NC State has a pair of games against Boston College down the stretch, with the first one at 7 p.m. tonight, and the second at 2 p.m. March 9 in Chestnut Hill, Mass.
The Eagles have been struggling in ACC action, bringing a 13-11 mark and 4-8 in the league to Raleigh tonight. NC State (18-8 overall, 6-7 ACC) has won two of its last three games, and needs a strong closing stretch against the bottom teams (sans FSU) of the ACC.
Boston College took a hit when freshman guard Wynston Tabb got injured Jan. 20. The Eagles have gone 3-6 without Tabb this season, who is averaging 13.9 points and 2.7 assists per game in trying to replace guard Jerome Robinson, who entered the NBA Draft a year early.
Here is a breakdown of Boston College:
Season Overview
Boston College was sitting at 9-3 after the non-conference schedule wrapped up, with losses against IUPUI, Providence and Hartford, with the latter two both in overtime. The key win was Minnesota, who is on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament.
Boston College has won its last two games, topping Pittsburgh 66-57 on Feb. 12, and Miami by a similar score, 64-57, last Sunday.
BC’s offensive attack revolves around do-it-all junior guard Ky Bowman, and the outside shooting of former BYU transfer Jordan Chatman, a senior.
Rankings
In the newly established NET rankings done by the NCAA, through games of Feb. 14, the Eagles are ranked No. 126 in the country. ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) has the Eagles at No. 106, and KenPom.com has BC at No. 111.
The Eagles are ranked No. 129 in the old RPI formula used by the NCAA — according to RealTimeRPI.com.
For comparison, NC State is 21st in BPI, 32nd in NET, 34th in Kenpom.com and 100th in RPI.
Shooting
Bowman leads the Eagles at 37.7 percent on three-pointers, and Chatman is at 35.7 percent from beyond the arc. Bowman has hit at least four three-pointers in eight contests, including seven against Wyoming on Nov. 19.
Chatman enters the game with some good scoring momentum, scoring at least 12 points in eight of his last nine games. He has drained at least three three-pointers in eight games, including making six at Louisville.
Boston College ranks ninth in the ACC in field-goal percentage (43.7) and is seventh in the league in three-point field-goal percentage (33.0). Chatman shoots 81 percent from the free-throw line and Bowman is right behind at 79.8 percent.
Rebounding
Boston College is a quality rebounding team thanks to Bowman leading the way at 7.8 rebounds a contest. Sophomore power forward Steffon Mitchell is right behind at 7.7 boards per game and junior center Nik Popovic is at 7.5.
BC is ninth in the ACC in both rebounds per game (36.9) and offensive rebounds a contest (10.3), but fourth in defensive rebounds (26.6).
Defense
Mitchell helps spearhead the defense by chipping in at 1.1 blocks and 1.1 steals per game. The Eagles only block three a game, and only force 5.3 steals a contest, which both rank 13th in the ACC.
Opposing teams have shot 41.5 percent from the field, which ranks 10th in the ACC, but are sixth in three-point field-goal percentage at 31.6 percent.
Depth
The Boston College depth revolves around freshman post player Jairus Hamilton of Concord (N.C.) Cannon School, freshman guard Chris Herren Jr. and redshirt junior center Johncarlos Reyes.
The 6-8, 234-pound Hamilton picked BC and his older brother Jared Hamilton transferred in from Georgia Southern. Jairus Hamilton is averaging 5.3 points and 4.1 rebounds in 20.3 minutes per game, and he has reached double figures in five contests. The 6-3, 174-pound Herren, the son of former BC and Fresno State guard of the same name, is shooting 32.3 percent on three-pointers and is averaging 4.3 points per game. He had 22 points against Fairfield.
The 6-10, 214-pound Reyes is chipping in 1.9 points and 1.0 rebounds in 6.3 minutes per game. Sophomore Luka Kraljevic gives BC a fourth post player.
Star Watch
Bowman was originally slotted to play wide receiver at North Carolina, but decided before his senior year at Havelock (N.C.) High that he wanted to concentrate on basketball. The move was met with skepticism at the time, but has paid off handsomely for the junior guard.
