North Carolina is all but assured of a reserved spot in next month's NCAA tournament, but N.C. State isn't.
Time is running out on the Wolfpack to notch a signature win that will firm up its postseason future. Its last good chance of the regular season will come today when the Tar Heels visit Raleigh for an 8 p.m. game at the RBC Center.
The game will end the toughest stretch of the season for N.C. State, a period of three games in six days against the ACC's top three teams. N.C. State lost the first two games, dropping decisions at home to Florida State last Saturday and at Duke last Thursday, and its urgency to win is nearing desperation.
Coach Mark Gottfried of N.C. State said that his team's morale is good despite the back-to-back losses, and that his players have shown in the past two days that they recognize how important today's outcome can be to their season.
"We were obviously a step slow physically and mentally on Saturday and that was disappointing," Gottfried said. "We have to be better. Our guys are disappointed, and they understand this is a big night for us. I anticipate our team having lots of energy."
UNC (23-4, 10-2 ACC) is tied for first place with Duke and Florida State. N.C. State is 18-9 and 7-5. In addition to helping its NCAA Tournament cause, N.C. State will try to end UNC's winning streak in the rivalry.
Since Roy Williams became coach starting in the 2004 season, UNC has been almost unbeatable against N.C. State. UNC has won 11 consecutive games in the rivalry and 17 of the last 18. Of those 17 wins, 13 have been by at least 10 points.
Counting Williams' 15 seasons at Kansas, his record against N.C. State is 22-1. Williams said the game will start a tough week for UNC that will continue on Saturday in a game at Virginia.
"Three of our last four games are on the road, so we better be feeling pretty good about ourselves," Williams said. "We've done some good things – rebounding the ball and defending — and at times have started looking like we're going to make a couple of more shots."
UNC won the first game between the teams in Chapel Hill on Jan. 26 by a 74-55 count. UNC had the game in hand by halftime, leading 37-23, and its front-line size was the decisive factor.
Tyler Zeller, a 7-foot center, and John Henson, a 6-11 forward, combined to grab 27 rebounds, with Zeller supplying 17. UNC held a 48-26 rebounding advantage.
N.C. State had more problems than its work on the boards. UNC scored 42 points in the lane, making 21 shots in 29 attempts. N.C. State was unable to get clean shots inside against UNC's height and shot 36.8 percent from the field.
UNC hasn't grown shorter in the last 26 days. Gottfried said that the difference in height is a difficult problem because UNC can score at the basket, and on defense can alter shots and turn attempts into misses.
He is confident a solution can be found with different strategy and stronger play, however.
"We have got to be creative, and our guys have to attack their size," Gottfried said. "Especially inside, we've got to play much smarter than we did.
"I don't think you can just back a guy down and shoot a normal back-to-basket post move. We took too many of those attempts (in the first game). We've got to be a lot better than that."
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