Pack Plays Tired at FSU

N.C. State didn't have anything on Saturday at Florida State. Not one thing, as the Seminoles fighting for their NCAA lives rolled the Wolfpack 78-52. It got so bad that the Lifetime movie on channel 47 was looking pretty good.

"Just mentally a lot of breakdowns," Pack coach Sidney Lowe said afterwards. "On both offense and defense."

Lowe, who missed the second half of Wednesday's game with Carolina because of flu-like symptoms, rested Friday in Raleigh and flew down in a private plane on Saturday to join his team. The coach is still not 100 percent, and the 26 point loss didn't make him feel any better. It may have made him worse.

Sidney Lowe is sick, his team is tired, and a long season became a lot longer in one short afternoon in Tallahassee.

N.C. State was a step slower in every phase of the game. FSU set the tone right at the very beginning going to senior star Al Thornton who was playing his final home game and he slammed it in and the Seminoles were off and running. They jumped to a 10-2 lead and led it by 18 at halftime, and N.C. State never made a run in the second half. The Pack didn't have the energy to do so.

I don't think there's any question that this is a very tired N.C. State team that is running just on fumes. Everybody knows this. Too many minutes by so few players have taken its' toll.

It has just been a tough, long season for a team with no bench and a hurt point guard. Losing Engin Atsur for 12 games was huge. It put such pressure on an already thin team, and even now that he's back he's not 100 percent. When he's feeling good he's very effective, but Saturday he had no legs at all. He shot just 3 of 13. Many of those shots were short, but still he played a game-high 38 minutes.

N.C State had 14 turnovers in the first half, 19 for the game, and FSU creamed them on the glass 33-23. And the sure sign of a tired team -- Florida State grabbed 13 offensive rebounds.

Ben McCauley, who's been such a key figure this season, has been non-existent the last two games. Lowe says teams have become aware of him and they're making it tougher for him to get comfortable. On Saturday, McCauley had just two points and three rebounds.

Lowe has made the most out of what he's had this season. When the energy is there, they can give teams fits. Ask Virginia Tech, ask North Carolina.

But this is a team with such limitations, and Saturday the bodies seemed just too tired to react to what the mind wanted. It's a team that hasn't quit, but there may not be much left for them to give. We'll see.

N.C. State has fallen to 14-13 entering the final week of the regular season. They host Wake Forest on Wednesday and then go to Maryland on Saturday.

The Wolfpack does not want a losing season. The Wake Forest game is key.

If ever a team needs a boost of adrenaline from a home crowd, it will be State on Wednesday.