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NCST at Maryland 2005
Well I was all fired up to know that I was going to be able to catch the Eagles game and the Terps despite the snow fall that covered the North East. It started with a Nap at Goanie’s and a trip to Santa Fe to watch the birds. Much to the shagrin of J and I, we found out the Fe was closed on Sunday. This is not any Sunday mind you. This is NFL championship Sunday with the Terps hosting a home basketball game against an ACC rival. I nearly busted the door down trying to enter the Fe (much like I did at Binion’s in Vegas when I heard that they never lock casino’s). Well we looked around Cornerstone, and there wasn’t a seat to be had, so it was over to Bentley’s to catch the game. The Eagles took care of business and I was fairly confident with a 10 point lead heading into the fourth quarter as John and I took the trip across campus. I was greatful to hear the birds hung on to win once the game started.
Onto the “other” game of the day. There was much anticipation for me heading into this one. This was my first (and possibly) only trip into Comcast this year to check out the team. Suffice it to say it was a quite a sad state of affairs inside the game. The Terps were down 11-3 before we really knew what was going on. The Pack came out flying nailing three’s left and right making three straight to start the game. We should have known what was to follow after Gavin Grant banked one in off the side of the backboard. The only stat you really needed to know was we made 5-20 shots in the first half and the pack made 10-18 from 3! Now it is bad enough to only make 5 shots, but when you play NC State and their Princeton style of offense, you need to take pride in each possession and take care of the ball. We were a turnover machine, and a lot of it was our “big” men who couldn’t catch a cold, even in the weather we are having right now. The score at the half was 53 -27
At half time J called us and said there was a seat upgrade available since the two other people he worked with couldn’t make it to the game. So John and I thought maybe a change of seats would be a good luck charm or something. Well we quickly cut the lead to 55-34, and the fans showed a sign of life for the first time in the game. Both teams then went from the 16:12 mark until the 12:41 mark without scoring. That was our opportunity to really get back into the game, but we couldn’t convert and still had the oppsies when possessing the ball. At about the 8 minute mark Nik Caner-Medley made two free throws to cut the lead to 10, and the place had a heart beat again. The killer play of the game that threw the momentum back to the pack was a missed FT by Etimov (7-11 fg) was rebounded by someone for state and the little Engin (Atsur) that could nailed a three pointer after eating 20 + more seconds off the clock. We were able to cut it to 10 again, but that was about the end of any hope however.
Report Card John Gilchrist- D The good: 13 points The bad: 3 assist 3 TO’s, showing his confusion on the court, and kind of lethargic when they were in the zone D.
Travis Garrison- D- The good: 11 points The bad: It has become apparent he is not worth a stitch down low. When he does get the ball inside, it awful trying to get the ball up to the rim.
Nik Caner-Medley- C+ The good: His second half scoring helped him from a lower grade. He hadd zippy at the half. 10 boards also helped The bad: Non existent in the first half. Mike Grinnon checked in for him at one point.
Ekene Ibekew- F The good: Didn’t foul out The bad: Missed dunk, will never get a passing game for me anytime he shoots a three!
Chris McCray- D The good: 5-6 from the line The bad: 2-7 from the field. Doesn’t look comfortable catching and shooting. Needs to show he has the gumption to knock down the big shot! DJ Strawberry- INC
Sterling Ledbetter- D The good: Getting more minutes The bad: 1 point in 8 minutes, and the team sputtered when he came in for JG.
James Gist- C- The good: 8 points, and was assertive and demanding the ball in the second half. The bad: needs to remember dribble before heading to the basket Mike Grinnon- D The good- Got some burn in the first half, when Gary was searching for answers. The bad: Nothing stands out about his play except he didn’t pull the trigger on a wide open three. Mike Jones- D- The good- Played a little bit of D. The bad- Only attempted 2 shots in 14 minutes Will Bowers- C- The good- If he had any more offensive ability he would start. Look for Wilbo to get more minutes. The bad- Offense is a little bit awkward. Didn’t take the 10 ft jumper.
Gini Chukura- inc
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