Six Wolfpack players scored in double figures,
led by senior Richard Howell and freshman
Rodney Purvis with 16 points each. Howell also
added 10 rebounds for his first double-double
of the season. Junior Lorenzo Brown added 15
points and seven assists, while junior C.J. Leslie
had 11 points and eight rebounds and senior
Scott Wood and sophomore Thomas de Thaey
had 10 each.
The Wolfpack returns four starters from a team
that posted a 24-13 overall record and a 9-7
ACC mark in 2011-12, Gottfried’s inaugural
season at the Wolfpack helm. Gottfried led his
team to the semifinals of the ACC Tournament
in Atlanta and to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA
Tournament.
Return to Puerto Rico
When NC State travels to Bayamon, P.R., for
the sixth-annual Puerto Rico Tipoff, it won’t
be the Wolfpack’s first visit to the U.S. island
territory.
Just before Christmas in 1998, then-head coach
Herb Sendek took his team to San Juan to play
in the Puerto Rico Holiday Classic, winning two
of three games at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico.
The Pack opened with a 91-59 win over Middle
Tennessee State, forcing 25 turnovers against
the Blue Raiders. Freshman Adam Harrington
led all scorers with 17 points and junior Kenny
Inge had 13 points and 10 rebounds.
It lost to eventual champion Ohio State, 81-64,
in the semifinals. Harrington again led his team,
which shot a season-low 38.5 percent from
the field, with 18 points. Michael Redd led the
Buckeyes with 23 points.
Facing No. 23 Oklahoma in the third-place
consolation game, the Wolfpack broke open its
one-point lead midway through the second half
and made eight of 10 free throws in the final
minute to hold on for a 62-58 victory. Ron Kelley
and Tim Wells had 12 points apiece for the
Wolfpack, while Harrington added 11.
Off The Mainland
This week’s appearance at the Puerto Rico
Tip-Off will be the ninth time in NC State history
that the Wolfpack has played in a tournament
outside of the continental United States. All-time,
NC State is 16-7 in those events.
The Wolfpack opened the 1978 season by
participating in the inaugural Alaska Shootout.
NC State won the event by defeating Texas
A&M (81-65), Pepperdine (91-63) and Louisville
(72-66).
In 1981, the Pack traveled to Hawai’i for the
Rainbow Classic, where it posted victories over
Michigan State (67-46) and Wichita State (60-
48) before falling to Rice in the championship
game, 47-51.
State returned to Alaska for another appearance
in the Shootout, claiming its second title in the
event with wins over host Alaska-Anchorage
(68-60), Santa Clara (78-75) and Arkansas
(65-60).
The Wolfpack also participated in the 1985
Chaminade Classic with wins over the host
Silverswords (64-46) and UNLV (80-73).
In 1986, NC State made its third trip to the Alaska
Shootout, posting a one-point win over Texas
(69-68) and a one-point loss to Iowa (89-90).
NC State captured the 1987 Rainbow Classic
with victories over Creighton (86-55), Louisville
(80-75) and Arizona State (83-71), followed
by a return to the islands in 1991for the Aloha
Invitational, splitting its two games at the event.
In 1995, NC State was back in Hawai’i for the
Rainbow Classic where it went 1-2 with an
opening loss to Massachusetts (87-68), a win
over Missouri (87-68) and loss to Illinois (85-76).
The last time, the Wolfpack played a tournament
outside the U.S., was the 1998 Puerto
Rico Holiday Classic.
Brown, Leslie On Wooden Preseason List
Juniors Lorenzo Brown and C.J. Leslie were
among the top 50 players named to the John
R. Wooden Award preseason list announced by
the Los Angeles Downtown Athletic Club.
The duo were two of six ACC players on the
Wooden Award preseason list and NC State and
Duke were the two league schools with multiple
representatives on the list.
Chosen by a preseason poll of national college
basketball media members, the list is comprised
of 50 student-athletes who, based on last year’s
individual performance and team records, are
the early front-runners for college basketball’s
most prestigious honor.
In the season-opening 97-59 win over Miami
(Ohio), Brown had 15 points, a team-best
seven assists and six rebounds. Leslie recorded
11 points, grabbed eight rebounds and
three assists and three blocks.
Wood Extends 3-Point Streak
Senior forward Scott Wood extended his
ACC-best streak to 28 games. He is also
the conference’s current active leader in that
category with 324, which is second all-time in
NC State history.
Freshmen Debut
NC State’s much-heralded freshman class of
Tyler Lewis, Rodney Purvis and T.J. Warren
all played significant minutes in the Wolfpack’s
season-opening win over Miami of Ohio. By
9:28 of the first half, the McDonald’s All-
American trio saw their first action together
with C.J. Leslie and Richard Howell anchoring
the lineup.
In addition to Purvis’ 16 points, Warren had
eight points and three rebounds and Lewis had
six points and six assists.
Purvis In the Record Books
By scoring 16 points in his first game with
the Wolfpack, Rodney Purvis tied for the
seventh-best scoring debut performance by a
freshman. Purvis was six of 10 from the floor,
including three of five from 3-point range. He
scored 14 of his points in the second half.
His performance earned him the initial ACC
Rookie of the Week honors for the 2012-13
season.
NC State versus The Big Ten
The Wolfpack is 36-21 all time against foes
from the Big Ten. Thursday’s game with Penn
State will be NC State’s first meeting with a
foe from the conference outside of the annual
ACC/Big Ten Challenge since facing Wisconsin
in the Sweet Sixteen of the 2005 NCAA
Tournament, losing to the Badgers, 65-56, in
Syracuse, N.Y.
On Nov. 27, the Pack travels to Ann Arbor,
Mich., to take on fifth-ranked Michigan for the
14th annual ACC/Big Ten Challenge (see Third
ACC/Big Ten Challenge Meeting For NC State-
Michigan).
Purvis ACC’s Top Scoring Freshman
It may be a game into his career and the first
statistical update issued by the ACC, but freshman
Rodney Purvis’ 16 points in the Pack’s
season opener was the top scoring performance
by any freshman in the league.
He is 11th in the league in scoring, tied with
teammate Richard Howell and Virginia Tech’s
Robert Brown.
Howell Among ACC Leaders
Senior Richard Howell is ranked the top 15 for
scoring (16.0 - t-11th), rebounding (10.0 - 7th),
field goal percentage (.875 - 4th), free throw
percentage (.800, 15th), blocked shots (2,
t-6th), assist/turnover ratio (999.0, t-1st) and
defensive rebounds (10, 2nd).