Here we go again! I’m back with another installment of “Loved it, Hated it” where I go off on the 3 things I loved and the 3 things that got my panties in a wad.  That said, let’s get into it.

3 Things I LOVED about NC State’s loss to FSU

1. Keatts changing up the lineup and going with Seabron as PG
Does Keatts read my columns? This was exactly what I proposed prior to the game and some of you took to Twitter to criticize my take. That group since has gone pretty silent. Cam Hayes played 14 minutes in this one, and Seabron spent a majority of the game at point. How did that play out? Well, Seabron did exactly what I told you he’d do. He dominated the ball, got into the lane, and made plays, finishing with 32 points, 7 assists, and 5 rebounds. You can argue that NC State wins this game if Keatts didn’t switch back to Cam at point about 7 minutes into the game. Seabron took back over at point later in the first half and never looked back. The changing of the guard has literally taken place, and NC State suddenly looks a lot more dangerous because of it.

2. Terquavion Smith continues scoring at an insane rate
The freshman was at it again, this time scoring 23 points on 8-15 shooting and 7-13 from 3 point range. Smith is now averaging 19 ppg over the past 7 contests. He’s shooting 41% from 3 over that span (note that Scott Wood shot 41% for his career.) In this one, he set a new record for himself with those 7 3s. A lot of that was thanks to getting open looks due to Seabron driving, drawing and dishing to Smith who was spotting up on the corners and from the wing all night long. Smith continues his pace to become the top freshman scorer for NC State over the past 20 years.

3. Thomas Allen carving out minutes + Pass getting it going
Allen was MIA for the first portion of the season. Maybe it was because he was passed over by the freshman Smith for minutes. Who knows, but with Hayes and Morsell struggling and Seabron moving to the point, Allen now is going to get his chance. In this one, he showed that he’s ready for the moment. Allen looked good, scoring 9 points in 32 minutes and only turned the ball over once.

Meanwhile, the same situation has also opened up minutes for the freshman Breon Pass. Pass was an elite scorer in high school, but hasn’t been able to showcase that ability at this level. Slowly but surely, he’s coming around. Pass played just 9 minutes, but he maximized that time with 5 points, 1 assist and 4 rebounds (with just 1 turnover).

3 Things I HATED about NC State’s loss to FSU

1. Kevin Keatts taking a timeout with 8 seconds left and Seabron streaking
C’mon Keatts! I’ve given you the benefit of the doubt and the rest of the guys at PI have unanimously backed you up over the past few seasons, but we can’t overlook this blunder.

State was down by 2 with 11 seconds left. FSU’s Matthew Cleveland was shooting his second free throw. I turned to my buddy and said, if he misses this, you get it to Seabron and you let him fly down the court and get to the rim. Look, it doesn’t take a genius to see that was your best chance to tie the game up. But for some reason, Keatts wasn’t on the same page.

Cleveland missed the FT and State got the ball to Seabron. He took off and had a full head of steam as he approached halfcourt. Florida State was scrambling on defense, and it looked like we had the situation we wanted. Then Keatts calls a timeout.

What? Why? First off, State has been piss poor at inbounding the basketball this season in pressure situations. They also have had a trend of coming out of timeouts with subpar results. So why in the world is Keatts going to walk us right into this situation?

I mean, what play are you going to call? You’re going to get it to Seabron, clear it out and let him make a play? But, we already had that happening. I could understand if someone else had the ball and Keatts wanted to make sure the final shot was taken by Seabron, but Seabron already HAD THE BALL and the defense wasn’t set.

This was just a blunder and a mistake. Hindsight is 20/20, so you had to bet Keatts was going to admit to the mistake in the post-game. No way he’d stand by that decision, right?

Wrong.

Keatts on calling the final timeout:

“In hindsight, I would have done it again”

— Inside Pack Sports (@InsidePackSport) January 1, 2022

I know some people believe Florida State was back, and if you freeze-frame it you can make that argument, but watch it in real-time.

A guy on the ball and 3 Florida State defenders back.

Timeout was the right call. I know what happened next, but seriously people, Florida State was back on defense. pic.twitter.com/pCG0hoMuHt

— Craig Hammel (@Hammel_Craig) January 2, 2022

Seabron has a guy on his hip and the defender waiting is back peddling. But regardless, the timeout was being called well before he hit half-court. I don’t care how you spin it, the guy is 12-14, has 32 points, and you only have 8 seconds left. Trust your guy. Don’tt try to over-coach in this situation. You won’t convince me otherwise. This was a big-time coaching blunder.

2. Defense is active, but poor
This team plays hard, no doubt. They are always giving effort on the defensive end. The problem is, they aren’t very smart defensively. The guards, outside of Morsell, are constantly getting beat off the bounce, and the interior defense just doesn’t exist.

I know, I know. Bates would change everything. But he’s not here and we have who we have. You can not let guys get into the lane. Dowuona is a decent shot blocker, but against a team as big and long as FSU, he can’t do much. He doesn’t have elite timing like Bates, and he has no one backing him up, so he can’t get into foul trouble.

FSU shot 50% from the floor. That comes on the heels of Miami shooting 55% against us. You just aren’t going to win many games when your opponent is shooting at or over 50%. This is on the guards who need to stop reaching, get down in a stance and stay between their man and the rim. Go back and watch Casey Morsell’s on the ball defense. That’s how it’s done. He’s not quicker or faster than the rest of the guards, he just is more disciplined on the defensive end and understands positioning. It’s fixable, so when will it be fixed?

3. Hellems still not himself. 
What happened to Jericole? The guy was such a dependable scorer last year, and he’s had games where he’s shown glimpses of that player this year, but it’s a crap shoot with him this year. He looked great vs. Miami, scoring 24 points. But vs. FSU, he played 24 minutes and only scored 8 points. Heck, he only shot 4 shots. I know Seabron was dominating the ball and was super efficient in doing so, but Hellems had his opportunities. He just doesn’t seem like himself in 1/2 the games. This has to change. Hellems has got to be State’s 2nd or 3rd best scoring option. If he’s not, this team is sunk.