Costner sparks Wolfpack to win

N.C. State fended off determined East Carolina, but it wasn't easy.

Sparked by Brandon Costner's 24 points and 17 rebounds, the Wolfpack pulled away for an 87-76 victory at the RBC Center last night. Avenging last season's loss to ECU, N.C. State got going in the second half and never looked back.

Costner said that there was no magic formula for his inspired play. "I've just been working hard trying to get out of my slump," he said.

That slump lasted all of last season when his playing time diminished, his scoring dropped considerably, and he struggled to find his shooting stroke. He discovered it in a big way against the Pirates (8-2).

Costner started out hot as the Wolfpack hit its first six shots of the game against a packed-in zone defense.

One of the things that Costner said afterward that Coach Sidney Lowe liked to hear was that he wasn't trying to force anything.

"He just got in and really dominated the inside," Lowe said.

The Wolfpack held just a 3-point lead at halftime thanks to a Javier Gonzalez's half-court heave at the buzzer that banked in for a 43-40 lead.

To start the second half, the Wolfpack went on a 15-2 run. When Ben McCauley (20 points) scored on a nice feed from Gonzalez, the Wolfpack had its biggest lead at 60-44.

The inside trio of Costner, McCauley and reserve Tracy Smith (11 points) had its way all night, especially when the Pirates' only two reliable big men, Chad Wynn and Darrius Morrow, fouled out.

The Wolfpack (6-1) also did a solid job on defense, holding down the 3-point shooting of the Pirates (8 of 26). In the second half the Pirates were just 2 of 15 on 3-point attempts.

With the 3-point option taken away, point guard Brock Young put on a display that was nothing short of spectacular. Young, playing in his hometown, scored 15 points in a row to cut the Wolfpack's lead to 70-63 with 8:46 left. Young also lost two teeth for his efforts when he was elbowed by Gonzalez in the frontcourt. No foul was called on the play, but after a timeout, he got some treatment and finished the game.

"I got in the zone and my team looked to me to be a leader," said Young, who scored 25 points and had seven re bounds and six assists. "That's what I did; I tried to lead my team."

Young spoke with a lisp in the locker room afterward and showed off his new look to reporters.

After Young's outburst, the closest that the Pirates came was with 3:14 left when Young's layup made the score 78-74. But the Pirates scored just one more basket the rest of the game and the Wolfpack secured the win by making 9 of 10 free throws in the final 2:42.

The Pirates, who fell to 1-58 all-time against ACC schools, also got 18 points from Sam Hinnant.

Coach Mack McCarthy of the Pirates lauded Young for his toughness, but said their inability to get defensive rebounds in the second half cost them.

"Scoring wasn't a problem, but we couldn't stop them from scoring," McCarthy said. "We had no answer for their inside guys once we got into foul trouble."

The Pirates, whose lone win against an ACC school was last year in Greenville against the Wolfpack, will play at home on Monday night against 10th-ranked Wake Forest.

The Wolfpack will play Lipscomb at home on Saturday before playing 24th-ranked Marquette on Monday night.

The Wolfpack did a good job of getting to the foul line (26 of 34).

Costner said that the Wolfpack is on the right track.

"I'm very proud of what we've done so far," Costner said. "As a team we let one go in Charlotte (against Davidson), and we're just trying to take steps forward to rectify that."

■ John Dell can be reached at 727-4081 or at jdell@wsjournal.com.

EAST CAROLINA -- Legan 3-10 0-0 7, Hinnant 6-15 2-3 18, Young 9-23 6-8 25, Abrams 3-7 0-0 7, Wynn 2-5 2-2 6, Morrow 2-5 2-2 6, Turner 2-6 0-0 4, Sherrod 1-2 0-0 3. Totals 28-73 12-15 76.

N.C. STATE -- Harris 2-3 0-0 5, Gonzalez 2-4 0-0 6, Ferguson 2-4 1-2 6, Costner 8-14 5-6 24, McCauley 6-7 8-11 20, Degand 0-4 7-8 7, Williams 0-1 0-0 0, T.Smith 4-5 3-5 11, Thomas 1-6 1-1 3, Horner 2-4 1-1 5. Totals 27-52 26-34 87.

Halftime--N.C. State 45-42. 3-Point Goals--East Carolina 8-26 (Hinnant 4-9, Sherrod 1-2, Abrams 1-4, Young 1-5, Legan 1-6), N.C. State 7-21 (Costner 3-7, Gonzalez 2-4, Harris 1-2, Ferguson 1-3, Horner 0-1, Degand 0-1, Williams 0-1, Thomas 0-2). Fouled Out--Morrow, Sherrod, Wynn. Rebounds--East Carolina 35 (Morrow, Wynn 8), N.C. State 39 (Costner 17). Assists--East Carolina 8 (Young 6), N.C. State 16 (Costner, Degand, Gonzalez, Harris 3). Total Fouls--East Carolina 26, N.C. State 11. Technical--Ferguson. A--16,763.