Bowman played with Team Wall traveling team and then had a big senior year, eventually leading him to pick Boston College over offers from Rutgers, Missouri, Memphis, Cincinnati, California and DePaul among others.
Bowman has gotten better in each of his three years at Boston College, and is averaging 19.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game, and is shooting 42.7 percent from the field and 37.7 percent on three-pointers. The rebounding number is especially impressive for a 6-1 and 188-pound guard.
Bowman had a season-high 44 points plus 10 rebounds and five three-pointers in a 79-78 overtime loss vs. Hartford on Dec. 31. He also had 38 points in a 88-76 win over Wyoming on Nov. 19 and he had 37 points in a 87-82 win vs. Florida State on Jan. 20. He has scored in double figures in all but one contest, which was his last game against Miami, when he was held to six points, but had eight assists and eight rebounds while playing with flu-like symptoms.
Bowman had 21 points and five steals against NC State in the regular season loss last year, and then had 24 points and four assists in the 91-87 win over the Wolfpack in the ACC Tournament.
Likely starters:
NC State
PG — 11 Markell Johnson (6-1, 175, Jr., 11.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 4.3 apg, 1.0 spg)
SG — 13 C.J. Bryce (6-5, 195, R-Jr., 12.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1.3 spg)
G — 10 Braxton Beverly (6-0, 180, Soph., 10.2 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 2.8 apg)
F — 2 Torin Dorn (6-5, 210, 5th-Sr., 13.8 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 1.4 apg, 1.0 spg)
C — 33 Wyatt Walker (6-9, 240, R-Jr., 5.5 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 1.0 apg, 1.0 bpg)
Boston College
PG — 0 Ky Bowman (6-1, 188, Jr., 19.5 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 3.9 apg, 1.3 spg)
SG — 25 Jordan Chatman (6-5, 210, Sr., 13.8 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 2.0 apg)
SF — 3 Jared Hamilton (6-4, 203, R-Jr., 5.4 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 0.5 apg)
PF — 41 Steffon Mitchell (6-8, 220, Soph., 4.3 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.1 bpg)
C — 21 Nik Popovic (6-11, 253, Jr., 13.6 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 1.0 apg)
Stats To Watch
BC ball movement is lacking: The Eagles rank 10th in the ACC in assists per game at 12.4, but are minus-1.13 in turnover margin. Bowman leads the squad with 3.9 assists per game, but his 3.0 turnovers a contest have the Eagles averaging 12.7 as a team.
Bowman misses Tabbs: Bowman is averaging 21.8 points per game when Tabb is playing, and slides down to 15.6 points per game without Tabb. He also falls 9.2 percent worse from the field to 37.0 percent without Tabb.
Thirty-five minute game?: Boston College is 10-1 this season when leading with five minutes left in regulation. The Eagles are also 9-2 when allowing less than 70 points.
Game Within The Game: NCSU centers vs. Nik Popovic
Boston College junior center Nik Popovic might not be smooth on the court, but he has continually improved. He’s averaging a career-best 13.6 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, and is shooting 52.6 percent from the field.
The 6-foot-11, 253-pounder from Bosnia & Herzegovina has become rock solid in ACC action, scoring in double figures in all but one game. He had 21 points and 11 rebounds at Wake Forest in a 65-61 win Jan. 26, and he has seven double-doubles on the season. Popovic is fresh off of scoring 15 points and grabbing 14 rebounds in the win over Miami (Fla.).
Popovic had 15 points and seven rebounds in the ACC Tournament win over NC State last year, and went for nine points and seven rebounds in the regular season loss against the Wolfpack.
NCSU centers Wyatt Walker and DJ Funderburk should match up well against Popovic, with the latter potentially giving him trouble with his quickness and outside shooting. Walker is averaging 5.5 points and 4.6 rebounds per game, and Funderburk chips in 8.5 points and 3.9 rebounds a contest off the bench.
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