Now that coach Sidney Lowe’s first season is in the books, it’s safe to say it was a success. To win 20 games, reach the ACC Tournament finals and make a run to the quarterfinals of the NIT, with this group, was nothing short of phenomenal.
Now, though, with all the positive feelings surrounding Lowe and the basketball program, the expectations are only going to rise, and rightfully so.
Next year’s team has to go to the NCAA Tournament to be considered a success. Anything less will be a failure.
And with the return of forwards Ben McCauley, Brandon Costner, Gavin Grant — this season’s three top scorers — and Dennis Horner, the NCAA Tournament is certainly a realistic goal. Not to mention an incoming freshman class that includes McDonald’s All-American center J.J. Hickson and 6-foot-8 forward Tracy Smith.
The 2007 – 2008 version of N.C. State will have the depth in the frontcourt to match up with any team in the ACC, including North Carolina. But with all those bodies down-low, the main question mark for next season will be at point guard.
With the loss of Engin Atsur, the job is wide open. But who’s going to step up and take it?
Here’s a look at the possibilities:
Redshirt sophomore Trevor Ferguson
— Out of high school Ferguson was highly recruited and actually signed with Pittsburgh before playing at a prep school and then coming to State. In limited play this year, though, mostly at point guard, he was shaky with the ball at times and seemed uncertain about what he wanted to do when he was on the floor. He did, however, have a 1:1 assist-to-turnover ratio. That’s not outstanding by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s not horrible.
Redshirt sophomore Farnold Degand
— The Boston, Mass., native redshirted in his only season at Iowa State before transferring to State and having to sit out this season. In high school he averaged 17.3 points, eight rebounds and 5.1 assists per game. Those are good numbers, but it was high school and it was two full years ago. He’s an unknown, but at 6-foot-3, 170 pounds Degand fits the mold of a point guard. And, oh by the way, he won the U.S. Marine leadership award in high school. Leadership qualities are not bad traits for a point guard to have.
Sophomore Marques Johnson
— Johnson transferred from Tennessee and enrolled at State at the start of the 2007 spring semester. After playing in just four games for the Volunteers this season, he decided to make the move to Raleigh. Out of high school he was ranked as the 42nd-best prospect in the class of 2006 by Scout.com, where he was primarily a scorer. He averaged 15 points per game to just 3.3 assists. With all the scorers returning for the Wolfpack, though, a scorer may not be the best fit for a team that needs a guy to take care of the ball and run the show. And also, he won’t be eligible to play until after the 2007 fall semester.
Freshman Javier Gonzalez
— As the only guard in Lowe’s first recruiting class, Gonzalez will certainly have an opportunity to compete for the starting job. The Miami native is only 6 feet and 165 pounds, but his reputation is that of toughness and a good ability to create, according to his profile on Scout.com. Those are two things Lowe can definitely appreciate.
But no matter who emerges as next year’s point guard, the success of the season will hinge on his play. The point guard is undeniably the most important position on a basketball team.
One only has to look at this season to see that. When Atsur went down the team faltered.
“You can certainly see the difference in our team now [with Atsur] than we were before,” Lowe said after Tuesday’s loss.
The point guard is the quarterback on the basketball court, and State fans can certainly understand the importance of having a good quarterback — i.e., the post Philip Rivers era.
So as I look ahead to next year, the Pack has a great chance to do something special and continue the goodwill this season has generated.
But ultimately if the point guard problems, which plagued this season, persist, any lofty postseason goals will be a difficult task.
