LSU took a 21-20 lead over the Pack with 8:30 in the first half. NC State would not get the lead back until Beejay Anya hit the improbable game winning left handed hook with .01 left on the clock.

Unbelievable. That’s really the only way to describe it. The Pack looked beat for most of this basketball game. The Tigers were setting the pace, owning the boards and getting the crowd going with highlight reel dunk after dunk. But State never went away. Barber and Abu kept them in it with 17 and 13 respectively and Kyle Washington made a rare appearance that really gave his team a spark down the stretch.

Washington has lost a lot of his playing time to Lennard Freeman over last half of the season, but he never pouted and knew his chance would come. When it did, he didn’t disappoint. His stretch of tip in dunk, blocked shot, 3 pointer and assist to Abu for a dunk, not only energized State but it also cut their deficit from 9 to 4.

But State didn’t really take over this basketball game. To be honest, this game was gifted to them. LSU hit their last FG with 10:24 left in the game. Yes, you read that correctly. In fact, they only scored 5 points over the final 10 minutes of the game. They were all FTs. Even with that, the Pack needed the Tigers to miss their final 5 FTs and hit an improbably left handed hook by Anya to survive and advance. Lets take a closer look at what happened:

It wasn’t the bigs that killed State, it was the LSU guards
I know that above statement seems wrong when you look at the stats, but it’s not. State’s perimeter defense was plain awful. Not only did they give up 17 points to guard Tim Quarterman (who only averages 11) They jumped at ball fakes, allowed penetration and didn’t recover around screens. This created all kinds of havoc down low. The bigs needed to help and this was one of those games where State’s help and recover defense was just sooo slow. This is where the bigs were really getting a lot of their points. When Mickey and Martin were posting up Abu and Anya, they really didn’t have much success. It was when they were forced to help, or when the Pack guards turned it over and allowed the Tigers to get into transition that they really hurt State. This is not about talent or quickness, this is about ‘want to.’ from the Wolfpack guards. It’s about getting down in a stance and really locking down. No reaching, no jumping, just good old fashion position defense.

Barber and Abu Kept State Afloat
Lacey and Turner have carried NC State all year, but tonight the shots weren’t falling. This was a little dissapointing for me. These two guys are your leaders, your upper classmen and the guys who should come ready. They didn’t. Sure, Lacey did hit a few big ones down the stretch and Ralston his a few early, but in the end, these guys did not give Gottfried the type of focus and ‘refuse to lose’ attitude that is needed. Instead is was underclassmen Cat Barber and Malik Abu who carried the weight. Barber had 17 (7-16) and Abu added 13 (5-7 shooting) to keep the game close. Against Villanova, State is going to need all of their weapons.

Washington Makes His Mark
Say what you want about Kyle Washington, but the guy brings it. His intensity and his hustle can’t be questioned and is something the Pack has really been missing. Sure, he shoots nearly every time he touches it on the wing, sure he leaves much to be desired with his position defense, but Washington kind of saved State on this night. His tip in dunk, his 3 and his assist to Abu really changed things, but it was his intensity that finally had his team believing.

The Hook
Of course State would go to Lacey on the final shot, but as you can see, teams have figured this out. Lacey was draped by a defender that was not going to go for his pump fake. He finally elevated for his shot, but a hand was right in his face. This is when he dropped it off to Anya, hoping to get it right back. But Beejay had seen enough of the guards missing on this night. He took the ball and backed down the lane, then with 2 seconds left, he took a left handed hook, it hung on the rim, and finally fell…sending the Pack to the next round.

Next up is #1 Nova on Saturday at 7pm on TBS. We’ll have much more on that coming up…