Recap of Coach Lowe's Radio Show (11/16/09)

-Coach Lowe talked about how this weekend's three-game stint in Daytona, FL, is a good chance for the team to spend time together and to gel a little more. He anticipates it being a great experience.

-Question: "What have you learned about this group?" Coach Lowe described this group as eager to learn and puts forth consistent effort in practice. There is a great team attitude and atmosphere amongst the group.

-He stressed the fact that they worked hard on defense this off-season. From day one they worked on their defensive set first, and then their offensive set. They want to dictate the game from the defensive end.

-Coach Lowe talked about how he put all of the new guys on one side of the court early on to help them get familiar with the offense. He specifically noted that Wood and Vandenberg were quick learners. He said that he can deal with one mistake, but he doesn't want to see the same mistake repeated. When Coach Lowe came to NC State as a player, he was prepared well at Dematha, and therefore had a head start. His mother also taught him to strive to please his elders, especially his coaches.

-Coach Lowe has been vocal in the past about wanting to have a point guard who knows what to do without looking to coach. He mentioned that Javi has really improved and is doing a better job pushing the ball up the court.

-He said that they wanted to run an "inside-out" offense. This team is very unselfish. Tracy Smith is coming along, but he still needs to be more patient. He had a great summer and works on his free throws every day in practice. Smith is going to get fouled a lot.

-Degand will probably not play this weekend. Coach Lowe is still not satisfied with his academic effort.

-Coach hinted at the fact that he might mess around with the lineup a little bit. Wood could see some time at the '2' and Smith could see some time at the '4'.

-Richard Howell practiced for the first time this Monday and is looking good. He could be ready to go by next week.

-Coach Lowe said Ryan Harrow is a 'special player.' He came all the way to Raleigh to sign his letter of intent so the fans could be a part of it. He then drove back in the rain so he wouldn't miss class. That's the type of kid he is.

-He also talked about how Josh Davis contributes in a lot of ways besides scoring that keep him on the floor.

-This team likes each other...they listen to each other. There is no single leader for the team at this point. Horner leads by example and has a tremendous work ethic. Smith has become more of a vocal leader this year.

-Coach Lowe talked about watching Lorenzo this past weekend in Lousiburg. He said that he made some electrifying plays and glides when he moves. Brown is deceptively quick.