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• Head Coach Sidney Lowe • 2008-09 Schedule • 2008-09 Roster • 2007-08 Statistics • NC State Men's Basketball Site

Sidney Lowe

Head Coach
Sidney Lowe

Sidney Lowe was named the 18th head coach in NC State history in the spring of 2006. In his first season in Raleigh, Lowe’s Wolfpack won six of its last nine games, advanced to the quarterfinals of the NIT and finished 20-16 overall. Lowe became only the fourth head coach in conference history to take his team to the ACC Tournament championship game in his first season as a league coach.

Lowe played all 40 minutes of the Wolfpack's win over Houston in the 1983 NCAA National Championship Game, scoring eight points and dishing out eight assists. A first-team All-ACC selection in 1983, Lowe is the league’s all-time leader in assists-to-turnover ratio (2.94-to-1) and is ninth in league annals in career assists (762) and assists per game (6.35). The Wolfpack assist leader in all four of his seasons, Lowe led the ACC in assists and steals in 1981 and 1983.

He was drafted by the Chicago Bulls as the first pick of the second round of the 1983 NBA draft and was immediately traded to the Indiana Pacers. Lowe began his NBA coaching career in 1992, when he joined the Minnesota Timberwolves staff as an assistant coach. Midway through the 1993 season, Lowe was named the head coach of the Timberwolves, compiling a 33-92 record in a year-and-a-half. He was named head coach of the Vancouver Grizzlies on June 1, 2000. In his first season with the Grizzlies, he turned a struggling squad into a record-setting one, guiding the team to a franchise-best (at the time) record of 23-59.

NC State Wolfpack

2007-08: 15-16 Overall, 4-12 ACC
T-11th in ACC

2008-09 Preseason Pick: 9th in ACC

Preseason Information

Pack Plaudits

Junior Forward
Brandon Costner

NC NC State returns three starters and seven of the first nine players from the team that posted a 15-16 record and finished tied for 11th in the ACC season last season with a 4-12 league mark. The Wolfpack hopes to recapture the form that saw it win 10 of 12 games during one early-season stretch, including victories over eventual NCAA Tournament teams Villanova and Davidson. NC State has won 20 or more games four times in the past five seasons, including a 20-win season under first-year head coach Sidney Lowe in 2006-07. The Wolfpack will be missing standout forward J.J. Hickson, who averaged 14.8 ppg and 8.5 rpg as a freshman and was a first-round NBA Draft choice of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Also absent will be forward Gavin Grant, who averaged 13.1 ppg and 4.5 rpg as a senior.

Courtney Fells is the Wolfpack's leading returning scorer after averaging 10.6 points in 2007-08 … started all 31 of NC State's games last season as a junior … shot .814 from the foul line … averaged 12.5 ppg in ACC contests … scored in double figures 18 times, including a 23-point effort against Georgia Tech.

Senior Guard/Forward
Courtney Fells

Ben McCauley has started 51 games over the past two seasons … rising senior played nearly 22 minutes per game last season while averaging 6.1 ppg and 3.7 rpg … scored 19 points in home game against Duke … last-second basket lifted State to win over Wake Forest.

Brandon Costner averaged 8.5 ppg and 4.6 rpg per game as a sophomore. His season-high 21 points led a win over South Carolina. The previous season saw him become just the seventh freshman in ACC history to lead his team in both scoring (16.8) and rebounding (7.3). Costner was named ACC All-Freshman, All-ACC Tournament and third-team All-ACC in 2006-07.

Javier Gonzalez worked his way into the starting lineup as a freshman. He led team in steals with 32 and ranked second in assists with 65. Gonzalez scored season-high 18 points vs. Duke.

Farnold Degand was the starting point guard until a knee injury ended his sophomore season. He is slated to return this year. Degand averaged 6.9 points and 3.2 assists in 10 games.

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