It's something that our players understand a little bit more now. We allowed State to set the pace of the game. It wasn't unbelievably slow - it was in the 80's - but we've just got to do a better job of whatever we do," Coach Williams said. "If we decide to play 2-3 zone and walk it up the court ourselves, we've got to do a better job of it. We had the intent over there but we certainly didn't do a good job of it and they dominated the game."
The Tar Heels forced plenty of turnovers - 22, to be exact - and scored 30 points off of those turnovers. Carolina had just 10 fast break points, however, and the Carolina bench had just six points. In NC State's three losses since the North Carolina game, NC State's opponents have scored 52 points off of almost 15 turnovers a game. The main problem with Carolina's defense was its inability to defend effectively in the halfcourt.
"We came out first possession of the game and didn't have the focus that we needed to defensively and what we had said we were going to do and what we had practiced that we were going to do. We never did establish it basically the whole game. They acted on the offensive end, and we reacted to them the entire game," Coach Williams said.
Perhaps more important than NC State's ability to dictate the pace of the last meeting was the fact that when the Wolfpack set up its offense, Carolina could do very little defensively to disrupt its flow. NC State shot 76.5% in the second half largely because of its ability to work the ball inside out, much the same way Carolina likes to do, and execute screen and rolls and backdoor cuts largely unimpeded. Carolina's experience defending the disciplined flex offense that Boston College runs could prove useful in this game in terms of avoiding defensive letdowns.
"We have to get hands up on shots and contest everything; bring our intensity better than we did last time. That was a key to the game, is they came out and were the aggressors and got us back on our heels. That's something we can't do," Tyler Hansbrough said. "We can't just say we're going to try to win every game. We have to look at each opponent one by one and really concentrate on a lot of things the team does and try to take them away from what they do."
Roy Williams is not quite comfortable with the way that this team full-court presses and traps yet, especially on the road. In order for the Tar Heels to dictate pace against the Wolfpack today, they will likely throw some pressure and traps at the guards. Engin Atsur was able to walk the ball up the court for much of the game, and when the Wolfpack was able to set up their halfcourt offense, they exploited any and all of Carolina's defensive lapses to find the open man.
"It's very important, especially for our guards to get and pressure their guards and force them to make some mistakes. We have to get out and pressure them, and hopefully they won't be able to get any clean looks inside to the post players."
Intensity: Every time Boston College punched Carolina in the mouth on Saturday, the Tar Heels bounced right back up from the canvas and retaliated. They won a tough game on the road in a hostile environment against a team that needed - and wanted - a win. They made the plays down the stretch when it counted the most.
"I think we showed that we do have toughness. It's going to take more than one game to show how really tough we are. We have to bring it like we did tonight every game. We'll take it game by game, and then we'll find out what we're really made of," Tyler Hansbrough said.
One would think, knowing the circumstances, that this team would have no problem getting motivated for this game, especially since NC State beat Carolina in their last meeting. However, Virginia Tech was a revenge game and was also played at home, but Carolina could not pull that game out and started the game off without intensity. The Boston College game was a very different story; it remains to be seen how many more wake-up calls this young team will need this season before it manages to come out and bring the intensity every night.
"I would have thought that before the Virginia Tech game, I would have felt like our guys would pull the nails out of the floor. The first five minutes, they whacked us on the backboards and it was just effort and concentration. So who knows? We'll just wait and see," Coach Williams said. "Our intensity level for the most part this year has been sensational, but I don't think we were anywhere near as intense against Virginia Tech as we were against Boston College. Intensity levels, I always grade it by looking at the rebounding, who is getting the loose balls, those kinds of things. I thought we were much more attentive to detail in the Boston College game than we were in the Virginia Tech game," Coach Williams said.
This is arguably one of the best collections of talent ever assembled at Carolina, and the fact that talent does not always translate into wins is just as puzzling to Carolina fans as it is to Coach Williams. The Tar Heels had two terrible practices before the Virginia Tech game and the game reflected that. But they followed that up with two great practices and won a tough road game.
"I think our kids are intelligent kids. They know what it was like Sunday and Monday, and they know what we played like Tuesday night. They know what it was like the last two days and how we played. If we don't maintain the intensity now, then we're not going to have it. That's the bottom line. I think our kids will practice hard, I think they'll play hard. Again, they're intelligent kids and they see the difference in how we played tonight compared to how we played Tuesday," Coach Williams said.
An important thing to remember is that, despite all the talent on this squad, it is still very young. There are only two seniors and one junior. The sophomores might feel old because of last season, but they are still young and the freshmen account for 50% of scoring this season. The freshmen are used to dominating their high school games and coasting to relatively easy victories based on talent alone. The NC State game was an example of how just showing up is not enough in league play.
