Duke big men overpower short-handed NC State
DURHAM — Some teams have centers that have hurt NC State, and others have power forwards.
The size issue has been a lingering problem for the Wolfpack after redshirt junior center Manny Bates suffered a season-ending injury in the season opener Nov. 9, and junior power forward Greg Gantt has yet to play a game this season. Then Saturday the Wolfpack learned that freshman backup post player Ernest Ross would miss the game due to an ankle injury.
Playing Duke with just two healthy player taller than 6-foot-8 is a recipe for disaster, and that proved to be the case in the Blue Devils’ 88-73 win over NC State at Cameron Indoor Stadium. NC State fell to 9-9 overall and 2-5 in the ACC, and host Virginia Tech on Wednesday. The No. 8-ranked Blue Devils improved to 14-2 overall and 4-1 in the league.
Barring a postseason meeting, Saturday was likely the last time NC State played against. Mike Krzyzewski-coached squad. Krzyzewski will retire after this season and be replaced by assistant coach Jon Scheyer.
“He’s a Hall of Fame coach and his teams always play hard, and he’s done a great job of recruiting,” NCSU coach Kevin Keatts said. “He has been a father figure to a lot of guys. I’m excited for him and happy for him. Him and his wife deserve to drive off to a beach or hang our wherever they desire to be and spend some time with the grand-kids.”
Krzyzewski knows Keatts is going through some tough times in Raleigh, but he let it be known he was a “fan of Kevin.”
“I think he’s one of the best coaches and one of the classiest guys in college basketball,” Krzyzewski said. “His teams play that way. They’ve been in more close games I think than anybody. They are 2-5 now in the league, but could be 5-2 real easy. We knew we’d play a really good team.”
Duke punished NC State at both the center spot and power forward between freshman Paolo Banchero, sophomore Mark Williams and senior Theo John. Banchero was to be expected, since he’s a projected top three NBA Draft choice. Banchero flashed his immense offensive package to score a game-high 21 points, plus had eight rebounds and four assists.
“Banchero is good as advertised,” Keatts said. “You read about these kids and you see them in recruiting, but then you get a chance to play. Their frontline was tremendous. Not to take away from the guards, but I thought they were the difference in the game.”
The one-two punch of Williams and John took advantage of NC State’s thin lineup. Williams finished with 19 points, 11 rebounds and eight blocked shots, and John chipped in 10 points in 10 minutes, 33 seconds of playing time off the bench. The duo shot a combined 13 of 16 from the field.
“[Williams] was tremendous,” Keatts said. “I thought he was the difference in the game. We had 15 more shots than them, but Mark was a big difference.
“I thought we did a good job with the guards. You look at the guard play, it was even. Their frontcourt, that’s an NBA frontcourt line. They completely dominated us at the four and five, and we were a little short-handed.”
NC State ran into some foul difficulty with center Ebenezer Dowuona and power forward Jericole Hellems. The latter never got untracked offensively, finishing with seven points and seven rebounds.
Playing against the size of Duke could have proven difficult, but Dowuona came out with three dunks in the first 4:32 of the game. He finished with 10 points and nine rebounds, but needed more help inside.
Playing against size in light of missing Bates and Gantt has been a season-long problem. Oklahoma State’s Kalib Boone came off the bench for 20 points in a win Nov. 17. Wide-body Kenneth Lofton of Louisiana Tech had 36 points and 17 rebounds in a loss against the Wolfpack on Nov. 27.
Purdue all-around force Trevion Williams had 22 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists in an overtime victory Dec. 12. Richmond center Grant Golden hurt NC State with 19 points and seven rebounds in a win in Charlotte on Dec. 17. The stunning loss to Wright State featured Grant Basile scoring 23 points and grabbing 16 rebounds Dec. 21.
Clemson sophomore center P.J. Hall had 20 points in the Tigers win Jan. 8, and Louisville backup center Sydney Curry had 22 points and 10 rebounds in the Cardinals loss this past Jan. 12.
The Duke trio will now add to that season-long trend.
“We have to play smart and at some point our young guys, and we now know they aren’t afraid of any moment and will play hard against every team,” Keatts said. “The next step is getting in the right position and knowing where to be.
“As a first step, if you can get your team to play hard, you are moving in the right direction. Now, we have to start playing smart.”
The perimeter duo of NC State redshirt freshman Dereon Seabron and freshman wing Terquavion Smith did their best to try to offset Duke’s perimeter players, but the size inside proved the difference. Seabron racked up another double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Smith struggled with his three-point shooting, but added a team-high 19 points. Both players earned strong praise from Krzyzewski.
“Seabron is a pro,” Krzyzewksi said. “He’s a very unusually good player. He impacts every phase of the game. I thought we did a decent job on him.”
Krzyzewski used an old Vinnie Johnson nickname, the off the bench shooting guard for the Detroit Pistons in the 1980s.
“Smith, I call him the microwave,” Krzyzewski said. “I haven’t seen everybody in the league, but of the teams that I’ve seen, there isn’t another guy like him. He can just boom, boom, boom points. Every time he gets it, he scares you. He’s good.”
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