Notebook: NC State's centers are producing
The one-two punch of centers Manny Bates and D.J. Funderburk provided another monster combined effort in helping NC State defeat St. Francis Brooklyn 95-64 on Saturday in front of 4,774 fans at Reynolds Coliseum.
Funderburk came off the bench for 17 points, seven rebounds and a block in 21:15 minutes. Bates was effective getting lobs at the rim to the tune of 12 points, three rebounds and two blocks in 18:33.
NCSU coach Kevin Keatts will gladly take a combined 29 points, 10 boards and three blocks from his center position.
“When I look at our center position, I’m happy with it,” Keatts said. “Manny Bates has made D.J. Funderburk a better shot-blocker. He wasn’t a great shot-blocker, but now he knows in order to play, he has to protect the paint.”
Funderburk has the potential to play inside and outside, even out to the three-point line area. Bates has 16 blocks in four games.
“Manny is as good a rim protector as there is in college basketball,” Keatts said.
Funderburk and Bates even played together briefly late in the first half. With fifth-year senior center Danny Dixon out with a sore foot, it has cut down on that dual post lineup.
“We plan on using that lineup at times, and I want to experiment with it today,” Keatts said.
Funderburk has always said he’d gladly go back to his power forward days.
“Every game I try and come out in attack mode, but my teammates were just finding me a little bit more this game,” Funderburk said. “I like it [with Manny] because I always tell my teammates I’d rather play that position, but it is what it is. I like the lineup.”
Markell Johnson Passing Well, But Jumper Is Off
The alarm hasn’t sounded yet on senior point guard Markell Johnson’s outside shooting, but it is starting to become a concern. Johnson went 4 of 13 from the field and 0 of 4 on three-pointers in the win over St. Francis Brooklyn. Truth be told, the Wolfpack needed his passing, particularly the lobs to Bates and Funderburk, more than his outside shooting against the undermanned Terriers.
“Every day we try and get better at that,” said Johnson about the passes to Bates. “When any of us dunk the ball, it energizes the whole team.”
Keatts liked the how the “lob game” developed between Johnson and the bigs.
“When I recruited Manny, I was looking for a taller just as athletic Devontae Cacok,” said Keatts, referring to his former UNCW star. “We had a lot of success with Devontae at UNCW, but he was 6-6. Manny is doing it at 6-11. He is long, can run the floor and is athletic. He will get better as the season goes along offensively.”
It will help NC State high ball screen offense when Johnson starts getting back on track with his long-range jumper. Johnson is now 8 of 35 from the field and 2 of 17 on three-pointers in three games played. He shot 42 percent on three-pointers last year, so a binge seems to be due in the near future to even things out.
“It is all about rhythm right now,” Johnson said. “It is getting back in the flow of things. I’m not too worried about it.”
Keatts said Johnson hasn’t been shooting well in practice either. He pointed out it could be residual effects of his ankle injury of two weeks ago, but he knows he needs Johnson to play better.
“It’s going to take him some time,” Keatts said. “He has to find his groove and find his rhythm. Right now, it is not there. He’ll be fine.”
The Wolfpack were much more aggressive in the second half, and Johnson curtailed his turnovers after halftime — four of his five came in the first half. NC State allowed St. Francis Brooklyn to out-rebound them 21-19 in the first half, including a 12-6 advantage on the offensive boards.
Johnson said the players heard it loud and clear that the Terriers were playing harder than them in the first half. With some “coaxing” from the NC State assistant coaches, the Wolfpack turned the battle of the boards in their favor in the second half. NCSU had a 12-3 advantage of offensive rebounds in the second half, which combined with 10 turnovers by the Terriers, led to the blowout.
“I didn’t like us at halftime,” Keatts said. “I thought we gave up too many offensive rebounds. We were in great position, but I don’t think we blocked back.”
C.J. Bryce Working Inside The Arc
When fifth-year senior wing C.J. Bryce transferred from UNC Wilmington to follow Keatts to NC State, it was assumed he’d be a key leader from the minute he arrived due to his familiarity with what the new coaching staff wanted to accomplish.
Keatts said it has been more gradual than that because Bryce had to find his way with how he fit in with new teammates. He told Bryce it’s time for him to take ownership of this NC State team, similar to how he did at UNCW.
“He is playing really good basketball,” Keatts said. “He’s becoming a good player because he is doing it in every different way. The only thing he is missing right now is he hasn’t shot many three-pointers.”
Bryce has been terrific for NC State, partly due to his prowess with hitting difficult mid-range jumpers. He hasn’t been hunting down three-point shots this season, going just 2 of 7 from beyond the arc.
Bryce attempted 3.1 three-point field goals per game en route to going 38 of 110 last year. Bryce finished the game with 22 points and 11 boards in 28:15 minutes of action Saturday.
“I feel like we got better tonight on the defensive end,” Bryce said. “That is something we want to work on every single game and every practice. We try and not look at our opponent as anything less. They are basketball players just like we are.”
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