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Final Thoughts: On NC State’s 74-70 win over Syracuse

Published

8 years ago

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    • I’m not sure if people realize just how big this win was. Had NC State lost this game, it wouldn’t have been the end of the line, however, it would have made things a lot more complicated. State had to either win at Virginia Tech or at Syracuse to put themselves in position to be sure-bets come selection Sunday. After the loss to the Hokies, this became a nearly must-win. The victory is their 5th quadrant 1 win, and that puts them in elite company. It also gives them two very good road wins (a big win on a neutral floor). These things are going to be major bonus points when the selection committee looks at the Pack’s resume. The other reason it was so big was that Syracuse and State were jockeying for position in the ACC and if one of the two have to be left out of the dance, this game could very well be the decider.
    • This was not a good matchup on paper for NC State. They have struggled against the zone all season and have not done a great job when they are mismatched. Syracuse is obviously going all zone and they have .a roster full of guys who create mismatches. However, somehow Keatts worked his magic. NC State was well-prepared to face the zone. They did not settle for contested 3’s and instead did a good job of moving the ball and getting it into the middle. Once it got in there, the play wasn’t over. These guys knew exactly what areas of the floor would be open and as soon as they made the catch in the middle, they were looking for those spots. That is what caused a lot of turnovers. There were a lot of semi-blind passes guys had to make, trusting that the zone was going to be shifting on the catch. Sometimes the Pack didn’t have guys in position, and sometimes Syracuse didn’t shift as fast as expected. But more times than not, those passes got through, throwing the Syracuse zone off-balance and putting them in reaction mode. This led to open looks for the Pack.
    • Lots of different looks and in-game adjustments by Keatts made a difference. I thought putting Markell Johnson in the middle of the zone about halfway through the first half was a genius move. It really flustered Syracuse. The name of the game is usually, get it to the middle to a big and let him facilitate over top of zone. That wasn’t really working for the Pack, Keatts decided to put Markell in there and play underneath the zone. So brilliant and really led to a nice spurt by State. Another big move was limiting Braxton Beverly’s minutes. Beverly is obviously an extremely important part of this team but the fact is, with his size, there are going to sometimes be a matchup that is just too tough for him. At 6’5, Frank Howard was just too much. He was quicker than Beverly and had him by half a foot. He also was red-hot. Using different lineups and going a little bit bigger at the guard spot ended up neutralizing Howard down the stretch.
    • Sam Freakin’ Hunt. He was always supposed to be a zone buster, but with so few teams playing zone, Hunt hasn’t really gotten many opportunities in ACC play. His four 3s down the stretch won NC State this game. Having a streak shooter like him on the bench is huge and will be a nice option to have come tournament time. This also is a nice confidence booster for the grad-senior who had seen his role shrink recently.
    • Markell Johnson is the game-changer. His defense, his ability to distribute and now his scoring. Markell Johnson is doing everything this team needs and then some. His demeanor on the floor is especially encouraging as he seems to be finding his voice as a leader. His defense on Battle was great and his ability to control pace and flow against the Syracuse zone was huge. He even is showing the willingness to score when he has to and be the one taking big shots in big situations. His trajectory as a leader and ACC PG is skyrocketing and it’s coming just at the right time.
    • NC State is heading into an important stretch. They are heading to Wake on Saturday and have FSU sandwiched between BC and GT. What I’m saying is that they have winnable games coming up and they can’t take their foot off the pedal. At this point, they don’t need upsets, they need win volume. If they win 3 of their next 5, then you can likely rest easy on Selection Sunday no matter how they do in the ACC Tournament. But shooting for 3 of 5 might be shooting too low. NC State could really take 4 of the next 5. If they did that and made a little run in the ACC Tournament, this team could be climbing seeds pretty fast.
    • This win should start the gears turning for Kevin Keatts to get ACC Coach of the Year. Finish strong and he’s your front-runner. In fact, if State gets to 10 ACC wins and he doesn’t win, we’ll dedicate weeks on end to create a movement on social media that the ACC doesn’t want or need.

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