"FER-GIE! FER-GIE!"

The chant broke out among State students last week at the RBC Center. Ferguson was off the bench, in the game, hitting shots, hustling, defending, looking to make plays, trying to help the Pack rally past Florida State.

The 6-foot-5 sophomore hit four of five shots from 3-point range, with good form and a confident stroke. He hit all five of his free throws, finishing with a career-high 17 points.

It wasn't enough. State lost 72-62, and an excruciating 87-86 loss to Duke last Saturday pushed the Pack's losing streak to seven.

But State's struggles -- and some inconsistent play from the starters -- resulted in Ferguson and freshman forward Tracy Smith getting minutes the past few games. Smith made his first start against Duke, scoring 14 points with some strong, efficient post moves.

"The coaches called on me during this tough little stretch, and luckily I have been able to go out there and produce," Ferguson said. "I'm having a good time out there. I just wish we could translate it into some victories."

The Pack (15-14, 4-11 ACC) will try again today at Wake Forest (16-12, 6-9). A loss would doom State to the 12th seed in next week's ACC Tournament.

Ferguson said the weight of the Pack's expectations may have been too heavy. It began with senior Gavin Grant saying State might not lose but four games this season. The Pack then was third in the ACC preseason poll.

"We knew coming in this year, obviously with Gavin talking about four losses and then picked third in the ACC, we had a lot of expectations and we felt we were going to be that good," Ferguson said. "I think we did buy a little into it."

So what happened?

"We're not putting together 40-minute games," he said. "We finally did against Duke, and it shows how good we can be when we do do that."

Ferguson played 53 minutes in State's first 21 games, with "DNP" -- for "did not play" -- next to his name in 12 of the box scores.

"It has been up and down," Ferguson said. "I came into this year with expectations to play. That didn't happen at first, but I kept working hard. Luckily it has worked out for me here at the end of the season."

Against Wake Forest on Feb. 3, Ferguson came in to hit a key 3-pointer in the second half and make two steals as the Pack fought back for a 67-65 victory.

"And then I got two DNPs after that," he said.

Ferguson called sitting out the Virginia Tech and Maryland games his low point of the season. Just when he thought he had earned more minutes ...

"But I kept working hard, thinking my time would come," he said. "And it did."

Ferguson has scored 37 points in three games. He has hit 10 of 16 shots, going 8-for-12 on 3's, and has gone 9-of-10 on free throws.

"Trevor has been huge for us," NCSU coach Sidney Lowe said Friday. "Whenever I talk about Trevor, I always talk about his knowledge of the game. He understands the small things about the game. How to get open. He understands his position in terms of how to get his shots. He's just got a high basketball IQ."

State fans have always seemed to have a liking for the lanky kid from Palm Harbor, Fla., with the shaggy red locks, with a colorful tattoo on each shoulder and another "tat" on his back.

The tattoo on his upper left arm has a cross and the dates "2-11-60" and "9-11-02." The first is the birthdate of his mother, Karen. The second is the day she died of breast cancer, when he was 16.

"It was definitely not easy," he said. "But I think it has definitely made me a stronger person and definitely made me who I am today. Without a doubt."

It gave him the strength to overcome a horrendous injury in his senior year at Oldsmar Christian School. He broke both wrists when he was undercut and fell while attempting a dunk.

"They just snapped," he said.

Ferguson was granted another year of eligibility and after high school began what he calls a "crazy journey." He signed with Pittsburgh but never enrolled, attending a prep school in Indiana. He transferred to NCSU and was not eligible until after the first semester last season.

"I would say everything I do I definitely go the hardest possible route," Fergsuon said, smiling. "I don't know but it seems that's how it has always worked out. [But] everything does end up working itself out in the end."