"a-MAYS-ing " ; Wolfpack bury Canes in OT Thriller 84-81

He only played a total of 11 minutes, but it will be a night that he'll never forget. Freshman Julius Mays, who was forced into the game after starting point guard Farnold Degand fouled out with less than 30 seconds to play, walked down the court and with ice in his veins pulled a game winning 3 in the face of Brian Asbury, which sent the RBC Center into a frenzy.

The finale was fitting for a game that was an all out dog fight. The Pack led at one point by 19 points but turnovers and poor shot selection let the Hurricanes, who to their credit never gave up, back into the game. But it was Brandon Costner, Courtney Fells, and Ben McCauley who stepped up and won this game for the Wolfpack. Paced by Fells' 24 points on 6-9 shooting from beyond the arc, and Costner's 21 State handled everything Miami threw at them. Ben McCauley anchored the Pack in overtime as they went on to shoot 84% in the bonus period.

But it was the freshman Mays who brought the house down with his clutch 3 as time was expiring. Although the attendance tonight in the RBC wasn't anything to write home about, the place was loud and the fans gave the Pack the momentum to push through a few tough stretches. During one particular stretch, in which Miami had come back to take the lead, Sid called a timeout that marked the turning point in the second half. In the huddle Sidney said, "Why are you afraid to win!? You stopped cutting hard, you stopped defending hard....why are you afraid!?" From that point forward the intensity was at 100% and the Wolfpack fought it's way to the victory.

Tonight we need to give credit where it is due. Sidney Lowe coached one heck of a game. From his starting line-up to his substitution pattern, Lowe showed his doubter that he does know how to handle his team and tonight you saw mental toughness at work. A move that will go unnoticed by many and I actually heard criticized by some fans, was a move that won NC State the ballgame. Simon Harris, who had logged all of 1 minute in regulation, started the overtime and locked down Adrian Thomas (#30) who was eating Tracy Smith's face off every time he got the ball. Thomas is a strong 6'7 that has 3 point range and perimeter prowess. Simon Harris locked on Thomas and played outstanding defense which helped State fend off the Hurricanes in the final minutes of the game.

Some more good news...2009 recruit Scott Wood was at the game and got to see his former high school teammate, Julius Mays, hit the game winning 3. CJ Leslie also was taking in the game with a group of friend....and yes, one did happen to be John Wall, who after the game ran down the tunnel like a kid at Christmas to give some dap to Courtney Fells. Leslie has been sitting his past 2 high school games with what we believe to be a sprained ankle. We'll let you know for sure when we hear more.

So now it's on to this weekend's game against our arch-rival, the Carolina Tarheels. Coming into the season the Tarheels were the favorite to win the ACC, but early slip-ups have provided a blueprint on how to beat, or at least contend with, the Tarheels. When asked how the Pack plans to defend the Tarheels, assistant coach Larry Harris responded, "We'll have the guys mentally prepared, but we don't have to say much to get the guys ready. We're going to go at them. They're going to come at us, but we're going to throw it right back at them. We're going to battle their a**." He also had a word for the fans at the RBC: "Bring your megaphones, your bats, and your musket guns...its going to be a war."