"I don't think anybody would think we're not having a good season. Teams are going to lose regardless of how talented they are," Wayne Ellington said. "The important thing is we're learning from our losses, and we're trying to move on and get ready for the next four games we have in our league and to play after that. It's definitely not easy at all. We have to raise our play and come out and compete hard every game."
"I gave them a quote for today, `Champions have to have the skill, but they also have to have the will. The true champions, the will is much greater than the skill.' We do have to have both, but we have to understand that the other teams have some of those things, too," Coach Williams said.
At The Game
Listening to the Tar Heel Sports Network at the game: The in-stadium frequency in the Smith Center will be FM 92.7. That station will have a non-delayed feed of WCHL 1360, the local affiliate.
Watching At Home
Turn down the sound: If you're watching at home while listening to the radio or over the computer via Carolina All-Access, there will inevitably be some delay. For the reason - and a possible solution - click here.
A full list of THSN affiliates can be found here.
Raycom-LF coverage: The game will be available on Raycom-Lincoln Financial.
Names To Know
Brandan Wright: The freshman Wright still leads the league in field-goal percentage at 65.3% and is on pace to break Sam Perkins' freshman record of 62.6%. He is 15th in the league in scoring with 14.6 points a game and 12th in rebounding with 6.4 a game. He also ranks sixth in both defensive rebounds (4.5 a game) and blocked shots (1.73 a game).
Wright is shooting 62.8% from the field in league play and averaging 13.6 points in 27.3 minutes a game. He is also averaging 6.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.1 steals, 1.8 blocks and 1.7 turnovers in league play. In home league games, Wright is actually averaging 12.3 points a game compared to 14.9 on the road, and is shooting 55.6% from the field compared to 69.5% in ACC road games. He is averaging 6.5 rebounds in ACC home games and 6.2 on the road in league play, but 2.3 offensive rebounds in ACC home games compared to just 1.5 in ACC road games. He is averaging nearly a block less a game in ACC home games (1.3) compared to ACC road games (2.3), but he is averaging 1.5 assists and 1.5 turnovers at home compared to 0.5 assists and 1.8 turnovers on the road. He is also averaging 1.5 steals at home in league play compared to 0.7 in road games.
Carolina is 3-3 in games in which Wright shoots right at 50% or less from the field. Against NC State, he had 15 points, shot 6-of-12 from the field (50%) and made 3-of-4 free throws (75%). He also tied a season high with four fouls, which has only happened one other time. It was his sixth turnover-free game of the season and his second in ACC play. It also marked the most minutes played in an ACC game for Wright this season (31) and tied his season-high.
Against Boston College, Wright showed he could be as tough as his counterpart in the post Tyler Hansbrough by playing 30 minutes with a hurt shoulder and scoring 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the field and 1-of-1 from the free-throw line. He only managed three rebounds, a season-low in league play, but he blocked three shots and had a steal.
"I was very pleased with his (Brandan Wright's) toughness, because I said it earlier on Friday (that) I don't think he would have played (if the game were on Friday). He said, `Oh Coach, I would have played.' I wouldn't have played him (on Friday). Saturday, to go out there, and that was a physical game but he did fine," Coach Williams said.
The only obvious flaw in Wright's seemingly-effortless game is his free-throw shooting. He is shooting 55.3% from the line over the court of the season and 46.7% in conference play. In non-conference play, he shot 60.9% from the line. His made free throws per game have gone down in league play, as he averaged 2.8 made free throws out of 4.6 attempts in non-conference play and averages 1.8 made free throws and 4.4 attempts per game in league play. The good news, however, is that while Wright has been shooting 38.9% from the line in ACC road games and averaging just 3.0 attempts, he is averaging 4.5 attempts in ACC home games and making 51.9%. In his last five games, he is shooting 6-of-11 (54.5%) from the line.
"Brandan's problem is his hands on the basketball. A lot of times, he's got it way too much in the palm of his hand. He's 18 years old, he's been shooting it that way forever and it's hard to get him to change. You should bend your knees and fully extend, extend your arm and get a good follow-through. Brandan's problem is not his knees; he's got to get better hand position on the ball," Coach Williams said.
Reyshawn Terry: Terry had a "senior moment" against Boston College on Saturday, hitting two of the most important three-pointers of the season to help clinch the game for the Tar Heels. He guarded Boston College's Jared Dudley and despite a few lapses (including two fouls on three-point attempts and allowing Dudley to get behind him for a few lay-ups), he worked relentlessly, chasing Dudley around screens and trying to make it difficult. He ultimately made the defensive play of the night, getting a hand in Dudley's face but avoiding the foul on a three-point attempt at the end of the game that clanged harmlessly off the rim.
