Late in the second half, Richard Howell was pedaling slowly on a stationary bike, going nowhere -- a tidy metaphor for N.C. State’s performance Saturday if you’re into that kind of thing.
Unable to stop Durand Scott, unable to muster much energy or emotion for much of the game, the Wolfpack failed to find redemption in the ACC tournament, just another loss that was all too similar to so many losses over the course of a season where N.C. State has consistently failed to meet expectations.
Miami is a very good team with a chance to claim a No. 1 seed with a win over Maryland or North Carolina tomorrow, and the Hurricanes present a long list of matchup problems for N.C. State, but if the Wolfpack was really interested in playing for the ACC title it was predicted to win, they were going to have to play far better than they did in an 81-71 loss.