Who's Feeling Worse -- Me or N.C. State?

It's a beautiful Sunday, but I'm laid up with one of those miserable February colds. But as bad as I feel, I'm sure the N.C. State basketball team feels much worse. I'm sure it's not a good day for Sidney Lowe.

Saturday's 80-65 loss at Miami was a bad one. Everybody knows that. ACC road wins are hard to come by, and this was a lost chance for State.

Just one short week ago, N.C. State was coming off the huge upset of Carolina which was preceded by the upset at Virginia Tech, and many thought State was playing themselves into NCAA tournament contention. Engin Atsur was back, Sidney Lowe's club was beginning to howl, and a rebuilding year had the promise of being a little more.

What a difference a week makes. Losing the 15-point lead at Georgia Tech allowed the Jackets to go on an 18-0 second-half run was bad enough, but Saturday's loss at injury-riddled Miami, which had lost its previous seven, is hard to explain.

Miami, who are now 10-15 overall, just wanted it more than N.C. State. It meant more to them. Give the Canes credit. But the Wolfpack made them look much better than they are.

How can a team that's missing so much of their front court strength out-rebound the Wolfpack 42-25? How could a team like Miami get 21 offensive rebounds? We're not talking Carolina or Florida or Ohio State, we're talking Miami.

They wanted the game more. They went after the basketball like it was the winning lottery ticket. The Hurricanes out-hustled, out-quicked and out-fought a N.C. State team that came into a must-win game with no energy.

For a team like N.C.State that has some talent but little bench, they have to play hard all the time.They have to play with energy and desire and with passion. They have to outwork teams. Coach Lowe knows this. He knows when they do play with emotion they have a chance against most teams. But he couldn't get this message across Saturday. N.C. State is not a team that can just walk on the court and expect to win, but that's the way they took the court at Miami and lost to what is generally regarded as the worst team in the ACC.

N.C. State showed at Virginia Tech what can happen when they play with heart. They showed that heart and more in the stunning upset of North Carolina.

This was a game that the Wolfpack had to have. They knew that Miami had problems, and yet before a less than half-filled gym in South Florida, N.C. State for some reason wasn't ready to play ball and they lost a game they had no business losing.

N.C. State is now 13-10 overall and 3-7 in the ACC after a week of missed opportunities. It was a bad week for the Wolfpack.