"Reyshawn Terry needs some of those positive feelings. He's done a great job defensively all year, but he's had people questioning so many things because he hasn't done it very much offensively," Coach Williams said.
Though Terry does not rank in the top 25 in the league in scoring, he is still No. 15 in rebounding (5.9 a game) and ninth in defensive rebounding (4.4 a game). Since the NC State game, when, as Roy Williams put it, he got as many rebounds as his wife Wanda Williams (zero), Terry has averaged 7.5 rebounds in the last four games, including his first double-double of the season against Duke the next game. Terry will definitely need to out-rebound Wanda Williams and avoid fouling out (as he did in the last game) for Carolina to succeed in this game. After all, Terry has averaged 24.6 minutes a game in Carolina's close wins and 17.0 minutes in close losses.
Terry is a Tar Heel that relishes ACC home games, averaging 12.8 points per game at home compared to 6.8 on the road. He averages 6.2 rebounds a game in ACC home games compared to 5.2 on the road and 2.0 offensive rebounds at home compared to 1.2 on the road. He is shooting 56.8% from the field, 53.3% from the three-point line and 80% from the free-throw line in home league play and 38.6% from the field, 37.5% from the three-point line and 50% (1-of-2) from the free-throw line away. He is averaging 2.5 free-throw attempts per game at home in league play.
Tyler Hansbrough: Though Hansbrough leads the league in made free throws per game with 6.5 and in attempts with 8.4, he still takes a beating in the post that is perhaps worse than the one he received last season as one of Carolina's primary offensive options.
"I think it's more physical for me this year. Teams are trying to bump me, throw some double teams at me and be a lot more aggressive. It's tough at times, but I try to play through things like that. It's very physical sometimes. You get knocked down to the floor, but you've got to bounce right back up."
Hansbrough ranks in the top ten in the league in almost every major statistical category: third in scoring (18.5 points a game), fourth in rebounding (7.7), sixth in field-goal percentage (52.4%) and ninth in free-throw percentage (76.8%). He also ranks third in offensive rebounding (3.1 a game) and sixth in defensive rebounding (4.7 a game). One thing he is still getting used to is not having to be "the man" offensively on a team that is loaded with talent. He is a competitor and does not like to come out of games, but has found himself feeling freer to use the tired signal this year.
"With the depth we have this year, I'm maybe hurting my team if I stay in there while I'm tired and sluggish. Sometimes I go out there and get pretty hyped up before the game, and then you just kind of waste all your energy in the first couple of minutes and you have to come out," Hansbrough said.
Hansbrough will be important, as he usually is, in this match-up because NC State is a team that likes to play inside-out. Hansbrough has won the defensive player of the game award the past two games and he will have a tough task ahead of him against NC State's tough post players. He guarded Ben McCauley in the last game, who did not miss a shot.
"He's tough. He's quick with the ball, which I learned last time. It was different, and I didn't really expect him to be that quick of a shooter. So I'll be expecting it this time," Hansbrough said.
Though Hansbrough is shooting 52.3% at home in ACC play compared to 52.2% on the road - a barely discernible difference - he is averaging 21.2 points a game in the Smith Center's ACC games compared to 17.5 on the road. He is also averaging 12.5 free-throw attempts at home compared to 6.8 attempts on the road.
Engin Atsur: Atsur may have only had 12 points against Carolina last time, but don't be fooled - he was the difference on an NC State team that has gone 3-0 so far this season against ACC leaders Carolina and Virginia Tech. His hamstring injury has kept him out of 12 games this season, but he has helped to steady this team since his return eight games ago. Atsur's presence allows his Gavin Grant to play his more natural wing position instead of taking on point guard duties, and consequently allows all his teammates to slide back into their more natural roles. Against Virginia Tech on Sunday, the senior point guard, bad hamstring and all, had 20 points on 6-of-9 shooting (3-of-4 from the three-point line), seven assists, five turnovers and a steal in 35 minutes.
The most important thing Atsur brings to this NC State team is his experience, his veteran leadership and his good decision-making. Even though Atsur has played in just eight league games, he leads the team in both total assists in league play (44) and assists per game in league play (5.5). He also has a team-best 1.6 assist-turnover ratio in league play and is tied for first in steals with 1.0 a game in ACC games.
"They have a really heady, savvy, intelligent point guard who has played forever and played many games with older guys. So he has a great deal of understanding of bounce passes and the screen and roll," Coach Williams said.
