With 44 seconds left on the clock, and the Wolfpack only trailing 81-84, NC State’s Al Freeman and Markell Johnson trapped Miami’s Chris Lykes at midcourt.
Johnson smacked the ball out of the hands of Lykes.
Freeman picks up the ball and heads down the court for an easy 2-point basket.
The whistle blows and a mysterious timeout was called by Miami, nullifying the steal.
It was hard to tell who called the timeout in the midst of the commotion, but the ACC has clarified that they believed Miami’s Lykes called timeout while being trapped while he had possession of the ball.
You be the judge.
Normal shot of the Chris Lykes timeout; Roger Ayers clearly awards it to Lykes. pic.twitter.com/bw2oZf9cc3
Kevin Keatts reaction to the call can be seen in the photo at the top of the article.
The video of the play was quickly sent to ACC officials after the game, and they stood by the call that was made.
NC State Athletic Director Debbie Yow didn’t shy away from sharing her opinion via these Twitter posts.
The ACC was told the player w the ball called a TO. We have been in touch w the league office about this, as u would expect, since the play was critical. Have asked for their feedback after they view video.
ACC officials have seen the double team/steal play, when a TO was indicated by an official, which negated the steal. They will stand by the explanation offered, that the Miami player in the double called a TO. As for us, we believe the video speaks for itself.
What ensued as a result of the timeout was Miami running 22 seconds off of the clock and scoring 2 points.
Look, NC State lost the game for a variety of reasons yesterday. They were reckless with the basketball. They tried played bad off-the-ball defense. They allowed Miami to blister the nets. They forced things that simply weren’t there at times.
With that being said, this timeout blunder is on the list of reasons NC State lost the game, and this one was out of their control.
NC State’s Men’s Basketball team has picked up 4 players from the Transfer Portal this offseason, and the class ranks 10th nationally according to ON3, and 15th nationally according to 247Sports.
Andy Katz is beginning to make his rounds for his Offseason Convo series, and he took the time to meet with NC State Head Coach Kevin Keatts.
In their conversation, Keatts talked about what this run has meant to Raleigh and the Wolfpack fans, how it has helped sell the program the way it deserves to be in recruiting, and even how it helped and hurt in the world of the Transfer Portal.
Today was the final day graduate players could enter the Portal.
This past season, O’Connell averaged 5.7 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists for the Wolfpack, starting 22 of the 41 games he played in.
O’Connell took over as NC State’s starting Point Guard on January 30th in a win against Miami.
He only scored in double figures in 9 of his 41 games this season, but 6 of those came in postseason play (5 in the ACC Tournament). O’Connell took things to another level in the ACC Tournament, playing aggressive on the offensive end, looking for his shot, and attacking the rim.
NC State played it’s best basketball of the season when O’Connell was running the show. He ranked 3rd in the ACC in Assist/Turnover Ratio (2.5).
Heading into next season, with a lineup filled with new faces, having the calming presence of a veteran leader like O’Connell is reassuring.
ECU Transfer Power Forward Ezra Ausar (6’9″/240) was on an Official Visit to NC State yesterday, and according to analysts at ON3 and 247Sports, things are trending in the right direction for the Wolfpack.
Jamie Shaw of ON3 submitted a prediction for Ausar to eventually commit to NC State yesterday morning.
Cory Smith of 247Sports submitted a crystal ball projection for Ausar to run with the Wolfpack this morning.
Ausar just wrapped up his Sophomore season in Greenville, averaging 11.4 points and 4.7 rebounds, shooting 51.4% from the field. As a Freshman, he was named to the AAC All-Freshman Team, averaging 9.8 points and 5.3 rebounds.
Ausar is a consensus 4-Star prospect in the Transfer Portal, and ON3 ranks him as the #60 overall player in the Portal and the #10 Power Forward.
Originally from Atlanta, Ausar played his Senior Season of High School at Liberty Heights Athletic Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina. ON3 ranked Ausar as a 4-Star prospect coming out of high school, the #94 overall player nationally, and the #2 player in the state of North Carolina.
Ausar has visited Seton Hall, Georgia Tech, met over Zoom with Georgetown, and had an in-home visit with Utah. John Calipari and his staff at Arkansas have been in touch with Ausar, as well as Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Virginia Tech, Arizona State, West Virginia, Iowa State and St. John’s. (Link)
At this point, it’s good news that Ausar has no visits scheduled after the visit to NC State.
Ausar has 2 years of eligibility remaining, and NC State currently has 1 scholarship remaining.