Wolfpack Prepares For #11 Clemson

NC STATE WOLFPACK vs. CLEMSON TIGERS

LOCATION: Clemson, South Carolina
TIME: 12 noon
TELEVISION: Raycom , ESPN Full Court, Pack Pass

Life seems to have it's inevitables...death, taxes, and lately... Clemson starting the season with an impressive winning streak. Two years ago Clemson took the nation by storm as they started off the season by going 17-0. Then last year, while not AS impressive, still managed to reel off 10 straight wins to open the season before falling to Mississippi. Don't look now, but they're at it again. Oliver Purnell once again has his team making noise. Saturday the 15-0 Tigers will host our 9-3 Wolfpack in a game that State desperately wants to win. After heart wrenching defeats at the hands of Davidson, Marquette, and Florida, the Pack would like nothing more than to walk into Little John Coliseum and show Clemson, the ACC, and themselves that they are capable of playing the big boys, and beating the big boys.

With the return of Courtney Fells, Javi Gonzalez and hopefully Trevor Ferguson, the Wolfpack will be the healthiest they've been in weeks...and just in time. This is not only a big game for the players, its a big game for Sidney too, as he has yet to win an ACC opener in his first two seasons with the Pack. The Pack has, with the exception of Loyola, beaten the teams they are supposed to beat in a very convincing manner. They have also played down to the wire with 3 teams that have been or are currently in the top 25, all unfortunately, resulting in losses. Clemson on the other hand, although undefeated, have barely squeaked by a few beatable teams(Temple, Charlotte, Liberty). So as far as we're concerned, the game tomorrow at Clemson is a winnable game for the Pack.


The keys to slowing down the break neck pace of Clemson is to slow down their leading scorer KC Rivers and, we can't stress this enough, LIMITING TURNOVERS. Clemson likes to press and they like to turn up the heat on opposing guards, so winning this game is going to depend on how well guys like Degand, Mays and Javi can handle that pressure. The Wolfpack's attack inside (McCauley, Costner, Smith) is something that Clemson, will have a hard time dealing with. Junior forward Trevor Booker is an athletic monster in the paint, but is undisciplined on the defensive end and has an incurable lust for blocking shots. If State can get the ball up the court to their bigs without turning it over, and get Booker into foul trouble early, State will have a very good chance of walking out of Little John with a quality victory. A victory which could mean a lot come March.

RECORD
NC STATE- 9-3
CLEMSON- 15-0

LEADING SCORER
NC STATE- Brandon Costner (14.8)
CLEMSON- KC Rivers (15.1)

LEADING REBOUNDER
NC STATE- Ben McCauley (7.9)
CLEMSON- Trevor Booker (9.3)

ASSIST LEADER-
NC STATE- Javi Gonzalez (3.4)
CLEMSON- Demontez Stitt (3.7)

TEAM FG%
NC STATE- 47.9%
CLEMSON- 49.3%

TEAM REBOUNDING
NC STATE- 38.8 per game
CLEMSON- 38 per game