In ACC road games, Atsur is shooting 33.3% from the field and 27.8% from the three-point line. He is averaging 8.7 points, 3.3 assists, 2.7 turnovers and 35 minutes on the road. Contrast that to his home numbers, where he is shooting 51.5% from the field, 42.9% from the free-throw line and averaging 11 points a game, 6.8 assists, 3.2 turnovers and 2.0 steals in 34.2 minutes.
Ben McCauley: Against Virginia Tech on Sunday, McCauley had 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field and led all players with 4-of-5 from the free-throw line. He also had five rebounds, seven assists and one turnover in 35 minutes. Last time against North Carolina, McCauley shot 6-of-6 from the floor and 5-of-8 from the free-throw line for 17 points. He also added four rebounds, two assists, and one block in 28 minutes.
McCauley ranks 11th in scoring in the league with 16.1 points a game, 10th in rebounding with 6.6 a game, eighth in offensive rebounding with 2.6 a game, second in field-goal percentage with 60.1%, and eighth in assist-turnover ratio. He is also fourth in minutes played (second on the team) in minutes played with 35.2 a game.
"McCauley is one of the best passing big men in college basketball, not just in our league. But if you're one of the best passers in our league, that makes you one of the best in college basketball," Coach Williams said.
In league play only, McCauley is averaging 14.6 points a game (third on the team) and leads the team in offensive rebounds (2.6 a game), ranks second in assists (3.3 a game) and has the best field-goal percentage (56.8%) among the starters. He has 40 assists to 28 turnovers in league play, or a second-highest 1.4 assist-turnover ratio.
In league road games, McCauley is shooting 68.2% from the field (compared to 48.6% at home) and averaging 16.0 points (compared to 13.6 at home). He is pulling down 5.6 rebounds in league road games compared to 7.1 at home, and is averaging 2.8 assists and 2.4 turnovers on the road compared to 3.7 assists and 2.3 turnovers at home.
Brandon Costner: The redshirt freshman is No. 10 in scoring in the league (16.1 points per game), the 2nd-leading rebounder (7.9 a game) and the No. 1 defensive rebounder in the league (6.2 a game). He is also No. 6 in the league (and third on his team) in minutes played with 34.8 a game. He still leads all freshmen in both scoring and rebounding.
Costner had 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field (2-of-3 from the three-point line) and added 11 rebounds, two assists, three turnovers and a steal against Virginia Tech on Sunday in 31 minutes. It was Costner's first double-double since the Carolina game and his seventh of the season. Costner hit just one three-pointer against the Tar Heels but has shot 11-of-22 (50%) from beyond the arc in the last four games since.
"Costner is a big guy who can shoot from deep. I think he may have either attempted or made more three's than anybody else on their roster, so that stretches the defense more," Coach Williams said.
In ACC play, Costner ranks second on the team in scoring (15.5 points per game) and leads the team in made three-pointers with 22 (1.8 a game). He also leads the team in rebounding in league play with 8.2 a game. In ACC road games, Costner is shooting 48.6% from the field (compared to 36.8% at home) and 39.3% from the three-point line (compared to 33.3% at home). However, he is averaging 14.6 points in ACC road games compared to 16.1 at home, and is averaging 7.2 rebounds on the road compared to 8.4 at home.
Quotables
"Digger (Phelps, of ESPN's College GameDay) picked Boston College, so it was a good night." -Roy Williams on the win over Boston College
"It's funny, but when they (Boston College) fouled him (Marcus Ginyard), they were going after him. There's less than a minute left and he goes to the line for a 1-and-1. I sort of grabbed him and got his attention. I said, `They intentionally fouled you. They don't know you.' He stepped up and made the free throws." -Roy Williams on Marcus Ginyard's game-clinching free throws at Boston College
"Tywon (Lawson) has had some sympathy pains (for Bobby Frasor). Ty comes to me and says, `My foot's hurting.' I said, `Get on the end-line.' Somebody kicked him in the top of his foot, and he said, `I'm just wondering if I need to get on the bike instead of running sprints.' At least I've got him to admit he hasn't peaked out in the weight room. But he did have some sympathy pains. I told him he would have a tough time getting married and having a wife, he would feel like he was pregnant, too. He didn't understand what I was talking about." -Roy Williams
"I'd have to put Marcus in the middle. I wouldn't rank him up high. Bobby would be up there. I laugh at it (Bobby's corniness). There are a lot of different guys on the team that are funny. A lot of guys think they're funny, but they're not, so you can't make them feel good and laugh at everything." -Tyler Hansbrough on the team's comedians
Lauren Brownlow is the managing editor of Tar Heel Monthly.
