NC State basketball preps for Notre Dame. Could Terquavion Smith play against the Irish?
N.C. State coach Kevin Keatts is not sure if guard Terquavion Smith will be able to play Tuesday against Notre Dame at PNC Arena.
Nor is Keatts ruling it out, saying Monday that it will be a game-time decision.
Smith was knocked to the floor Saturday in the game against North Carolina, taking a hard fall after a hard foul by UNC’s Leaky Black. After receiving medical attention on the Smith Center court, Smith was placed on a stretcher and taken to UNC Medical Center, where he was evaluated for potential injuries to the neck and right arm. He was treated and released.
Keatts said the Wolfpack did not practice Sunday and that Smith was “really, really sore.”
“I will say it will be a game-time decision but it’s going to be tough, because I don’t even know if he can shoot the basketball at this moment,” Keatts said.
Smith, who leads the ACC in scoring at 18.7 points a game, had 12 points Saturday before the injury with 9:45 left in the second half. That ended a run of five consecutive 20-point games by Smith.
The Pack (15-5, 5-4 ACC) hosts the Irish (9-11, 1-8) in what now will become a “retirement tour” of ACC stops by Notre Dame coach Mike Brey, who will step down after the season. The decision was announced Thursday by the school.
Brey, in his 23rd year with the Irish, said Monday that he first considered retiring after last season, after winning 24 games, including two in the NCAA Tournament. But he said he had six seniors returning for 2022-23 and a good incoming freshman class.
“You wanted to be committed to them,” he said. “At some point last summer I said, “Hey fellas, let’s make a run and we’ll all go out together.’”
But Notre Dame, after winning seven of its first nine games, has dropped nine of its past 11. Its lone ACC victory came Jan. 10 against Georgia Tech in overtime.
With the decision now made on Brey’s retirement, the question is how the Irish players will respond as the season plays out. Notre Dame was beaten at home Saturday by Boston College, losing 84-72 in the first game after the announcement on Brey.
The Irish beat the Pack twice last season — including 69-57 at PNC Arena — in winning 15 ACC games. Smith had 19 points in the game in Raleigh.
Keatts said Monday the Wolfpack must keep a defensive focus on Notre Dame’s Nate Laszewski, who had 29 points Saturday in the loss to BC. The 6-10 forward knocked down seven of nine 3-pointers.
“He may be one of the toughest matchup guys in our league,” Keatts said. “He has the ability to take you down low at his size. But he stretches you so much and makes you play a little bit different because you have to respect him on the perimeter.”
If Smith is held out Tuesday, Keatts could give more minutes to guards LJ Thomas, a freshman, and sophomore Breon Pass. Thomas has good size at 6-2 and 205 pounds and Pass has the quickness to be effective defensively.
Keatts and Brey have known each other for several years, including their days in the Big East Conference, when Keatts was an assistant at Louisville. He said Brey has been “great for our league,” calling him a “pioneer for our sport.”
“The ACC is going to lose another great coach, but I’m excited for him that’s he’s being able to go out his way and able to enjoy whatever is in front of him,” Keatts said Friday.
This story was originally published January 23, 2023 at 10:56 AM.
