When: Friday November 7, 9:00 PM
Where: Lenovo Center
TV: ACC Network
Opponent: University of Alabama at Birmingham Blazers (AAC Conference)
Prediction: KenPom (KP) / Bart Torvik (BT): State 87-75 / State 88-74
Wolfpack Snapshot:
- KP #31, BT #36
Coach Wade’s Wolfpack Game 1 Checklist:
- Before the game, be massively confident, be vocally committed to restoring NC State as a basketball contender, acknowledge and respect Wolfpack basketball history
- Start the season with a massive blowout
- Show off your superstar, Williams, in the first 5 minutes of the game (19 / 4 / 8)
- Show off your first 5-star recruit, Able (14 / 6 / 4 and 2 steals)
- Show what you can do with our returning players, McNeil (16 points, 4-7 3PT) – Snell scored too!
- My international big man, Sagnia had (4 / 4 / 3 and 4 steals) in just 15 mins – and he’s just getting started!
- We’ve got shooters! 7 players totaled 19 made 3PT shots (47.5%)
- Intentionally get a showboat technical with ~6 minutes left and a 55 point lead; at the end of the game get on the mic and talk to the crowd and double-down, “The red reckoning is here, and we are not to be messed with”
- Give the fans what they want; retro uniforms, noise meter, Tuffy (dolls instead of T-Shirts) toss, DJ Burns in the house, Chucky Brown on the radio call, Casey Morsell on the post game, baton twirlers, smoke entrance, fan giveaways, FREE CHICKEN for everybody [and my section won the free gas cards!], almost every aspect of the fan experience saw a long overdue upgrade
- Mission accomplished, Wolfpack nation is happy
Opponent Overview:
Former Wolfpack player and Chucky Brown teammate, Coach Andy Kennedy
brings his Blazers to Lenovo for a rematch. The only other time we played was 3/20/2010 (pre Kennedy), a 20-point loss (52-72) in Birmingham. This is Coach Kennedy’s sixth season coaching his (other) alma mater.
UAB was voted 4th by the media in the AAC preseason projections. KP has them ranked #96, BT is not as impressed and ranks them #113.
Remember UAB’s superstar Yaxel Lendeborg last season? Well forget him, at least until the postseason, he’s a Wolverine now. And most of that team bailed as well. The Blazers return 1 player, they added 4 freshmen and 10 transfers, 4 of whom were JUCO players.
Becoming a much more common occurrence, Blazer starters KyeRon Lindsay-Martin played a season with Darrion Williams at Texas Tech, and Chance Westry played one with Quadir Copeland at Syracuse.
Opponent Snapshot:
- UAB lost to Western Kentucky 78-76 in their public exhibition last Wednesday (29th).
- The Blazers opened their season against Miss Valley State (KP #365 – that’s the bottom) Monday and won 106-55.
- NC State is the only P4 opponent UAB plays this season
Team Comparison (one game)
Probable Starters (one game)
