Was it worth it for NC State basketball to play shorthanded? Kevin Keatts thinks so.
It’s been quite the week for N.C. State basketball.
The Wolfpack’s slow second half in their Thursday loss to St. Louis carried over to the first half against Campbell on Saturday. But in a week when N.C. State played short-handed due to coronavirus issues in the program and was questioned about traveling with a limited team, the nine healthy Pack players ended the weekend with a strong showing, defeating Campbell, 69-50.
The Wolfpack was up by just two at the break, and coach Kevin Keatts described his halftime speech as “entertaining.” It worked as N.C. State outscored the Camels by 17 in the second half. More importantly, though, the Wolfpack showed some life. In the first half, they lacked energy and appeared to suffer from a St. Louis hangover. But then N.C. State started to do the little things against Campbell — rebound, win the 50-50 balls, play better defense — the things fans got to see when the team started the season 3-0.
“Coach jumped on us in the second half,” senior guard Devon Daniels said. “Mostly harping on our energy. We felt like we weren’t bringing our energy to the max and weren’t competing to the level we are capable of.”
Daniels and forward Jericole Hellems are two players Keatts relied on heavily in the past two games. With just nine players available for the second straight contest, Keatts couldn’t afford to have them not play well again. Against the Billikens, they combined for just 21 points. Against Campbell, Hellems had 13 in the first half and the duo finished with 31 combined. Their energy, more than anyone else, sparked a second-half run and ended the weekend with a much-needed win heading into conference play.
N.C. State welcomes UNC to PNC Arena on Tuesday at 9 p.m. The Wolfpack didn’t want to go into that game with two straight losses, so the second half was a chance to gain some momentum heading into the game against the Tar Heels.
It was also a chance for team members to feel good about themselves after a trying week.
“Our mindset (on Thursday) wasn’t where it should have been,” Daniels said. “Me, personally, my mindset wasn’t where it should have been. We didn’t lock in as detailed on that team as we were supposed to. But we live in the moment. That moment is gone, we learned from it and we came and got a win.”
Should NC State have traveled to St. Louis?
Fans can celebrate N.C. State’s 4-1 record, but there are some who question whether the Wolfpack should have traveled to St. Louis with just nine players.
Those nine players, eight of whom scored against Campbell, showed they can win. Would nine be enough for ACC play? Probably not. But after canceling or postponing four straight games due to the coronavirus, it was good to get in two games before conference games.
Keatts said that without the St. Louis game, his team would have lost to the Camels.
“It’s weird how some people view things,” Keatts said. “Some people think you should play every game whether your team has COVID or not. Then when you play the game, some people say, ‘well why did you play the game?’ I don’t think you can have it both ways.”
Keatts and his team wanted to play St. Louis. They got to go up against a good Billikens team and Keatts said he knows they learned from that game.
“We got great experience from that,” Keatts said. “If we don’t play the St. Louis game, maybe we don’t play as good in the second half this time. We are learning how to fight, it’s still early in the year, we haven’t played a lot of basketball.”
NC State basketball and the coronavirus
Against Campbell, Keatts played all nine available players, something he didn’t do against St. Louis. On Sunday evening, though, he wasn’t sure if he’d have a full roster — notably forward D.J. Funderburk and guard Cam Hayes — for the game against UNC on Tuesday.
“This stuff is out of my control and that’s the way it should be,” Keatts said. “We want to make sure our guys are safe. They will be cleared when they are cleared. I couldn’t tell when they are going to play again. I’m never going to put them on the floor unless they are 110% and ready to play and cleared from the medical department.”
Keatts said against the Camels his team didn’t have offensive pop in the first half, and admitted they were mentally and physically tired. Between the short bench and the trip to St. Louis, the sluggish start was to be expected.
The slow start didn’t carry over to the second half when the Wolfpack exerted its dominance, and forced nine Campbell turnovers, turning those into 10 points. Most of those turnovers came during State’s 13-1 run to start the second half. That gap was enough to cruise in the final 10 minutes of a much-needed win for the Pack, which played on its home court at PNC Arena for the first time this season.
“They found the energy,” Keatts said. “I’m excited that we could play the way we did in the second half. I’m happy for these guys who are playing. They are playing their butts off for me, I’m excited for them, I’m happy for them, I’m glad we are playing games.”
