NC State not worried after Louisville loss but scoring woes are reason to be
N.C. State is not worried.
That’s what senior guard C.J. Bryce said after Saturday’s 77-57 home loss to No. 6 Louisville.
They’re not worried about this loss or the three-game losing streak. The way Bryce said it in the locker room after the game, it sounded reflexive.
It sounded almost like what he thought the outside world — which was pushed over the panic brink with Monday’s home loss to North Carolina — wanted to hear.
Here’s Bryce’s full quote:
“We’ve got to get better and we will be better, so we’re not worried. We’re just going to build off of this loss.”
When Bryce, who is the team’s de facto spokesman, was asked if he really meant it or was just saying that to put up a positive front, he said:
“I’m not going to get up here and tell you guys anything that isn’t true. I’m going to be 100 percent with you every single time.”
So Bryce, who had a team-high 15 points on Saturday after going scoreless in the previous two games, is not worried.
Neither is junior forward D.J. Funderburk, who had 11 points and eight rebounds. Funderburk offered up an honest assessment of the team’s effort in Monday’s loss to UNC.
He said he thought the players showed the right response on Saturday, even though it was 41-26 at the half.
Funderburk backed up Bryce’s stance that players aren’t worried after they have followed up a three-game ACC winning streak with a three-game ACC losing streak.
At 5-6, N.C. State is in a cluster with nine teams in the ACC standings.
“If you look at the standings everybody is kind of in the same area, besides Duke and Louisville,” Funderburk said. “Other than that, everybody is still losing games. Everybody is still winning games. We’re still right where we want to be.”
Coach Kevin Keatts had a harsher criticism of his team after Monday’s loss than he did on Saturday. Part of that is Louisville is 19-3 and 10-1 in in the ACC and, for the most part, has been the best team in the league.
Another part is the way the team responded in the second half after falling behind by 15 in the first half.
“I like our grit,” Keatts said. “I like how we fought. I think there’s a lot of good things we can take away from this.”
Bryce’s resurgence after a mini-slump tops that list. Junior guard Devon Daniels (12 points) continues to play inspired minutes, too.
N.C. State did cut Louisville’s lead down to 5 points and 4 with two different runs. But after it was 56-52 with 11:13 left, N.C. State scored three points over the next 5 minutes.
“Obviously, if we don’t score, it’s going to be tough on us,” Keatts said.
N.C. State has scored 57, 65, 58, 53 (in a win) in the past four games. Keatts’ first team averaged 77.4 points per ACC game and his second one, 75.0. This team is averaging 67.8, through what will mostly turn out to be the easier portion of the conference schedule.
As former N.C. State coach, and noted basketball philosopher, Sidney Lowe likes to say: You’ve gotta make shots.
From the outside, anyway, scoring feels like a decent reason to worry.
Fortunately for Keatts, he has a break coming up. N.C. State goes to Miami on Wednesday. The Canes served as a get-right game on Jan. 15 (an 80-63 win) and then the Wolfpack gets the weekend off.
But after that? This team is running out of time to make a move. Whether it realizes it or not.
This story was originally published February 1, 2020 at 6:04 PM.
