Deacons outlast Pack 88-84

NC State could not get any stops in the first half as they allowed Wake Forest to score a season high 51 points on 67 % shooting. Not only did the Pack look out of sorts but could not muster the energy to stop the bleeding. State found themselves down at half by 21 points, despite Cat Barber’s continued offensive resurgence. Cat was outstanding offensively the entire evening as he scored at career high 28 points and had zero turnovers. A big reason why Cat has been so lethal is due to a newfound stroke from distance. This has forced his defenders to play up on him which only plays into his strength of beating his opponent with his quickness.

However his effort was in vain as we showed up much too late. A valiant effort to mount a spirited comeback but in the end it goes down as another loss. The reason we lost this game is because we did not step up to the challenge of getting stops on the defensive end. Our guys allowed a Wake Forest team that is in the cellar of the ACC shoot 56% from the field and 50% from three. It is difficult to win on the road with the defensive effort that we had tonight. Offensively State scored 84 points despite  shooting below 42%. This shows how talented this team is offensively, but we will continue our up and down trend because we cannot get stops when we need them.

Once again Lawrence Joel Coliseum dealt the Pack a devastating loss. Until our players make up their minds that they will play both ends of the court for 40 minutes we will continue to come up short. It is too draining for a team to get down by 20 plus and then have to claw their way back to steal it at the end. Someone must step up when things start going awry and right the ship. It seems like we accept our fate that the other team is on a run and there isn’t anything we can do to stop them. Good teams find a way to get stops and baskets when things turn south…Period.

Luckily for the Wolfpack they have 8 days off to prepare for the home stretch. They must use these days to fine tune their effort on the defensive end and continue to play to their strengths offensively. We have looked great on offensive as we have made a concerted effort to attack the paint off the bounce and by feeding Abu. State must build upon these fundamentals offensively and close the season out in a positive way.

Two great opportunities await the Pack as they host the UVA Cavaliers next Wednesday February 11th and then hit the road to face Louisville. These two game are most likely must wins if the Wolfpack want to be dancing come Selection Sunday. I believe that the team has it in them to finish the season on a positive note, but they too must believe  and step up on both ends as the season comes to a close.

7 games remain for our guys to prove that they are worthy of the Greatest Show on Earth.