According to 850 the Buzz’s recent blog post, if the players were at fault for the FSU loss (which they were), then the coaching staff were at fault for the Duke loss:

One game after Sidney Lowe called his starters “awful” and essentially said that it’s the players fault not the coach’s, Lowe’s decision to allow Duke to melt the clock without making any effort to steal the ball — let alone commit a foul — ranks as one of the worst I have ever seen.

(This point was also debated over at RedandWhiteFromState.com Saturday.)

I definitely agree that Lowe isn’t doing enough to get this team to where it needs to be. State certainly hasn’t lived up to their potential this year and while the onus is on the players to execute, it’s on the coach to motivate them to do so.

It would seem that others are starting to focus on whether or not Lowe is the right guy for the job:

As a NC State Grad, I would like to know how all the alumni that chased out Herb Sendek feels now. Sidney Lowe could not coach if he had 5 Lebron James on his team. I was pissed off when Herb went to ASU. People did not like his slow tempo, but he got better results than Sidney ever will. Herb took us to the dance several times. We will be lucky to make it to the NIT with Lowe.

“LOWE MUST GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” –NCStateGrad96
(as submitted to NCStateFans.com)

Despite how well State played this weekend vs. Duke, Gavin Grant gets it:

“There are no moral victories,” Grant said. “There is no ‘L’ with an ‘M’ next to it. They made plays down the stretch. They could have easily folded, but they didn’t. They made plays and hung tough. That’s why they are who they are.” –Gavin Grant

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Another nice start, followed by a defensive outage, and Hansbrough domination.

Watch highlights here.

“In the second half, they came out and turned it up again and we didn’t respond,” Lowe said. “Our defense wasn’t there like it was in the first half. Against a team like that, you have to stay solid and stay focused and we didn’t do that.” –Gaston Gazette

“We stopped playing defense and we didn’t execute on offense and they took advantage of that,” NC State junior Ben McCauley said. “They got some easy buckets and got themselves on a roll. It carried over to the second half.” –TheWolfpacker.com

“They came out stronger, more physical and more aggressive on defense,” Grant said. “I think they won the game with that trap. We were throwing the ball away.” –TheWolfpacker.com

“They were just getting easy baskets after easy baskets,” said NC State freshman point guard Javier Gonzalez, who had six points and career-high nine assists. “It’s pretty tough to get the lead back against this team. In the second half, we just didn’t play defense.”–TheWolfpacker.com

Hansbrough scored 32:

“He was the best player on the floor,” N.C. State coach Sidney Lowe said. “He’s been playing that way for a while. He’s picked it up.” –Gaston Gazette

“We let Hansbrough go wherever he wanted, do whatever he wanted,” Grant said. “He was shooting layups and we should have just fouled him. Make him go to the free-throw line, make him earn it. You can’t win like that.”–TheWolfpacker.com

Even Hickson was off his game tonight:

“We were looking for energy and quickness [from Smith],” Lowe said. “We were able to cut into their lead a little bit. J.J. wasn’t doing good on defense and we needed someone to make stops. Tracy did a good job of that.”–TheWolfpacker.com

Lowe on 2nd half fades, turnovers:

“Our biggest thing is having trouble dealing with adversity,” Lowe said. “We haven’t been able to make a run back at them and stop theirs. We’re plagued in the second half. We start relaxing and teams take advantage of that. We make careless passes under pressure. It was a mental breakdown and we didn’t stay focused.” –TheWolfpacker.com

McCauley still thinks there’s hope for making the NCAAT:

“We still have two home games left and we feel like we can go on the road against the teams we have as well,” McCauley said. “Hopefully, we can finish .500. We have to finish 8-8. Hopefully, we can have a good showing in the ACC Tournament.” –TheWolfpacker.com

“We need to come out and play the right way,” Grant said. “We’re playing good in certain spurts, but we’ve got to put it all together for 40 minutes.” –AP

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Coach Lowe Tuesday said it’s going to take a team effort to beat Carolina; called out some guys;

…and said the time is now:

But Lowe is more interested in beating the third-ranked Tar Heels this year. State plays Carolina tomorrow night at the RBC Center and Lowe said today it would take a team effort to do it, with everyone playing hard, playing well, doing their part.

“It’s time. It’s been time now where guys have to step up,” he said. “They have to step up and play. We need everybody. We can’t have J.J. Hickson the only guy rebounding for us. We need Gavin, Courtney and Javi and Brandon and Ben and Dennis and whoever’s playing, we need guys to step up.” –ACCNow

Read the full story here.

