Instead of doing game by game thread, we’ll keep all men’s basketball discussions in a single thread for the time being.
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NC State improved to 2-0 this season, defeating Presbyterian 81-72 in the Lenovo Center.
Let’s open it up for some thoughts and conversation. What did you guys think?
I thought overall it was a pretty sloppy game, especially on defense, but some good things to takeaway from this one as well.
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Giving up 28 points to Kory Mincy and allowing Presbyterian to shoot 50% at home is really concerning.
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I liked what I saw from Brandon Huntley-Hatfield. Great scoring on the block and great vision. We need to take a page from last year’s book and play through him on the block.
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Jayden Taylor scored 19, but I would really like to see him a little more controlled. The 5 turnovers from a guy who is supposed to be one of your main cogs is concerning. However, it was good to see him get his 3 ball going late in the game. Can’t have him having a huge cold stretch (like we saw mid-season last year) to start the season.
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Loved Mike O’Connels play. very efficient. 11 points on 4-7 shooting, 2-4 from 3pt range, 8 assists and just 1 TO.
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Would like to see more of Paul McNeil and Bryce Heard. 8 minutes combined isn’t enough for guys I think we’re going to need.
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Middlebrooks looked good. Great spark. Needs more than 19 minutes. Find ways to get he and Huntley-Hatfield on the court as we start playing bigger, stronger opponents.
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Hill played well on paper, but definitely still unsure of how he fits from a role perspective. He producing positive minutes and scoring the ball, but is he a PG who is creating plays for others or is he a scorer who is forcing the issue to the rim?
Thoughts?
It took us a little while to get going in game 1, but eventually we looked pretty good. It wasn’t the same story against Presbyterian. That’s the old version of Keatts basketball. Way too much overplaying and full court pressing, leading to so many easy baskets. And too many rushed shots.
Its early, but these were the things I was worried about.
I will say it for the 1000th time. Last year’s team was a mess until they were staring down a 5 consecutive day tournament and they needed to conserve energy.
They packed in the defense and used their size and length in the half court and they played through the post. If we get back to that, we become a force again. If we don’t it’s going to be like the rest of Keatts tenure unfortunately.
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Any news on when Mike James will be bacK? Texas game? After?
I think at the latest the hope was that he would be back for the Purdue game
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Keatts said 4-5 games, and also said 4-5 weeks in the same interview. Could miss the tourney in San Diego. We shall see. Had his knee scoped
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Next time Keatts has a press conference can someone inform him that he said both things in the same interview and ask him to clarify?
Sure, I’ll see what I can track down
Thanks for the update on Mike. Seems like Keatts doesn’t really have a set timeline for his return, which is concerning. Need his experience out there for these big games coming up and as we start ACC play.
-GoPack
Last night, after the Wolfpack’s 82-70 win over Coastal Carolina, Keatts gave another update on the status of James.
“I don’t have a clear update.”
“I would say two and a half, three weeks. You know, I look forward to getting him out there. He’s a 6’5″ strong wing that’s played a lot of basketball, and we’re missing him, and you just don’t realize this.”
Two-and-a-half weeks would have James missing the next 5 games, and 3 weeks would have him missing the next 6.
If he misses the next 2.5 weeks, that means he will be out for the Rady Children’s Invitational in San Diego (#13 Purdue & Ole Miss/BYU) and the Wolfpack’s game against Texas in the ACC/SEC Challenge. If he misses 3 weeks, he would also miss the ACC opener against FSU.
In my opinion, I think James is an integral component to NC State’s success this season. I was hopeful that James would be back for the Wolfpack’s opening game in the Rady Children’s Invitational against the Boilermakers.
– NC State’s defense was much better against Coastal Carolina than it was against Presbyterian. Multiple shot clock violations caused, and they really sped up a Coastal team that was more comfortable taking it slow in the half court.
– The game really shouldn’t have been close, but Coastal’s Rasheed Jones was 5-7 from 3pt range and hit big shots any time the Pack started pulling away. While he did get 2 or 3 good looks, most of his 3s were heavily contested and he even hit a heave from near half court as the shot clock was winding down. Jones is now shooting an insane 65% from 3pt range on 17 attempts.
– The biggest takeaway for me was the play of freshman guard Trey Parker. He was 6-8 from the floor, was great at knocking down the mid-range jumper and had a few very explosive drives. This is a kid who is just getting his feet wet in college basketball, but it’s apparent he’s going to soon be a star. Parker is eating away at Paul McNeil’s minutes. Many thought McNeil would be playing the role that Parker is currently filling. Parker also added 5 boards (2nd best on the team) and zero turnovers.
– Jayden Taylor scored 22 and is really putting pressure on opposing defenses. At the same time, he’s a little out of control. Too many quick 3s and forced drives. Over the first 3 games, against sub-par opponents, Tayler has 12 turnovers and is shooting just 19% from long range. NC State can up it’s offensive efficiency (which is already really good) if Taylor slows down a bit and starts picking his spots.
– Brandon Huntley-Hatfield looked decent on the block. He finished with 13 points, but did so on 2-6 shooting. He did get to the foul line 10 times, converting on 9 of those attempts. NC State really did a good job of playing inside out in this game and while BHH played very physical, I’d like to see him not settle for the hook shot everytime. He is quicker than most bigs but needs to work on using that quickness to keep defenders on their toes. Too often it’s just been backing down and shooting a hook over his left shoulder. I know we’re a little spoiled having watched DJ Burns the past couple years, but BHH has the quickness to use some of those spins moves off the his back down. I’d also like to see BHH put up better numbers on the boards. He’s 6’10 and physical, yet he’s only nabbed 13 rebounds in 3 games.
– Dontrez Styles hasn’t been flashy, but he’s been consistently good for the Pack. He’s undersized at the 4, but he’s spreading the defense with his ability to shoot and he’s collecting boards. He led the team last night with 6 rebounds after collecting 7 against Presbyterian.
– Mike O’Connell played well but was limited by foul trouble. It’s very obvious that when he’s on the court, the NC State offense is flowing much better. He finished with 5 points, 2 assists and 2 steals in 16 minutes.
– Ismael Diouf got his first taste of game action after being suspended for 2 games. He looked good and I’m excited to see more of him in the coming games. He had 2 points and 3 boards in 8 minutes, most of which came at the center position. Coastal was smaller, so it made sense, but as we face bigger teams, I’ll be excited to see a lineup of BHH at center, Diouf at the 4 and Styles at the 3. That’s a very versatile, very strong, and very long front court. Diouf missed a 3 that hit the back of the rim, but you can see that it’s a shot he’s going to knock down this season.
- Marcus Hill played well, but still looking to define his role.
Good win last night. I thought the first half was a little sloppy when O’Connell was out, but there were some good spurts in there.
I agree on Parker. Great game for him and he is real thread with the ball in his hands. He’s a tough shot maker.
I still think Mike James is the missing piece. I’m excited to see him out there in a couple weeks.