HokieHaven.com - Rice presents difficult matchup for Pack

January 23, 2009

NC State won't be sad when Boston College senior point guard Tyrese Rice moves on to the professional ranks.

Rice has put up gaudy numbers against NC State the last two years, and will be a tough matchup once again for the Wolfpack, who travels to play at BC at 2 p.m. Saturday. The game will be televised on Raycom.

Boston College and Rice play NC State for the last time March 4, though the two teams could possibly end up meeting in the ACC Tournament.

Rice is averaging 18.0 points, 5.9 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game, shooting 37.1 percent from three-point range and 86.1 on free throws.

Rice has scored 20 points or more in 10 games with a season-high 28 against St. John's on Nov. 18, and a 25-point effort in the Eagles' 85-78 upset against North Carolina on Jan. 4. He also has had seven or more assists in nine contests, but also has turned the ball over six or more times in six games.

BC has lost four of five games since upsetting the then No. 1-ranked Tar Heels, including a shocking 82-70 loss to Harvard on Jan. 7, though Rice is averaging 20 points a game during that stretch. He scored 24 of his 26 points in the second half and overtime in the Eagles' 80-76 win over Georgia Tech on Tuesday.

Rice has come a long way since his freshman year when he scored a combined eight points and five assists for the Eagles, who split the two games with the Wolfpack.

Rice and BC only played NC State once during the 2006-2007 season, with him scoring 17 points and dishing out 10 assists, with just one turnover in 38 minutes.

Rice's maturation continued and he torched NC State last year in a game the Wolfpack had to have if they wanted to continue their dream of reaching the NCAA Tournament.

Rice scored 32 points on 12 of 18 shooting, dished out six assists and added five rebounds in 37 minutes in leading BC to a dominating 82-65 victory Feb. 14, 2008.

NC State fell to 15-9 at that point, and the wheels fell off. The BC game was the second loss in an eventual nine-game losing streak to end the season, leaving the Pack with a 15-16 record.

Boston College preview

NC State 2008-09 roster

NC State schedule/results

NC State season stats

Boston College roster

Boston College schedule/results

Boston College season stats

Game facts

NC State (10-6, 1-3 ACC) at Boston College (14-6, 2-3 ACC)

Game time: Saturday, Jan. 24, 2 p.m. - Silvio O. Conte Forum, Chestnut Hill, Mass.

Television: Raycom

Probable starters

NC State

PG - 24 Julius Mays (6-2, Fr., 4.6 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 1.9 apg) or 12 Farnold Degand (6-3, R-Jr., 4.3 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 1.8 apg)
SG - 21 C.J. Williams (6-5, Fr., 2.4 ppg, 1.1 rpg, 0.6 apg)
SF -4 Courtney Fells (6-6, Sr., 10.1 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 0.9 apg)
PF - 33 Brandon Costner (6-9, R-Jr., 14.6 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2.6 apg, 1.1 bpg)
C - 34 Ben McCauley (6-9, Sr., 13.1 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1.1 spg)

Boston College

PG - 4 Tyrese Rice (6-1, Sr., 18.0 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 5.9 apg, 1.6 spg)
SG - 15 Rakim Sanders (6-5, Soph., 12.0 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 1.6 apg, 1.8 spg)
SF - 11 Corey Raji (6-6, Soph., 11.4 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 1.8 apg)
PF - 12 Joe Trapani (6-8, Soph., 14.0 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.0 bpg)
C - 52 Josh Southern (6-10, Soph., 5.4 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 0.8 apg)

Scouting Boston College

Location: Chestnut Hill, Mass.

Nickname: Eagles

2007-08 record: 14-17 overall, 4-12 ACC

2008 postseason: None

Coach: Al Skinner, 21st season overall (362-269) and 12th season at Boston College (224-143)

The all-time series with NC State: Boston College leads 6-1

Last meeting: Boston College won 82-65 on Feb. 14, 2008, in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

Notes

Boston College: A pair of newcomers have bolstered Boston College this season with sophomore power forward Trapani and freshman combo guard Reggie Jackson off the bench … Trapani, who transferred from Vermont after a successful freshman season, has scored 20 or more points in four games and has five double-doubles for points and rebounds. He scored a season-high 23 points against Virginia Tech on Jan. 17 and pulled down 12 boards against UMass on Dec. 6. Trapani is also a dangerous three-point shooter, knocking down 35.7 percent from beyond the arc. He has hit two or more three-pointers in 10 games … Jackson is averaging 7.9 points and 3.7 rebounds in 21.3 minutes per game. The Colorado Springs product has scored in double digits in seven games, including a career-high 17 in 26 minutes against North Carolina. He also grabbed nine rebounds against Georgia Tech.

NC State: Starting perimeter players Degand, Williams and Fells combined for 10 points against Duke on Tuesday … Redshirt freshman Johnny Thomas has played 11 minutes or more in the last three games off the bench after not playing at all in the previous three games. Thomas has gone 3 of 6 from the field for seven points, and he's added 10 rebounds over the last three games … NCSU has committed 18.6 turnovers a game over the last five games … The Pack have won the rebounding battle in 13 of the 16 games this season … McCauley is 26 points away from reaching 1,000 points in his Wolfpack career. Costner achieved the feat earlier in the season against Marquette on Dec. 24, becoming the 41st NCSU player to reach the milestone.

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