Instant analyses: N.C. State finding skills, chemistry in ACC tournament

It’s all falling into place now for N.C. State. C.J. Leslie is replicating his postseason form of a year ago. Lorenzo Brown is rounding into health. Scott Wood is making shots. Richard Howell is Richard Howell.

Virginia posed little opposition Friday N.C. State took control early as Leslie scored eight of N.C. State’s first 17 points, then pulled away when Wood hit 3-pointers on back-to-back-to-back possessions early in the second half for a 75-56 win.

Just as he was in Atlanta last year, Leslie was dominant. He took the ball to the rim. He made (most of) his free throws. He rebounded. He blocked shots. He even hit a few jump shots. He displayed the full array of his game, as he has at times this season, but without consistency.

After scoring 15 points and pulling down seven rebounds in Thursday’s win over Virginia Tech and 17 points with 11 rebounds on Friday, Leslie has 84 points in his past five ACC tournament games, going back to last season.

Wood, meanwhile, went 7-for-12 from 3-point range -- his most 3-pointers since the Florida State game his freshman year, when he went 7-for-11 -- and finished with 23 points.

Not that there weren’t some of the same warning signs for State -- Howell left the game for a little while with a thigh injury and T.J. Warren picked up a second-half technical foul that gave Virginia some life at a time when the Cavaliers were otherwise finished.

The injury didn’t seem to slow Howell, even if he was grabbing at his right leg while trotting down the court, but it’ll be interesting to see how it responds overnight before facing Miami on Saturday.

With the surging Wolfpack facing the top-seeded Hurricanes in the first semifinal and the potential for a third Duke-Carolina meeting, Saturday is shaping up awfully well. So, at the moment, is the Wolfpack.

-- Luke DeCock

Wolfpack rise to the challenge

N.C. State players wore red long-sleeved T-shirts inscribed with white letters: "Rise to the occasion."

The Wolfpack rose. They allowed Virginia to linger in the first half at Greensboro Coliseum Friday. The Cavaliers could have competed if they had hit some easy and open shots. But they didn’t. The longer the game wore on, the more difficult Virginia’s shots became.

N.C. State looked like the team many of us anticipated before the season began. The Wolfpack imposed their talent on a lesser Virginia team. The Cavaliers had nobody who could match up with C.J. Leslie, and Leslie knew it.

When Virginia adjusted inside, Scott Wood hammered the Cavaliers outside.

Wood took 12 shots from the field, all 3-pointers, and hit seven for a game-high 23 points. Leslie added 17 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.

N.C. State won easily, beating the Cavaliers 75-56.

The Wolfpack was unselfish and entertaining and really good.

If they can sustain it there’s nobody in the conference, or in the country, with which they can’t compete.

-- Tom Sorensen

Ex-Tar Heel Kenny Smith remembers UNC's NCAA tournament runs

Turner Sports' Kenny Smith, a two-time NBA champ and UNC All-American, joins CineSport's Noah Coslov to discuss how he preps for a game as a commentator & his memories of playing in the tourney.

Duke leads UNC 42-24 at halftime

CHAPEL HILL -- North Carolina has been on a upward trajectory since the middle of February, when it began using a four-guard starting lineup. The Tar Heels entered their game against Duke here on Saturday night on a six-game winning streak, their longest of the season.

UNC, though, is struggling like it did months ago. And the Blue Devils are in the midst of one of their best games.

Duke scored the first 14 points of game and leads UNC 42-24 at halftime here at the Smith Center. After the Blue Devils' initial surge, the Heels never cut Duke's lead into single digits. The Devils made 13 of their first 16 shots from the field, while UNC made just four of its first 16.

Seth Curry, Duke's senior guard, did the most damage. He made his first eight shots of the game - including one while he was falling backwards. Overall, he made eight of his 10 attempts from the field and finished the half with 18 points.

Quinn Cook and Mason Plumlee added eight apiece for the Blue Devils, who shot 69.2 percent from the field. Duke also made five of its nine 3-point attempts.

The Tar Heels defended the perimeter well when these teams played last month in Durham. But that has been an issue for UNC tonight. Both Cook and Curry made two 3s for Duke. UNC, meanwhile, missed all eight of its 3-point attempts during the first half.

The Tar Heels made just nine of their 33 shots from the field (27.3 percent). UNC forced eight turnovers and has nine offensive rebounds, but due its poor shooting it hasn't capitalized on those opportunities.

Duke senior forward Ryan Kelly, who sat out the first game between these teams while he recovered from a broken foot, picked up his third foul just before halftime and hasn't been much of a factor. He played 11 minutes and finished the half with two points.

