Technician Online

March 14th, 2008

Day 2: Dickie V’s thoughts on State & other observations of post-Pack ACC Tournament

Vitale weighs in on Pack
Updated 5:50 p.m.
ESPN analyst Dick Vitale, after sitting out much of this season while recovering from vocal cord surgery, has been at the ACC Tournament this week and is in his element. Walking around, he can hardly get 10 feet without seeing another familiar face who he can catch up with.
I caught up with him for a few minutes in the hall this afternoon, and as I walked, with his arm on my shoulder and him seeing plenty of friends along the way, he spoke a little bit about N.C. State’s future.
“J.J. Hickson, I hope he comes back to school. He’s such a force inside,” Vitale said. “But they’ve got a nice nucleus to build on even if he leaves because they have some physical players. They’ve got to hope that the recruits they have coming in can contribute right away.”
And though State finished last of 12 ACC teams and therefore won’t even be in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge next season because of it, Vitale said he still thinks Lowe can turn it around.
“He’s a workaholic. He loves the school,” Vitale said. “Sometimes you’ve got to go through adversity, and you get back on top.”

BC guy cheerleaders a sight to see, Clemson fans among the few remaining
Updated 11:26 p.m.
I have to confess I was about to leave the arena early, what with Clemson easily outdistancing Boston College, but I couldn’t leave without a couple parting shots:
1. Boston College’s male cheerleaders might just be the biggest story among school spirit groups at this tournament. Sure, there were the four or five different outfits Florida State’s dance team managed to wear in a mere two games, but the Eagles’ cheerleading team’s male members take the cake with their windpants and collared shirts. They seem to be laughing at each other each time they come out on the floor. It’s a sight to see, to say the least, as even they seem embarrassed at their outlandish outfits.
2. Many of the Carolina fans who made Charlotte Bobcats Arena a sea of blue earlier today have long since left. Maybe they don’t want to see any more of a team that already nearly twice beat their No. 1 Heels, or maybe they just want to get some rest. But either way, they’re still likely to see plenty of orange before this tournament is over.

Tigers treating their fans
Updated at 10:02 p.m.
Clemson’s fans have been waiting all day for their Tigers to play, packing out their seats even at the noon game today in anticipation of a game scheduled to start at 9:30 p.m. Though the game started a little late and Boston College got off to a 6-0 lead, Tigers’ fans have had plenty to cheer about as their team went on a 19-0 run to take a 13-point lead before two free throws by Boston College. This Clemson team looks like it could do some serious damage this weekend.

Causey reminds us Tech is still here
Updated 7:50 p.m.
For those who weren’t sure if Georgia Tech was even playing anymore, Matt Causey hit a 3-pointer to show that Tech indeed is still in the building. By that time, though, his 3 only cut it to 36-19, and this Friday of the ACC Tournament is turning into Day 2 of a bevy of blowouts. In other news, Duke freshman star Nolan Smith collected his third foul not even 15 minutes into the game. But, ah, more signs of life — Tech cutting it to 36-24 forced a Duke timeout.

Paulus pats ref’s butt
Updated 7:21 p.m.
After finally hitting a 3-pointer on his third open attempt early in today’s third game, Duke point guard Greg Paulus felt like he had made quite the accomplishment. A little expletive flew from his mouth, and the closest ref got a pat on his lower back on Paulus’s way downcourt.

Atmosphere heats up on Friday
Posted 4:07 p.m.
After a first day that was lackluster at times, the atmosphere has kicked up in Charlotte Bobcats Arena for today’s first two games. Among some of the top moments of the day so far:
1. During UNC’s win against Florida State earlier today, a few Duke fans joined in with the tomahawk chop that accompanies FSU’s famous song. This elicited boos from the much larger Tar Heel contingent in the stands, as during the first game the Carolina fans turned the building into a de facto home-court advantage.
2. Virginia Tech’s fans have been all over referee Ted Valentine in the second half, often questioning his calls while calling him by name. But in recent minutes, the Hokies faithful have been able to focus more on cheering for their own team, which has broken away from a tie game to take a 58-44 lead.

Clark Leonard
Sports Editor

This entry was posted on Friday, March 14th, 2008 at 4:07 pm and is filed under Charlotte Chatter. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

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