University of Virginia Library

UNC Accepts NIT Bid

Wolfpack Edges USC, Takes Title

John Roche, South Carolina's
ace in the hole, came back from a
'severe' ankle Injury against Wake
Forest, but his two unsuccessful
opportunities to break a tie at the
buzzer left North Carolina State
with a double overtime 42-39 ACC
title victory.

State's Rick Anheuser tied the
regulation game 35-35 with 1:35
left on the clock. Coach Frank
McGuire set up Roche in the
outside corner of the court nearest
the Gamecock bench. The rest of
the South Carolina players
abandoned the area to leave Roche
one-on-one competition with
Leftwich.

Joe Dunning played Roche
closely as Roche dribbled away
over a minute of the 1:35. Finally
with about five seconds left, Roche
made his move, turned, and fired a
long jumper that bounded off the
rim.

The five minute first-overtime
featured four foul shots; two by
Ribock and one each from
Anheuser and Dunning that left the
score tied at 37. With 1:19 McGuire
deployed the same strategy, but
again Roche missed a 15-foot
jumper.

USC's Tom Riker put the
Gamecocks two up, 39-37, in the
second overtime off the opening
tap, but then State allowed the
clock to run for over two minutes
before Anheuser walked, and the
ball went back to South Carolina.
Roche tried to let the clock
supplement the two point lead, but
Joe Dunning managed to steal the
ball and drive the court. Dunning
was fouled before he could take his
lay-up. He missed the first, but
made the second to leave State still
one point behind.

McGuire then called time with
57 seconds remaining. The
Gamecocks went to work stalling
the play with their one-point
advantage. Then with only 21
seconds to go Leftwich grabbed the
ball from Bobby Cremins and drove
for two points to give State the
point lead.

Roche took the ball in and sped
up the court only to miss a jumper
from the key. Coder got the
rebound for State and was
immediately fouled. The second
team All-ACC Coder continued to
play as though he weren't and
missed the front end of a one and
one situation. But South Carolina
didn't come up with the rebound,
and the Gamecocks were forced to
foul Anheuser in another attempt
to get the ball.

With six seconds left Anheuser
sank both ends of a one and one to
ice the title for the Wolfpack,
42-39. State now must contend
with Saint Bonaventure Thursday
in Columbia, S.C. in the Eastern
Regionals. Had State lost they
would have received an NIT
invitation, but Saturday's losers,
South Carolina, will not have the
chance to go to the NIT in Madison
Square Garden South Carolina
serves as a host school for the
NCAA tournament, and thus the
Gamecocks are ineligible to
participate in the NIT. North
Carolina will represent the ACC,
accepting their bid from the NIT.

South Carolina shot a miserable
30 per cent from the floor as the
Gamecocks could not come up with
the clutch shot when they needed
it, especially those two
game-winners from Roche. Roche
had not been expected to play at
all, having had to be helped from
the court, suffering a severe sprain
against Wake Forest Friday.

Van Williford kept the Wolfpack
in control of their "slowdown"
tactics, and received the Everett
Case Memorial award as the
tourney's MVP for his three-day
performance. Every time South
Carolina threw up a zone, State
held the ball in the backcourt. Only
a man for man could force State to
move.

Frank McGuire, whose team had
barely escaped Clemson's
slow-down ambush Thursday
afternoon, did not like the ACC
tournament in the first place.
McGuire commented after the State
game that the crucial steal of
Leftwich on Cremins, when
Cremins had South Carolina ahead
by one, was a foul. As evidence he
told reporters that Cremins suffered
a dislocated thumb on the play.

State's upset left many
wondering one more time of the
justice of the tournament in
sending its winner to the NCAA
regionals. USC's 25 wins this season
go back to Columbia, but they will
hardly make the St. Bonaventure North
Carolina State game
program.