Three steps forward, one step back for the Wolfpack
Kevin Keatts mostly tries to stay positive, even after a loss.
There was something about Saturday’s 64-58 loss at Georgia Tech that irked the third-year Wolfpack coach.
“I’m pissed off but I’ll get over it,” Keatts said. “The reason I feel the way I do is we’ve had three great games and I’ve seen what this team is capable of.”
Three steps forward for N.C. State (14-6, 5-4 ACC), one step back. Whether it’s a pitfall or a blip will be determined by how the players react to it.
The trip to Atlanta was sandwiched between an emotional win at Virginia, the program’s first since 2005, and a home game with North Carolina on Monday.
N.C. State said it wasn’t distracted by either what was behind it or ahead of it. Fair enough. Keatts’ frustration was more basic.
“I just thought when it came down to getting some key rebounds and key stops, we didn’t get those,” Keatts said.
It wasn’t like N.C. State didn’t have the opportunity to win ugly. It clawed back to a one-point lead at the half, after trailing by 11. It had a 55-50 lead with 6 minutes left. But there is something to Georgia Tech’s style that bothers N.C. State.
Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner will never be confused for Brad Stevens but he is smart with the way he switches zones and defenses. He knows Keatts wants to use a ball-screen to get guard Markell Johnson going and Pastner makes N.C. State play left-handed.
Of course, the easiest way to get a team out of a zone is to make some 3-pointers. Easier said than done. N.C. State was 4 of 19 from the 3-point line.
In one particularly inept second-half possession, Jericole Hellems hit the side of the backboard with a 3-point attempt from the left corner and Braxton Beverly air-balled an attempt from the right wing.
Johnson did his level best, with 21 points on 8 of 16 shooting, to carry the show and put an end to a curious losing streak to the Jackets. Keatts is winless in four tries against Georgia Tech.
“I’m going to totally put this one on us,” Johnson said. “They went out there and played a good game but this one is on us for real. We’ve got to get back in the gym and get back to it and get ready for UNC on Monday.”
Johnson, as you would expect from a senior, was being kind with his pronoun usage. In reality, he had little help.
Senior guard C.J. Bryce, the team’s leading scorer on the season, took only four shots and was held scoreless. Hellems went 1 for 8 and had as many turnovers (four) as rebounds. Keatts correctly identified Johnson as the team’s lone bright spot.
“Other than (Johnson), I thought that we didn’t show a lot of fight,” Keatts said. “I didn’t think we stuck together when we needed to.”
Junior guard Devon Daniels chipped in 12 points and eight rebounds but he was slowed by foul trouble.
Not that Georgia Tech is the “Showtime Lakers.” Guard Jose Alvarado had 26 points but without guard Michael Devoe (foot injury), the Jackets were just 4 of 16 from the 3-point line and only had one other player (11 points from reserve forward Evan Cole) in double-figures.
That was a big part of Keatts’ frustration. After gutting out a win at Virginia, in a similarly styled game, N.C. State couldn’t come up with the necessary plays against Tech.
“You have to finish plays,” Keatts said. “You have to do the winning plays, the little things to win, and today we didn’t and at Virginia we did.”
Three steps forward, one step back. Even the normally unflappable Keatts was frustrated by that.
This story was originally published January 25, 2020 at 8:41 PM.
