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Teams: Syracuse Orange (27-4, 14-4) vs. N.C. State Wolfpack (20-12, 9-9)
Rankings: Syracuse (11/11), NCSU (UNR)
Day & Time: Friday, March 14, 7:00 p.m. EST
Arena: Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, NC
TV: ESPN, TheACC.com
Radio: Syracuse IMG Network
NC State News: Backing The Pack
Streak: 3, Syracuse
Odds: -9, Syracuse
First Meeting: Dave Johnson scored 24 points and grabbed 17 rebounds as the Orangemen topped the Wolfpack 86-79 in 1990.
Last Meeting: In a game that NC State basically controlled the entire way, Syracuse managed to stay alive in the final moments, setting up an improbable finish that I'm guessing Wolfpack fans have not forgotten about...
Head Coaches: SU: Jim Boeheim (38th Year, 945-314); NCST: Mark Gottfried (3rd Year, 68-36)
Last Year: The Wolfpack finished the season 24–11 (11–7) and advanced to the ACCT semifinals before losing to eventual champ Miami. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tourney as an 8-seed but lost in the second round to 9-seed Temple.
Last Game: The Wolfpack managed to fend off Miami in the quarterfinal round of the ACC Tournament on Thursday, 67-58. ACC Player of the Year T.J. Warren finished with 24 points on 50% shooting, which, believe it or not, was an off-day for him.
Head Coach Bio: Following a playing career at Alabama, Gottfried took on an assistant gig at UCLA in 1987. He parlayed that into the head gig at Murray State, where he led the Racers to two NCAA Tournaments in three years. From there it was back to Alabama where he took his alma mater to five NCAA Tourneys in eleven years. His '03-'04 squad defeated Syracuse in the Sweet Sixteen. After resigning over an issue with a player, he hooked up with NC State in 2011 and is two-for-two in NCAA Tourney appearances so far.
You may remember Gottfried as the one who accused Jim Boeheim of "popping off" about moving the ACC Tournament to NYC.
"Fear Me, I've Killed Hundreds Of Timelords": All ACC Player of the Year T.J. Warren did this season was lead the ACC in scoring (24.8 points per game) and field-goal percentage (.532). He also closed the season with consecutive 40-point games. Against Syracuse, he scored a measly 23 points. Ralston Turner is the guy whose going to be taking all the three-point shots. He was 3-of-8 shooting from downtown against SU the first time around.
If Syracuse Wins…: They'll prove that the late-season drop-off is over and likely set up an NCAA 1-seed showdown against Duke.
If Syracuse Loses…: Hello 3-seed! Possibly even 4-seed!
Fun Fact: This is Syracuse's first-ever ACC Tournament game. It feels so…ACCy.
