Pack Outlasts Miami 67-58, Syracuse Up Next

TJ Warren dropped 24 and Ralston Turner added 22 as NC state outlasted the Canes in the first round of the ACC tournament.

You just knew that Miami wasn’t going to be an easy out. This is a team that beat State in Raleigh by double digits and then nearly knocked them off in Miami. Both times State seemed timid against the Physicality of the Canes. Tonight, however, was different. State matched the intensity of the canes and came ready. Here are some key notes from tonight’s win:

Warren and Turner lead the way
TJ Warren is just insane. It’s been the majority of the season that I’ve had to pretty much write the same thing over and over again after games, but dear lord. Warren is just unlike anything I’ve ever seen. His touch, his release, his body control, his demeanor, just everything he does is high quality. Miami did everything they could to stop him. They ran doubles at him, they trailed him and didn’t help off of him, but still TJ found a way to score it, as he usually does. He finished with 24 points and 8 boards.

The big boost that State needed (other than Warren’s 24) was the sharp shooting of Ralston Turner. The junior transfer has been big all season long and he stepped up huge again. Turner finished with 22 pts on 5-8 from 3pt range. There were a lot of big ones, but the one that stands out was the shot that put State up 58-53 as time was winding down. This broke Miami’s back and allowed State some breathing room.

Vandy Was Huge
Sometimes Vandy just doesn’t get a fair shake. This guy has really put forth a ton of effort all season. Sometimes it works for him, sometimes he just can’t get it going. Tonight he was great. Maybe the best we’ve ever seen him. 4 points 4 boards, 3 steals and 2 assists. That’s a pretty full stat sheet for a 7’1 center. He helped get Warren open with his passing, he altered a lot of shots, and he played with focus and poise (knocking down 2-3 FTs at the end), not to mention was physical on D without fouling. Huge game for the senior looking to live another day.

Cat Barber Catching On
Lewis played well again, but Barber seems to finally be figuring out how to manage a team and play the PG position at this level. He was magnificent in this one. Sure his defense was great but his real problem was that he’d fallen in love with trying to score, he’d be too busy trying to find a lane to drive that he would miss opportunities to find the open man. Tonight Cat took another step forward. He finished with 5 points, 7 assists and 0 turnovers. That’s 15 assists and 0 TO’s over his last 3 games. He’s trusting his teammates and finding the scorers. Look for Barber to play good minutes against a syracuse team with talented guards.

By the numbers
The big stat in t his one was turnovers. State once again was near flawless with the basketball. They turned it over only 5 times against Miami and forces the Canes into 15 turnovers. This was huge for allowing them to get out in transition and get easy buckets. The other big number was 13. That’s the combined point total for Lecomte and Adams, two guys who have haunted the Pack in their past two meetings. That due scored over 20 in the first meeting and combined for over 30 in the second. Stopping them was a key for the Pack.

Another key number was 41%. That’s what State shot from 3pt range. The usual dismal shooting Wolfpack team has all of the sudden started knocking down some more 3s. Over the past 4 games this team is shooting 39% from beyond the arc. Well, above their season average of 30%.

Survived…now advance
It’s payback time. State advances to play a Syracuse team who they had all but beaten in the final seconds earlier this season, however a few bad turnovers and a few iffy calls led to a 1 point heartbreaking loss. Now it’s time to get even. On a neutral court, State takes on the Orange at 7pm on Saturday. We’ll have the preview coming midday Friday. Stay tuned!