N.C. State hopes to crash UConn block party

Handling Okafor in the paint is quite a handful, so N.C. State hopes it can take the freshman shot-blocking star away.

It doesn’t have to be all the way to the bench in foul trouble or anything that drastic. Just out around the 3-point line, away from the Wolfpack guards who love to shoot around the rim.

Connecticut, the No. 2 seed in the East Region, is loaded with talent at every position. But it’s the 6-foot-9 freshman that concerns No. 7 N.C.State the most heading into today’s 2:30 p.m. NCAA Tournament second-round game.

“We tried to recruit Emeka Okafor, so we are very aware of his talent and ability,”State head coach Herb Sendek said. “When you stop to think that he is averaging over four blocked shots per game as a freshman, that is staggering.”

Okafor’s 132 blocks this season landed one short of the Big East record for freshmen. Put another way, his 132 blocks are 30 more than the ACC’s top rejection duo of Lonny Baxter and Chris Wilcox.

Add in the ACC’s No. 3 man in Wake’s Antwan Scott, and the trio owns a mere 16 more blocked shots than Okafor — in 60 more games.

“Emeka, Emeka, Emeka,”UConn head coach Jim Calhoun said of his team’s defensive prowess. “Not only does he block shots, he hedges, helps, recovers and probably has been as much an impact defensively as any player I’ve ever had come as a freshman at Connecticut.”

That spans 16 seasons and one national championship, in 1999.

Connecticut (25-6) advanced Friday with a 78-67 victory over Hampton in which Okafor tallied 12 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks.

N.C. State (23-10) saw it all following its 69-58 defeat of Michigan State.

“They played a team that was big on driving to the basket and getting to the rim,”State sophomore center Marcus Melvin said. “He altered shots, he blocked shots.That really was key for them.

“A lot of people don’t think that really contributes to a win, but when you win a game by 10 points and he has five blocks, that’s five possessions he took away from the other team.”

Now, State hopes Melvin can take away Okafor. The strength of the Wolfpack frontcourt is its versatility. Melvin shoots 43 percent from the 3-point arc. Freshman forward Ilian Evtimov hits 38 percent of his tries.

Both big men play much of the game outside with thoughts of driving the lane instead of your typical back-to-the-basket post-ups.

“The fact that they bring their post players out, doing that will make me not block as many shots,”Okafor said. “I’ll just have to see how I can adjust when the time comes.”

Calhoun said that no matter what State does, Okafor will still be a presence.

“He’ll be down in the paint some and we’ll take some chances on 3-point shooters if we have to,”Calhoun said. “He’s still going to be a focal point of rebounding, getting the ball inside and on weakside (defense), we’ve got to utilize him even more than normal.”

That means when State runs its offense with players cutting to the basket for backdoor layups, they’ll be on the lookout for Okafor swooping in for the rejection.

“It’s not about him, it’s about us,”State freshman Julius Hodge said. “As long as we stick to our game plan, listen to Coach and make shots, we’re going to put ourselves in a very good position.”

The Wolfpack won’t be able to shoot 25 percent from the floor like it did in the first half Friday before rallying past the Spartans. In addition to its defensive whiz, UConn boasts a host of scoring threats.

Sophomore Caron Butler averages 19.5 points and owns three 29-point games this season, including one against North Carolina. Freshman guard Ben Gordon scores 13.1 points a game. Freshman point guard Taliek Brown averages 9.2 points and 5.2 assists, while the main senior, forward Johnnie Selvie, tallies 11.8 points and 6.8 boards.

As in the Michigan State game, the Wolfpack will face a bigger team. But unlike the Spartans, the Huskies promise to be just as fast, if not faster, than the Pack.

But State’s been playing the underdog role all year in the ACC. What’s one more game?

“I think the past couple weeks with who we’ve played against, we’ve really shown ourselves we can play with a lot of teams in the country,”senior guard Anthony Grundy said. “As long as we give great intensity, I think we have a shot at winning a lot of games.”

n

Contact Steve Hanf at 704-797-4256 or shanf@salisburypost.com .