| Rank and Records | BC | NCST | |
|---|---|---|---|
| RPI | #49 | #102 | |
| Strength of Schedule | #45 | #74 | |
| Overall | 20-9 | 15-12 | |
| Conference | 8-6 | 5-9 | |
| Home | 14-4 | 13-4 | |
| Away | 5-4 | 2-8 | |
| Top 25 | 3-4 | 1-6 | |
| RPI Top 50 | 4-6 | 2-8 |
It's Senior Night tonight at the RBC, and round two of the "Man, we better win at least ONE of these final home games" homestand.
Once again the Pack faces off against a team that leans heavily on its point guard for production, though BC -- moreso than Maryland -- can turn to others to pick up the slack when needed.
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Sophomores Joe Trapani and Rakim Sanders are the second and third-leading scorers for the Eagles, chipping in 14.1 and 12.3 points per game to augment Tyrese Rice's team-leading 17.5. Trapani leads the team in defensive rebounds and Sanders is tied with Rice for the top number of steals.
Make no mistake about it, though: This is Rice's team. As he goes, so do the Eagles. That he leads the team in points per game and dishes out over five assists per game is indication enough that the offense of BC flows through Rice, point blank.
As Steven pointed out earlier this week, the Eagles are an offensive rebounding monster, second-best in the ACC and one of the best in the country. Keep an eye on BC's Corey Raji and the Pack's ability to keep him off the offensive glass. If Raji wins too many battles on the Eagle's boards, it could be bad news for State.
For the Pack, tonight not only means the final game of Ben McCauley and Courtney Fells' (and possibly Brandon Costner's) careers, it's also the last good look the team will have at halting a skid that could possibly derail and nullify the modicum of progress the team seemed to be making to close out the year. A loss tonight would be the third in a row, with a road date with a good but inconsistent Miami team to finish the year.
Win both these games and that mojo can be regained heading into the ACC tournament. Lose both, and it won't be pretty.
State is a two-point favorite at home, but as they say the home team gets three points, Vegas feels like this one is a pick-em with a slight edge to the Eagles.
McCauley, Fells and Costner have a golden opportunity to conclude their careers at the RBC Center on a high note. It will be critical that they come out and play to their potential.
why is everyone saying costner is leaving? where's he gonna go?
ReplyDeletethere are building a new waffle house here in wake forest, they'll be hiring soon, i guess..
Costner's a unique situation in that he's got (or will have before next year) a degree, but will still have a year of eligibility remaining. And I believe I've read that he has no interest in pursuing a post-graduate degree.
ReplyDeleteAdd in the fact that a lot of State fans have -- either rightfully or wrongfully so -- heaped a lot of blame for the team's woes for his apparent lack of hustle at times, and he may have no desire to head back out onto the court for one more go-round.