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Countdown to Tipoff: NC State Wolfpack

Mark Gottfried, NC State Head Coach

A veteran of 18 NCAA tournament appearances as a player and coach, Mark Gottfried led NC State to a 24-13 record and a spot in the NCAA's "Sweet 16" in his first year with the Wolfpack ... Gottfried was named the 19th men's basketball coach in NC State history on April 5, 2011 ... Gottfried spent 10 seasons as head coach at Alabama (2000-09), compiling a record of 210-132 with five NCAA Tournament and three NIT appearances ... during his last eight years at Alabama, 29 of 30 seniors graduated on time ... he led the Tide to the SEC regular season championship in his fourth season, the first of five straight trips to the NCAA Tournament ... Gottfried was named the 2002 SEC Coach of the Year ... Gottfried was head coach at Murray State for three seasons and earned Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year honors in all three seasons with the Racers ... he compiled a 68-24 overall record and a 40-12 mark in conference play … in his first season with the Racers, Gottfried's squad advanced to the 1996 NIT, then made the NCAA Tournament in 1997 and 1998 ... he coached Murray State to OVC championships in each of his seasons as head coach, becoming the first head coach to win three OVC titles in only three seasons ... Gottfried spent seven years as an assistant at UCLA (1988-95) and was on the staff when the Bruins won the 1995 national championship ... Gottfried started his collegiate playing career at Oral Roberts, where he was a freshman All-American during his one season (1983) with the Golden Eagles ... Gottfried then transferred to Alabama, where he started 98 consecutive games and helped the Crimson Tide advance to the Sweet 16 each of his three seasons ... he holds the school record for most three-point field goals in a single game (8), and is the school's all-time leader in three-point field goal percentage (.485).

Returning players

C.J. Leslie, Jr., Forward
Earned second-team All-ACC honors as a sophomore in 2011-12 after leading the Wolfpack in scoring (14.7), blocked shots (54) and finishing second in rebounding (7.3) ... averaged 16.5 points, 8.2 rebounds and shot .571 (40x70) from the floor in the Wolfpack's six postseason games in the ACC and NCAA Tournaments ... led the team in scoring on 15 occasions, including eight times in February and March ... scored 10 or more points 26 times, including 16 in a row to close out the season ... sixth in the ACC with eight double-doubles, including seven in league play.

Lorenzo Brown, Jr., Guard
One of three Wolfpack players to start all 37 games a year ago ... became the first NC State player since Chris Corchiani in 1990 to lead the ACC in steals (1.8) ... finished second in the ACC in assists (6.3), third in assists to turnover ratio (1.98:1) and fifth in minutes played (34.3) ... played 31 minutes or more in 32 games ... had 28 games with 10-or-more points and finished second on the team in scoring (12.7).

Scott Wood, Sr., Forward
NC State's active career scoring leader with 1,026 points ... led the ACC and was 28th nation¬ally in 3-point field goal percentage (.409) and has made at least one 3-pointer in 90 of his 101 career games with the Wolfpack ... has scored 10-or-more points in 53 games in his career, including 25 times a year ago ... averaged 12.4 points and 2.3 rebounds in 2011-12.

Richard Howell, Sr., Forward
Started all 37 games a year ago, averaging 10.8 points a game ... had 16 games with 10-or-more rebounds, led the team in rebounds 21 times and finished third in the ACC and 37th nationally in rebounds per game (9.2) ... made 10-of-12 from the floor and scored a team-high 22 points in State's 79-65 win over San Diego State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Jordan Vandenberg, Jr., Center
Was limited to playing in only seven games a year ago due to a shoulder injury ... made 7-of- 8 from the floor (.875) and averaged 2.0 points and 2.7 rebounds ... scored a season-high six points and grabbed a season-best five rebounds against Princeton (N16) ... averaged 1.6 points and 1.7 rebounds playing 23 games in 2010-11 ... has 40 career blocked shots.

Thomas de Thaey, So., Forward
Saw action in 19 games last season ... averaged 1.2 points per game and 1.2 rebounds per game while playing 5.6 minutes per outing ... had a career-high seven rebounds and added three points in NC State's win over Elon (N25).