2010-11 ACC Basketball Preview: NC State
With basketball season gearing up, Wahoo Wire will be previewing each ACC team.
NC State
Last Season:
Overall: 20-16
ACC: 5-11
Postseason: Lost NIT Rd. 2
What they lost:
Almost nothing, to be honest. Senior big man Dennis Horner graduated, but, other than that, the Wolfpack return four out of five starters and their top bench players. They surprisingly brought back coach Sidney Lowe, who has failed to pull State out of the conference basement during his tenure, but his seat is still warm and if the team fails to improve this season, he won’t be back again.
What they gained:
Why is Lowe back? Probably because of the last two recruiting classes. Outside of Duke and UNC, these are probably the strongest classes in the conference. Last year’s sharpshooter Scott Wood will be joined by swingmen Lorenzo Brown and CJ Leslie (ranked 56 and 12 respectively) and point guard Ryan Harrow (No. 22). Brown was supposed to join the team last year, but his grades didn’t measure up and has since attended a prep school to fix that issue. He was ranked in the top 20 of last year’s class, but as we’ve seen, rankings outside the top 10 tend to not predict success (coughTristanSpurlockcough!).
Summary:
Shockingly, the Wolfpack should have high expectations for this season. In a conference riddled with rebuilding projects, State is set up to play pretty well with solid talent at both ends of the experience spectrum. Leading scorer Tracy Smith returns and, with a general shortage of big men in the league this year, should continue to dominate in the post. The Pack also (for once) have a great group of guards, which is critical for success in the ACC. Based on how many other programs have stepped backward this season, a first round ACC Tournament bye is not out of the question for this team.
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