The Wolfpack finally put together a full team effort and kept their focus for near 40 minutes and they absolutely dominated the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. The offensive onslaught continued as State poured in 86 points, making this the 4th consecutive game of 80 points or more. The Pack shot a monster 61% and held the Jackets under 40% as they rolled to their first ACC road win of the season.
Tracy Smith paced the Pack by going for 18 points and 10 boards. Also in double figures were Costner, Fells, Javi, CJ Williams, and Dennis Horner. CJ Williams was vital in the win because of the timing of his 11 points. Whenever Tech closed the gap, CJ Williams was there with a 3 or a cut to the basket. Williams also decided to sneakily drop 5 dimes. The Pack controlled the pace almost the entire game by pushing the tempo and executing in their offense; thanks in part to the solid point guard play of Javi Gonzalez who a few weeks ago was barely on the depth chart. With the exception of a few instances where they were plagued by turnovers, the Pack played an entire game and really never stopped attacking. They finally made a concerted effort to finish a team off.
State out rebounded GT 31-24, but lost the turnover battle 21-15. That turnover battle is something that will need to be fixed come Wednesday when they face rival UNC. But for today we may celebrate as the Pack has just reeled off it's 4th two game ACC winning streak under Sidney Lowe. At 4-6 the Pack are a few big wins from being in the middle of things in the ACC. Fans are starting to take notice, and hopefully recruits are too. And we can't help but wonder if Derrick Favors caught this game.
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2 Responses to "Resurgent Pack Dismantle Jackets 86-65"Big win when you consider how long these guys have suffered at other teams' courts.
Great job hustling both ends of the court and w/o the unforced error you probably saw some of the best assist teamwork basketball all season. The Javi/Degand dual system (with both on court at certain times) seems to be settling in with the team- kudos to them and the staff for the perseverance.
Besides the obvious production of Tracy Smith we have gotten a huge lift out of Williams off the bench at the two. I love how Coach Lowe describes him in one word- "solid". His shooting has impressed but most of all he brings the ability to cut strong to the hoop and is ready to catch the passes from McAuley or Costner with ease. When you have bigs who love to make those passes it's critical to have a guy who wants to receive them.
I agree. The ball movement when Javi and Degand were in together was fast and crisp and they seemed to work well together. You can be sure Sid took notice and will most likely use them together when a team amps up the full court pressure.
We were just talking about how impressive CJ Williams has been. For a freshman he sure isn't afraid to shoot it, and his shot is silky smooth. We really believe CJ will be a huge part of this team and a legit scorer when all is said and done.
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