Basketball is like a presidential election: you can win all the individual statistics — i.e., the popular vote — and still come up short.
No. 19 N.C. State outrebounded, outshot and was more efficient in every imaginable category than No. 14 Miami Saturday. The only statistic it was bested in happens to be the only one that matters — the final score.
State lost against Miami, 79-78, Saturday afternoon in PNC Arena. State played the game without junior starting point guard Lorenzo Brown. Miami forward Reggie Johnson converted a last-second tip-in as the Hurricanes handed State its first home loss of the season.
With 47 seconds left and the score 78-77 in the Wolfpack’s favor, Miami gained possession after freshman guard Tyler Lewis missed a jumper in the lane. After the Hurricanes got the rebound, they immediately called timeout with 10.9 seconds remaining.
Out of the timeout, Miami guard Shane Larkin pushed up a contested lay-up that hit rim and missed, but Johnson was there for the put-back with only .8 seconds left on the clock. Johnson’s basket put Miami up by one point.
Freshman guard Rodney Purvis’ three-quarter court desperation shot hit rim but bounced out as the buzzer sounded to end the game.
Head coach Mark Gottfried emphasized how proud he was of his team’s resilience in a loss that’s hard to swallow.
“That’s a heartbreaker,” Gottfried said. “I thought we played extremely hard and never quit. I’m disappointed, but at the same time, I’m proud of our effort. ”
With Brown sidelined by an ankle injury sustained in last Tuesday’s game against Virginia, Gottfried’s job was sure to be a challenge. Operating a limited seven-man rotation, Gottfried elected to start junior center Jordan Vandenberg in place of junior forward C.J. Leslie. The decision was likely made to rest Leslie for the end of the game. Vandenberg, who made his first career start as a member of the Wolfpack, played only seven total minutes and registered one block and a steal.
Purvis started the game at point guard, flanked by freshman forward T.J. Warren and senior guard Scott Wood. As the game played out, Purvis shifted to wing, and Lewis assumed point guard duties.
The game was defined by spurts by both teams. Coming out with tenacious defense and physical frontcourt play, the Hurricanes found an early rhythm, jumping out to an 11-7 lead at the first media timeout.
Following the timeout, senior forward Richard Howell led an offensive surge for the Wolfpack. Around the 10-minute mark, the Pack leading 25-24, Howell had 11 points while the rest of the team combined for 14.
After a technical foul by Johnson on Warren, the crowd at PNC roared to life — and so did junior forward C.J. Leslie. Leslie was yet again the Pack’s top performer, scoring eight points in the final nine minutes of the first half. Leslie finished the game with 18 points and 12 rebounds.
Purvis closed the half with an emphatic SportsCenter top-10 worthy put-back dunk off a Leslie miss. A confident Wolfpack group went into the locker room ahead, 40-34. The Pack led the Hurricanes in all shooting percentages and rebounds in the first half.
Had the Wolfpack won, the story of the game would have been Lewis’ breakout performance. Lewis, who has seen little playing time this season because of Lorenzo Brown’s preeminent level of play, emerged as the Pack’s unquestionable leader in the second half. Lewis played much bigger than his 5’10” stature would suggest, finishing the night with 16 points and five assists in 36 minutes.
“I thought Tyler [Lewis] stepped up and was terrific, just terrific,” Gottfried said. “I couldn’t be any more proud of him. Maybe a positive from this is that we’ve learned he’s ready to go. ”
Lewis added that he too was pleased with his performance.
“I had to take advantage of my opportunity,” Lewis said. “I thought I played a pretty good overall game.”
But Lewis was his biggest critic regarding the second-to-last play of the game.
“Coach told me to come off a ball screen and make a play happen,” Lewis said. “Obviously, I didn’t make the play happen. I didn’t make the shot. ”
Lewis went on to call Brown the best point guard in the country.
Regardless of the result, Lewis’ ferocious and fearless play promises good things for the Wolfpack’s future at the point guard position.
With 8:56 left in the game, Miami retook the lead and went up, 67-62, before Gottfried called timeout. The Hurricanes lead was a product of their 15-2 run, including 11 unanswered points. But Purvis answered the bell with a slashing drive and a quick three to put State right back in the game.
The end of the game felt all too familiar for Wolfpack fans, whose four ACC losses have all come by three points or less. Two of those losses have come off last minute tip-ins by the opposition.
“I think we’re getting better all the time — the frustrating thing is we have four league losses to show for it,” Gottfried said. “It’s a game of seconds and inches, and the ball was perfectly right there, in the right place.”
Purvis also weighed in on the Pack’s struggles down the stretch.
“We just [have to] find a way to finish close games better,” Purvis said.
He added that he thought his final desperation heave had a chance when it left his hand.
After a pair of turnovers, Leslie was fouled underneath the basket and went to the line for a one-and-one situation with the score at 78-76, Pack. Leslie missed the front end of his one-and-one and then fouled Miami’s Durand Scott on the other end, who made one of his two free throws.
State got the ball back and Gottfried called a timeout to set up a play for Lewis, who had the hot hand throughout the game. Lewis drove to the basket and pulled up for a 12-footer, but missed. Miami grabbed the rebound and after a timeout sent the Wolfpack faithful home disappointed.
“It all happened so fast,” Leslie said. “It was very similar [to the Maryland game]. It’s just one of those things.
At the end of the day, Gottfried said the loss does not overshadow the good things he saw from his team. Facing a Miami team that has seemingly run away with the ACC, he felt encouraged by his squad’s perseverance.
“If we keep playing hard like that, if we keep competing like that, good things are [going to] happen for our team,” Gottfried said.
Despite falling short at the buzzer, Gottfried said he was pleased with his team’s ability to continue fighting. When asked about the last play, he kept it simple.
“Look, sometimes in sports you have years where you have all those plays go in your favor. Sometimes they don’t,” Gottfried said. “I thought there was a lot of competitive greatness in our team to keep digging.”
With the loss, State falls to 16-6 overall, 5-4 in the ACC, while the Hurricanes remain undefeated in ACC play with a perfect 8-0 record, 17-3 overall.
The Wolfpack’s next game will be against Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium Thursday night.