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13 straight missed shots. 10 minute scoreless streak. 2-20 shooting over the last 15 minutes of the 1st half. 0-9 streak from the three point line during the second half.

Despite dreadful stats like these, NC State was able to battle back in the second half to take a 64-62 lead with only 2:30 to go. But a three pointer from Clemson freshman Terrence Oglesby with 2:00 to go was the key play in the game:

“It was at the top of our scouting report: ‘Don’t release off of him,’” State coach Sidney Lowe said. “And then he gets a wide open 3.” –FayObserver.com

Hickson scored 13 points and 23 rebounds to lead the Wolfpack, however he went the first 14 minutes of the game without a basket, despite having 10 rebounds at the time. Gavin Grant had 18 and Courtney Fells tossed in 17 more from to lead State.

“I told our guys we played hard, and there really wasn’t much I could say because they put forth a great effort. We just made some mistakes down the stretch there,” Coach Lowe said. –Winston-Salem Journal

…and another “must win” goes by without State getting the win. The second half run was impressive, and many thought Clemson was going to fade like they did against Carolina earlier this month. But Clemson didn’t let it happen this time.

Up next for the Wolfpack, the Tarheels on Wednesday night at 7pm.

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The Pack just couldn’t stop Tyrese Rice. 32 points and 6 assists later, the Eagles had snapped their 6 game losing streak with a win over NC State, 82-65. State tried doubleteams and traps to slow Rice down, but he handled them flawlessly, shooting 12-18 from the field. One of the telling moments? The first time State went to a full court trap to keep Rice away from the ball, he drove the length of the court for a layup.

“(Rice) let us know early it was going to be a tough night guarding him,” Costner said. –News & Observer

This might be the beginning of the end for State’s NCAA Tourney bid.

“We talked about this time (of year),” Coach Lowe said. “This was a very, very big game. To not be in it and have an opportunity to win was very disappointing. Some of the efforts were very disappointing.” –WRAL

Costner still has hope:

“We still feel we can reach the (NCAA) tournament and play well in the tournament,” N.C. State forward Brandon Costner said. “But we’ve got to have everybody show up every night…” –News & Observer

It’s been quite a disappointing season so far for a young and potentially exciting State team that just can’t find a way to score. Last night they couldn’t rebound either. Boston College is one of the worst rebounding teams in the ACC. They out-rebounded State 20-10 in the first half.

J.J. Hickson again lead the way for the Wolfpack scoring 20 points and 7 rebounds. Brandon Costner had 14 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists ..but also had 5 of State’s 13 turnovers. Gavin Grant also had 15 points in the loss.

Despite a critical loss, there was at least one silver lining from my standpoint: Coach Lowe left them on the floor to play their way out of the slump.

“We can’t win with three guys playing well; we can’t do it…We need six guys to at least come out and be productive and do their jobs and do what they’re supposed to do,” Lowe said. “That doesn’t entail just scoring points, it’s the defensive end that I’m looking at and I’m concerned about.” –WRAL

It doesn’t get any easier for State, who will at least be heading home. They play Clemson Saturday at 3pm at the RBC and have the Tarheels coming up Wednesday night at 7pm.

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From Coach Lowe’s meeting with the media prior to the BC game:

It’s frustrating in the end when you don’t win the game. I think for me, I still have to look at certain areas and things that we’re doing well. It’s frustrating to see us come out and play well in the first half and then come out in the second half and not be able to execute offensively or defensively. You’re trying to figure out what it is. As a coach, you always want that quick fix, you want your guys to pick up as soon as possible what you’re talking about and understand what you’re talking about. Maybe it’s the frustrating part of them not getting it yet. I’m not frustrated with them, but just frustrated that they haven’t gotten it yet. I think they’re going to get it. They’ve accomplished everything that we’ve wanted to do as far as certain areas of the game and this is the last hurdle so to speak.

– Scout.com

The rest of the interview with Coach Lowe.

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High School Junior Scott Wood made it official and will follow teammate Julius Mays to Raleigh.

Wood, a 6-foot-6 shooting guard, doesn’t register as one of the nation’s elite junior prospects. But he does have a smooth shooting stroke and enough range that Lowe believes he can be a factor in the State program for years to come. –FayObserver.com

While Mays will be on campus later this year, Wood will follow a year later. So what does it mean for State? Well it sounds like they’ve set some pretty high expectations:

“Coach Lowe went to N.C. State with his high school teammate and they won the national championship,” Wood said. “He’s been sincere in saying that he wants me and Julius to do the same.” –FayObserver.com

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