NC State hasn’t played in 10 days. How rusty could the Wolfpack be against UNC?
N.C. State just wants to play basketball again.
Yes, the Wolfpack men’s team has had more COVID-19 issues. Yes, those issues resulted in another pause in the season and two postponed ACC games. And, yes, resuming play begins with a game at North Carolina on Saturday and might mean playing the Tar Heels without injured center Manny Bates.
But as Wolfpack coach Kevin Keatts said Friday, a worst-case scenario during the pandemic would be “we’re not playing basketball” and the season is shut down. Despite the postponements, despite disruptions to practice, despite the unexpected COVID challenges, the Pack just wants to play.
“My guys are excited about getting back out on the court,” Keatts said on a media call. “As far as how we play, how much rust we have, I couldn’t answer that.
“We’ve been off 10 days. I hope we don’t play like we’ve been off 10 days.”
Bates injured an ankle in the Pack’s loss to Miami on Jan. 9 and did not play in the next game, at Florida State. Keatts said Bates has had some individual workouts this week and that he hoped the 6-11 sophomore could go through some team practice Friday.
“A lot of that will determine if he plays (Saturday) or not,” Keatts said.
Keatts did not say who else might be questionable for the UNC game but said the Pack would have more players than it did for the St. Louis road game on Dec. 17, when N.C. State was coming off a COVID pause and left five players in Raleigh.
“So that’s a positive thing,” he said.
Wolfpack and coronavirus
N.C. State held off a late push by UNC for a 79-76 win at PNC Arena on Dec. 22. The Wolfpack then followed with a 79-76 win over Boston College on Dec. 30 for a 2-0 ACC start, leaving everyone in the program upbeat.
It has been more nightmarish for N.C. State once the calendar flipped to 2021. The Pack lost a close game at Clemson. It lost at home to Miami. On Jan. 13, the Wolfpack was blown out 105-73 at Florida State in a game that was never close.
Then, a day after the FSU game, there was a positive COVID-19 test in the program. Then another and then a third, Keatts said Friday. Games against Georgia Tech and Virginia were postponed, and the UNC game appeared questionable.
“It’s been the toughest thing, None of us has trained for this,” Keatts said of the pandemic. “It’s tough. I find myself waiting for (COVID) test results every day.”
And it hasn’t just been Keatts and his program. The women’s basketball team, ranked No. 2, has had its season interrupted by positive coronavirus cases this season.
The Wolfpack women have not played since beating Boston College 76-57 at Reynolds Coliseum on Jan. 3. Two days later, the ACC announced a positive test had been discovered in the program.
Keatts and women’s coach Wes Moore had been “comparing notes” every day on potential COVID issues when, Keatts said,“All of a sudden it happens” to both programs.
Tar Heels have gotten better
The Wolfpack (6-4 overall) can use Bates in the lineup against UNC and the Tar Heels’ big bodies inside. He had 14 points, hitting seven of 11 shots from the field, to go with seven rebounds and blocked five shots in the win in December.
The Tar Heels won a close game against Notre Dame in its first 2021 outing and has won four of its last five games, with the only loss at Florida State.
“They’ve gotten a lot better,” Keatts said. “They’re probably one of the programs that hasn’t had to pause in a while. ... They’re playing with a lot of confidence and they’re shooting the ball a lot better than when we played them.”
NC State at North Carolina
When: 2 p.m., Saturday
Where: Dean Smith Center, Chapel Hill
Watch: ESPN
This story was originally published January 22, 2021 at 12:16 PM with the headline "NC State hasn’t played in 10 days. How rusty could the Wolfpack be against UNC?."
