Season in Review

N.C. State
15-16 (5-11 ACC)

It was another lost year in Raleigh, as the Wolfpack once again underachieved and seemed to just be playing out the string the second half of the year.  As a result, the team is starting fresh, as Sidney Lowe finally got the boot.

State had reasonably high expectations going into the year, with a talented class of freshmen and some good returning players.  They never really got any momentum, though.  The best non-conference win that the Wolfpack had was probably a 13 point neutral site win over George Mason, although Mason was struggling at the time.  They lost their ACC/Big 10 Challenge game by 39 points at Wisconsin.

In conference play, it didn't get much better.  NC State won only 5 games, which included 2 wins against Wake Forest.  Wake was the only team they beat on the road.  8 of their 11 ACC losses were by double digits.  It was just a rough year all around.

The Wolfpack were led by Tracy Smith, who had a solid year, but still underperformed at 14 points per game.  CJ Leslie was very highly touted, but struggled much of the early part of the year.  Ryan Harrow was another solid freshman, but he was injured in the middle point of the ACC season, and Javier Gonzalez just didn't cut it at point guard in his absence.  Besides Scott Wood, the team had very few 3 point threats.  Take a look at some of these 3 point percentages:

CJ Leslie - 25%
Ryan Harrow - 22%
Lorenzo Brown - 30%
Javier Gonzalez - 29%

Biggest Win:
69-61 vs. Clemson on 2/17

The only conference win NC State had against a team that made the NCAA Tournament was this one over Clemson.  In their previous game against Clemson, they had blown a huge first half lead, so it must have felt good to get some payback.  This was also the second game of their only two game win streak in ACC play.

Worst Loss:
87-48 at Wisconsin on 12/1

NC State didn't have any embarrassing losses to really bad teams on their schedule, so I picked this 39 point defeat.  At one point State was down 52-21.  They finished the game shooting 31% and letting Wisconsin shoot 50%.  That is not a formula for success.

Postseason Play:

There isn't much to say about NC State's postseason except that it was short.  They played Maryland in the first round of the ACC Tournament and lost by 8.  Maryland controlled the game, leading the whole time, and put State out of its misery.

Looking Ahead:

Sidney Lowe is out and Mark Gottfried is in at NC State.  It was well known that State chased some big names, including Shaka Smart of VCU, but struck out.  Gottfried's hire also came with some controversial comments back and forth between Athletic Director Debbie Yow and Gary Williams.  All that being said, Gottfried isn't a bad coach.  He might not be the perfect fit for the NC State job, but he is definitely an upgrade over Lowe.

Gottfried does inherit some talent.  Leslie is staying in school, and should be an improved player in his sophomore year.  Richard Howell can be a capable inside scorer, and Wood should provide some outside scoring.  They do lose a fair amount off this year's team, though: Smith is graduating, along with Gonzalez.  Harrow decided to transfer, which will leave a definite hole in the backcourt.  If State can find a point guard, they can fight their way back into contention.