Mountaineers Suffocate the Pack 83-69

NC State closed the gap within one point not once, not twice, but three times in the 2nd half before turnovers and big shots by West Virginia put the Pack away. The 22nd ranked Mountaineers simply overmatched NC State with their high intensity full-court pressure and surgical execution down the stretch. Senior guard Juwan Staten was as good as advertised as he torched the Pack with 24 points (10-17 from the field) and hit timely shots to close the game out!

Why did NC State lose? Lets delve into some of the key areas that contributed to the losing effort.

Turnovers and Free-Throws: 

In the first half alone NC State turned the ball over a total of 16 times! These 16 turnovers in the first 20 minutes of action resulted in 15 points for West Virginia. Full court pressure coupled with trapping gave State all they could handle in the first half; however, despite all of the turnovers miraculously the Pack only trailed by 9 points at intermission. There are a number of reason why a team employees a full-court defense, most teams want to speed up the opposing team by forcing them to over dribble or rush cross court passes. The Pack were guilty of both in last nights contest! Our trio of Barber, Lacey, and Turner committed 14 of the 23 turnovers on the night. There is no way State will beat an opponent of West Virginia’s stature by being so careless with the rock!

Another part of the equation was missed free-throws. Throughout the game the Pack did an excellent job at attacking the paint once they did beat the full-court pressure, this put pressure on WVU’s back line to overplay and foul. State finished the game 21 for 35 from the charity stripe, however; 60 percent isn’t too charitable. I am not sure what the Pack must do to fix their struggles at the line. I know they shoot plenty of free-throws in practice, but its all for nought if they can’t convert come game-time. Our guys must start to look at free-throws as an opportunity for easy points! Attitude and confidence are just as important as form when it comes to shooting. Seriously have you seen Reggie Miller’s shot? He broke about every rule yet he will go down as one of the best shooters of all-time. The Pack must solve this problem, we cannot give up free points!

Spacing: 

A major factor in the 23 turnovers on the night was poor floor spacing. All too often NC State allowed one defender to guard two players. In the full-court trap West Virginia thrived as a result of the help side defender picking off a short contested pass as our guards were hurried into making a poor decision. Also our guards caught the ball in no-mans land throughout the night. One area must be avoided at all cost when dealing with a trap, and that area is the corner. Cat and Lacey were forced into these areas by the Mountaineers all night. We must simply be better at finding the middle of the press and being composed enough to keep our head up to find the open man. The best way to beat a press is through the air! We were not quick enough in deciphering the defense which resulted in too much dribbling.

I have a feeling that one particular drill will be ran in the next practice. The drill is simple yet effective, the offense must complete X number of passes before they can shoot, unless its a layup. The other caveat is the offense cannot dribble! No doubt that frustration and tempers will flare in this drill as on the ball defense is ruthless because they know the offense is at a disadvantage. The purpose of this drill is to teaches the players how to be more efficient in screening, passing, and cutting. Not only are these attributes improved upon but the team learns how to be tough with the ball as well! Look for spacing to be improved upon as the season moves forward.

Defense:

West Virginia shot over 50 percent from the field as well as over 50 percent from 3-point land. Our defensive rotations were all out sorts throughout the night. On ball defense was mediocre at best, consistently the Mountaineers beat us off the dribble causing the Pack to scramble to help which left guys open on the perimeter. In the final four minutes this was blatantly obvious as Staten beat his defender off the bounce only to kick it out to a wide-open man in the corner. On back to back possessions this occurred as Staten found Holton wide open in the corner in the last couple of minutes that put the Wolfpack away.

The Pack must work harder at keeping the ball out of the paint if they want to be competitive in the ACC. A trademark of a good defensive team is in their ability to keep the offense from penetrating and kicking out to shooters. The three point line is a harsh reminder of what happens when you get beat off the dribble. Last night WVU finished 7-13 from distance, many off these looks were uncontested as a result of trying to protect the paint. Last night it didn’t look like State had the intensity and effort necessary to stop the Mountaineers! Maybe it was because we had to work so hard offensively to get the ball past half court, no matter the reason we must improve!

Positives:

Even thought we lost by 14, make no mistake about it this game was much closer than the final score. The Pack hung tough for much of the night but couldn’t get over the hump. Three times NC State found themselves only down by a point with the ball to take the lead. Lacey was excellent offensively as he scored 24 points while shooting 53% from the field. He hit tough shot after tough shot! Trevor is one of those rare talents that has the creativity and skill to create his own shot. In the second half he hit a spin-move step back with a Mountaineer draped all over him. We are going to win a lot of games with #1 on the court!

Overall if you take out the turnovers NC State would of beaten the Mountaineers last night. State finished the game 20 for 36 (55%) from the field as well as 8 for 14 (57%) from three. More often than not if a team hits these percentages they will win. We wasted 23 potential possessions that proved to be too much to overcome. Togetherness was also on display as I could tell that our guys were not placing blame on others but accepting their own faults. Lacey is an excellent leader in the way he can take blame for his own mistakes, as well as the blame for others. He has the confidence and self believe to make it up on the next possession. This quality will rub off on the other players and be instrumental down the stretch!

Summary: 

NC State must improve against pressure defense and use their dribble more efficiently if they are going to be successful. They must also know who they are! Sometimes I become frustrated when some guys try and do too much. For example Kyle is a great offensive talent, yet he should not be shooting three pointers or contested 17 footers. There is a reason why you are wide-open! As State becomes more comfortable in themselves they will start to gain consistency! We must grow up in a hurry as the grinder of the ACC is quickly approaching!

The Pack returns to the friendly confines of the PNC this Tuesday to square off against the Bulldogs of Louisiana Tech. Tip-Off is slated for 7PM!