James Michael McAdoo led UNC with nine points in the first half. None of his teammates scored more than five points.

- Andrew Carter

Duke's Mike Krzyzewski speaks on Virginia fans' storming the court

Following the Duke Blue Devils' 73-68 loss to Virginia on Thursday, Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski expressed concern for his players' safety after the Virginia students rushed the court at Charlottesville, Va.

Video: Catholic 7 to expand, keep 'Big East' name

The seven Catholic schools departing the Big East will begin play next season, instead of 2014. The league will reportedly add Xavier and Butler with Creighton also a candidate to join.

Video: Cheerleader's amazing trick shot

So, perhaps the most amazing shot of the college basketball season wasn't from a player, but from a cheerleader.

According to Yahoo! Sports, Ashlee Arnau, a cheerleader at William Carey University in Hattiesburg, Miss., has tried to make a half-court shot via a football-style flip throw-in at every home basketball game since Christmas.

She finally made it during halftime of Thursday night's game against Auburn-Montgomery, the final home game of the season for William Carey.

- Observer sports

UNC interested in renovating Smith Center, AD Bubba Cunningham says

CHAPEL HILL - North Carolina athletic director Bubba Cunningham is interested in renovations that would modernize the Smith Center and provide more "revenue drivers," he said during an interview on Saturday.

The UNC men's basketball team is in 28th season playing at the Smith Center, which opened in 1986. Improvements have been made over the years - a video ribbon board debuted this season, and in recent years the sound and lighting systems were replaced - but the basic interior of the building has largely remained unchanged.

Cunningham said he is interested in adding luxury suites to the Smith Center, which was built before such amenities became commonplace in indoor sports arenas.

"We have suites and club seats in football (at Kenan Stadium) that work," Cunningham said. "But we have an iconic structure here. You have to be very careful on how you do that. I think we want to make sure that the fans get the experience they expect when they come to a premier place."

Cunningham said he envisions a renovated Smith Center would include "all the stuff that you would expect." That could include luxury suites, a modernized concourse and new concession stands and bathrooms.

"We want a place that's competitive for the team, number one," Cunningham said. "And then a place that accommodates the interest and the needs of the fans."

Cunningham said there have been "no serious discussions" about when the renovations might begin or what they might include. Those discussions would begin after the basketball season ends, he said. He acknowledged the need to modernize a building that lacks some of the amenities that have become standard in newer arenas.

UNC over the years has revamped Kenan Stadium, with the most recent changes coming in 2011. That's when the university opened the Blue Zone, which features club seating and 20 luxury suites.

Among all of UNC's facilities Cunningham said the one in the direst need of improvement is Fetzer Field, which is home to the men's and women's soccer, lacrosse and track teams.

"The one that needs the most help right now is Fetzer," Cunningham said. "And I think after that it'd be the Smith Center."

- Andrew Carter

Video: Cal head coach caught shoving player

Cal head coach Mike Montgomery was caught shoving guard Allen Crabbe in the second half of Sunday's game vs. USC.

UNC forward Joel James out against Georgia Tech

Coach Roy Williams says freshman Joel James will miss his third straight game with a concussion when the Tar Heels travel to Georgia Tech on Tuesday.

James apparently took a blow to the head during a Feb. 5 win against Wake Forest and began experiencing headaches afterward, but he didn’t notify the team’s medical staff and played in a lopsided loss at Miami that weekend.

James, a 6-foot-10, 260-pound center, didn’t play in the loss at Duke nor the weekend home win against Virginia.


- Observer news services

UNC leads Wake Forest 47-27 at halftime

CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina leads Wake Forest 47-27 at halftime here at the Smith Center. The Tar Heels closed the half on a 15-1 run, and blew open a game they led 32-26.

The Demon Deacons didn't make a field goal during the last five minutes and 54 seconds of the half, and they committed 13 first-half turnovers. The Heels turned those into 18 points.

UNC also outscored Wake Forest 22-12 in the paint, and 6-0 off of fast break points.

Reggie Bullock led UNC with 12 points during the first half. James Michael McAdoo had nine, and Marcus Paige added five points and six rebounds, which represent a career high.

After suffering a concussion last week, P.J. Hairston returned and scored four points during the first half. He sat out UNC’s victory against Virginia Tech on Saturday.

Arnaud Adala Moto, a freshman, led Wake Forest with eight points during the first half. The Demon Deacons, who statistically have one of the worst defenses in the ACC, shot just 39.1 percent during the first half.

- Andrew Carter