WRAL Sports Fan

North Carolina State University

State hangs on to beat Boston College on Senior Night, 74-69

By Derek Medlin

Mar 5, 2009

N.C. State entered action Wednesday night against Boston College at 5-9 in the ACC and in need of a win, if nothing else, for a little self-confidence heading into the final week of the season.

Behind stellar play from Ben McCauley, who scored 20 points on his Senior Night, the Pack got that win it needed, defeating the Eagles 74-69 in front of a partisan RBC Center crowd.

For McCauley, the night's performance could not have gone any better. The 6-foot-9 forward played well throughout the night, but his most important contribution came on the final play of the evening, when he hauled in a rebound with less than five seconds to go and hit two free throws to seal the deal against the Eagles.

“It’s just great,” McCauley said of the victory. “It’s great to go out on a win and I think we fought through it. We gave our fans what they wanted all year and I thank them for sticking with us. It’s a great way for me personally and the rest of the seniors to go out.”

In the first few minutes of action Wednesday, State looked like it would once again struggle as Boston College took a 17-9 lead and looked in control. N.C. State looked off balance and sluggish early on in the game, surely making many in the crowd wonder which team would show up.

A 13-0 run answered that question soon after, as State’s lead grew to nine by the halftime break. Boston College fought back and took the lead in the second half, but N.C. State kept playing well and sealed up the victory the team and its fans desperately needed.

Sidney Lowe said it was great for his team to get a win over a good Boston College team.

“It was a great win against a good ball club,” he said. “It says something of where we are and how we’ve improved.”

As for McCauley’s performance, Lowe said he couldn’t have planned a better ending to a solid career.

“I couldn’t have written a better script with the win and having Ben [McCauley] end the game by knocking down those free throws,” he said. “Our guys were conscious of giving them a good final game and they played hard.”

The Pack held down Boston College’s leading scorer Tyrese Rice, holding the standout guard to 14 points. Rice did, however, dish out 10 assists.

Javi Gonzalez, who had six assists to only one turnover, drew the tough defensive assignment for much of the evening and did a commendable job, according to Lowe.

“Coach told me I was going to be one on one the whole night because they have pretty good shooters,” he said. “I was trying to stay in front of him and make him take tough shots.”

McCauley wasn't the only senior putting his best foot forward in his last game at the RBC Center, as classmate Courtney Fells poured in 11 first half points while hitting three shots from behind the arc. Unfortunately for the Pack and Fells, the senior could not finish off his stellar start as he injured his groin late in the first half.

Fells did not return to the bench until midway through the second half and did not return to the game. After the game, Lowe said Fells would need a couple days rest before the extent of the injury could be determined.

Despite Fells’ injury, the mood following the victory was positive and upbeat.

Forward Tracy Smith, who scored 14 points, smiled from ear to ear when he described how it felt to get a victory for the seniors in their last outing at the RBC Center.

“Everybody went out and just played hard,” he said. “We just wanted them to get their final win at the RBC Center.”

Moving forward, the Pack has put itself in position to improve its position in the ACC if it can beat Miami this weekend in Florida. Miami’s 78-68 loss to Georgia Tech Wednesday left the Pack only one game behind the Canes heading into Saturday’s game.

McCauley said the win against Boston College is a sign that this team can win and has the potential to make a run in the ACC tournament next week.

“We just need to believe in ourselves,” McCauley said. “We saw what we can do this year. We can beat tough teams. If we just believe that we can win games we can definitely make a run.”