NC State had six different players score in double figures in a 93-61 win over struggling Maryland-Eastern Shore on Wednesday at Reynolds Coliseum.
Two proved to be surprises — former Team Loaded NC traveling teammates Marquise "M.J." Rice and L.J. Thomas — with them combining for 21 points in the non-conference win. Rice in particular had 11 points on 5 of 6 shooting with six rebounds in 11 minutes in making his season debut.
NC State improved to 6-2 and play next Tuesday against 5-4 Tennessee-Martin. Maryland-Eastern Shore fell to 2-6.
Rice had left the team in late August and just recently started practicing. NC State doesn’t have many practices at this time of the year, with road trips to Las Vegas, Nev., at Ole Miss and at Boston College in recent days. To work in Rice now was probably due to urgency of the calendar. Once ACC play gets going, rotations are formed and roles are usually set.
NCSU coach Kevin Keatts said it is time for players to become consistent at what they do.
“We need every practice and every game just so we can build on our chemistry,” Keatts said.
Keatts said he didn’t have a specific plan for Rice’s return, but the clock was starting to tick.
“I was just trying to figure out when he was ready,” Keatts said. “We talked a little bit after shoot-around today. I said, ‘M.J. are you ready to go tonight?’ He had this huge smile on his face.”
Rice then further solidified the notion he was ready by telling Keatts the various X’s and O’s he needed to know.
“We went over plays and I was like, ‘You know what, he is ready to play,’” Keatts said. “He gives us another dimension.”
Thomas understands the fluidity of roles. At the beginning of the season, he was the odd man out, with Breon Pass getting the handful of minutes as the fifth perimeter player. Now, Thomas has surpassed Pass the last few games in the rotation, and he had 10 points in eight minutes of action against the Hawks.
"I am taking advantage of my opportunities, with whatever minutes coach gives me," Thomas said. "I played with M.J. on Team Loaded, so I'm very familiar with him. He is my guy. I'm just excited to see him back on the floor, especially that crazy dunk that he had [near the end of the game]."
Rice was a former McDonald's All-American, who attended three high schools before picking Kansas over NC State and others.
NC State targeted Rice early in his sophomore year at Durham (N.C.) Academy. He then played at Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy his junior year, before finishing at Prolific Prep in Napa, Calif.
Rice's first year of college proved to be a bust. He battled some injuries and he only had 51 points in 23 games played, and he elected to transfer. NC State pursued him again the second time around, and he was expected to come in and be the small ball power forward this season. By the end of the summer, that plan was ditched and freshman forward Dennis Parker had emerged for the Wolfpack in that role.
With Rice, Parker, and juniors Mohamed Diarra, Ben Middlebrooks and Ernest Ross, the Wolfpack are usually deep at the forward spot. Ross has been the odd man out as it is hard to play more than three of that group. Parker and Rice can also fight for minutes at the small forward spot.
“He’ll be good for us,” Keatts said. “We got some older guys, but two really good young players in Dennis Parker Jr. and also M.J. Rice. It was good for M.J. to see the ball go through the hole.”
NC State junior guard Jayden Taylor had 21 points, senior center D.J. Burns added 15 points, senior wing Casey Morsell had 12 points and senior guard D.J. Horne added 10. NC State shot an impressive 59.3 percent from the field against undersized Maryland-Eastern Shore, and only committed nine turnovers.
The two areas Keatts said that need work on was going 15 of 27 at the free-throw line line, and getting off to a slow start. NC State led by just seven points with 1:38 left in the first half.
“We were a little slow getting started, but once we got going, everything headed in our direction,” Keatts said. “We really did it on the defensive end.”
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