WRALSportsFan
Lowe Seeks Improvement After Dismal Loss to New Orleans
By Dane Huffman Nov 20, 2007
N.C. State coach Sidney Lowe continued to pick through the wreckage of Sunday’s loss to New Orleans on Tuesday, saying his team lacked the intensity he wants to see.
“It seems like it was just one of those games,” Lowe said. “I don’t think mentally we were there the whole 40 minutes.”
State lost 65-63 despite 22 points from freshman J.J. Hickson.
But the Wolfpack was clearly out of sync as it shot just 5 of 16 from the field and some of last season’s key players had poor games.
Forward Brandon Costner scored only seven points, guard Courtney Fells three and former starter Ben McCauley played only 14 minutes and scored just two points.
Gavin Grant scored 20 points in the contest, but afterward, alluded to tension on the Pack team.
“It’s just players,” Grant said. “It’s nothing between coaches and players it’s between players and players. They’re having issues with each other that they shouldn’t have.
“It’s nothing that I want to talk to the media about; it’s between the team and the team.”
Asked about that on Tuesday, Lowe responded, “Maybe he’s trying to say what I’ve been saying, that there’s an adjustment for our team, having a guy like J.J. in there, and it is and adjustment for those guys.”
Lowe said Wolfpack players are trying to figure out how to work together, how to get their shots, and what they need to do to get minutes. He said he spoke individually to many of his players on Monday, including McCauley.
McCauley started 36 games last season and averaged 14.4 points but is now coming off the bench. In two games, McCauley is 2 of 5 from the field for a total of four points.
“The thing I’ve told our guys is we don’t have a set starting lineup,” Lowe said.
“All the positions were open and are still open. As Ben progresses and works and continues to be the Ben that we know, certainly starting is in the picture for him
“We’re going to put the best lineup out on the floor. I didn’t promise these guys anything except I want to win.”
State (1-1) plays again on Thursday against Rider (2-1) in the Old Spice Classic in Orlando, Fla. The Pack will play again Friday and Sunday.
Lowe expects improvement. New Orleans outrebounded State 41-37, and Lowe said part of that was Wolfpack players on the weak side – away from the ball – were not in position.
“We do have the talent but we still have to play the right way. …” Lowe said. “It’s going to kick in. It’ll kick in hopefully soon.
“This first game [in Orlando] will tell me a little bit of where we are. And then I’ll have to make some decisions from that point on.
“We had a tough game against New Orleans. We didn’t play great and not to take anything way from them - but it was disappointing.
“Now we want to see how our guys react. We’re still learning, learning each other, but they’re certainly things where you say, ‘OK, we were ready tonight.’
“And that’s what I’m looking for. And limiting those mental mistakes.”
Copyright 2012 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Most Recent Comments
"Redwolf, actually, you are grossly misinformed. Most of the other sports in the NCAA are just a popular to a large group of kids and young adults so much so as basketball and football is to those of us in the older generations."
Cragsdale - Soccer, field hockey and swimming might be just as popular to kids and young adults as football and basketball are to us in the older generation, but you are grossly mistaken if you think they carry the same weight (i.e. revenue potential). CBS agreed to pay $6 billion (with a b) for an 11 year contract to broadcast the NCAA basketball tournament. It's not uncommon for the national championship basketball game to draw a Nielsen rating of 12 to 15, meaning 12-15 million viewers. What's popular and what's profitable might not be the same, but ask any university, including UNC, and you'll find that football and basketball fund ALL the other sports.
pack-man, I love how you can judge Coach Lowe in only one basketball game. I guess you sat in all of Lowe's NBA team meetings and practices? And also, every team in the NBA that has a losing season is ONLY because of the coach? The NBA is totally different in regards to managing players. There's a big difference between a player going back to his million-dollar mansion and gourmet food after a game vs. a crummy dorm room and hoping to have money for Bojangles (or the same old cafeteria food). Yeah, pack-man, you made a great analogy, NOT.
"yep......state sucks"......Must be the beer that fried your brain cells morebeerforme.
GO PACK!!
we are seeing a glimpse of why sidney lowe sucked as a head coach in the nba. he sucks at managing talent plain and simple. as happy as i was to hear of jj hickson coming to state, i couldn't help but think of what it would do to team chemistry. its ashame to see this come to life, but i should've expected this from a sidney lowe coached team. state is better off having hungry above average players that can be motivated to play like a team. i believe that is an area that coach lowe is good at.
Rank: Towel Boy 
