Box Score

It's disappointing that the game tonight was so similar to the games in Chapel Hill under Sidney Lowe, but it's easier to stomach because I don't doubt our effort they way I would have in the past. So that's progress. State had no answer for Ty Zeller or John Henson down low, and those two affected the game in the fashion necessary to make this Tar Heels team good enough to win a national title. I'm sure I wasn't alone in hoping that that those first two buckets--a surprisingly deft move by Richard Howell and a banked-in three by Lorenzo Brown--were omens.

For a brief period it seemed like it could be one of those bizarre performances that would lead to a surprising win, but of course it didn't take long for the Heels to help reality set in. They destroyed State on the glass and limited the Pack to 12-37 shooting inside the arc. That's a brilliant all-around interior defensive effort, and far more than we could hope to overcome.

At least nobody got shot by a BB gun.

After the game, someone asked Scott Wood how frustrating it is to keep losing to Carolina. His response was hilarious.

Wood on never beating UNC: "(pause) I don’t know. Has your wife ever cheated on you? (pause) That’s probably about how frustrating it is."

— Stephen Schramm (@stephenschramm) January 27, 2012

I am still working on a scale for grading losses, but here's what I've sketched out so far:

5-point loss: wife cheated on you, but you never really liked her that much anyway

15-point loss: wife cheated on you

20-point loss: wife cheated on you with Jeff McInnis (hat tip to TVP for that joke)

25-point loss: caught wife in the act

30-point loss: caught wife in three-way including that jerk neighbor you hate

That will probably need some adjusting here and there as we move forward.

Well sir, I tell you what, that did not go well at all. We have, however, perfected our bank shot scoring offense, which is to be implemented never. That's good, because it's important to have some takeaways on a night like this. The intangible kind, that is.

TV: ESPN (Mike Patrick, Dick Vitale)

Karl Hess is in the building tonight.

It's always nice when you can make it through a day like today without all the petty invective and replace it with the sense of mutual admiration that has come to define this series. UNC blogger Monica Biddix is all aboard the friend ship:

Personally, I think NC State Heel Haters are merely suffering from an inferiority complex. So NC State, let’s stop the hate. We’re brothers from another mother. You know us state-supported schools got to stick together.

That's exactly what I've been saying, sister! One love.

I know it’s hard being the red-headed step-child among two, blue titans of college basketball. But remember State students and alumni, if there were no Chapel Hill, where would you meet girls? So, start up those tractors and come on over. We’ll leave the lights on for you . . . right before we shoot them out.

It is, Monica, it really really is. We went through a period we weren't proud of for a while, and we lashed out at the University of North Carolina, our greatest, most loyal ally. For that we are deeply sorry and eternally grateful for your steadfast support during our time of need.

Pete Thomas started 21 games for Colorado State in two seasons, but he was not happy about the coaching change made by CSU after the 2011 season and decided to look elsewhere:

"I sat down with Coach McElwain a few times and had a good talk with him, but in the end, I decided this was the right thing for me to do," Thomas said. "I needed a new start, and I am looking for that opportunity. When I committed to CSU, I never thought of Fairchild or the staff being fired, but it's a business. You can't go 3-9 three years in a row and expect to keep your job. That's real tough, but it's on us players. It was definitely a hard situation."

According to Bruce Feldman, the 6-5, 225 pound quarterback has decided to transfer to NC State. Thomas was recruited by NC State out of high school and (in addition to the Pack) had offers from Maryland, Boston College, Arizona State, and Northwestern.

As a true freshman in 2010, Thomas completed 64.7% of his passes for 2,662 yards, 11 TDs and 13 INTs. Last year he completed 61.7% of his throws for 1,607 yards, 7 TDs and 8 INTs. The TD-INT ratio is probably not something worth worrying about; he was sacked 71 times at CSU, and his attempts-per-INT ratio is north of 30.0, which ain't bad at all.

I'm no football coach (surprise!), but I like the fact that he was able to step in as a true freshman and complete a high percentage of his throws. I'm also encouraged by the fact that this staff wanted Thomas out of high school, because I think they're better than most at vetting QBs.

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If there is one thing that Roy Williams knows, it's offensive rebounding. His teams have never finished outside the top 30 in offensive rebounding percentage since he's been at Carolina, and this is one area that really killed State's chances against the Heels in recent years. There was the whole talent differential thing and stuff, but it's no coincidence that the one time Lowe was able to beat the Heels, his team took care of the defensive glass. When a team shoots well and has better talent, losing the rebounding battle becomes an untenable situation.

Fortunately, State has become a good defensive rebounding team under Mark Gottfried. Energy can be as important as anything else, but Gottfried has the tools at his disposal and actually knows how to implement them. This is going to be a crucial aspect in this matchup again this season. The Heels aren't going to turn the ball over much--which means a lot of possessions that end with a shot at the hoop--and they shoot pretty well from the field, so when they do miss, State has to be there or it's gonna look a whole lot like the games in recent years.

It will be interesting to see how Dexter Strickland's absence impacts this team; the Heels ranked 264th in bench minutes with him. I've seen some mention of the fact that the 2005 team had no backup point guard to speak of (which is an insult to my man Quentin Thomas), implying that hey what's the big deal, but that team went eight-deep anyway and had more options at the guard spot, not to mention the fact that those Heels were vastly superior at point guard (Felton) and shooting guard (McCants). We're talking huge differences in structural integrity here; I think it's a bigger issue than it's been made out to be. Strickland didn't do much for their perimeter game--he'd attempted one three-pointer all year--but he was a solid defender and scored efficiently inside the arc.

Without Strickland (or McDonald), Roy Williams has been forced to talk about how he's going to use Stilman White near TV timeouts to give Marshall a break, and he's practiced some sets without a point guard on the floor. Do we press this team? I'm not sure what the right answer is in this case. We could sure as hell use more takeaways; Kendall Marshall is alone and overrated; but State's defense isn't accustomed to full-court pressure.

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