October 21, 2007

Randall Thomason
Rivals.com College Basketball Staff

GREENSBORO, N.C. ? North Carolina State's magical run to the ACC Tournament final last season announced to the league that the Wolfpack could be a major threat this season. Even with four starters returning though, N.C. State faces the prospect of replacing steady-handed point guard Engin Atsur.

Atsur, who battled a nagging hamstring injury for much of last season, arguably was the Wolfpack's most valuable player. Without him on the floor, N.C. State struggled to protect the basketball and had a difficult time getting into an offensive flow.

With Brandon Costner, Ben McCauley, Courtney Fells and Gavin Grant making up one of the nation's strongest returning lineups, solid play at point guard might be all that stands in the way of pushing the Pack well up the ACC standings.

Iowa State transfer Farnold Degand likely has the inside track to be the fifth starter after practicing with the team last year, but Tennessee transfer Marques Johnson will be eligible in the second semester and true freshman Javier Gonzalez also could compete for meaningful minutes.

The Wolfpack hopes strength in numbers will be enough to make up Atsur's departure.

"Fortunately, we have more than just one (point guard) this year," McCauley said. "Last year we just had Engin, and this year we have three. The difference in that is Engin had a lot of experience and these three ? have not played in an NC State basketball game yet. They are going to be forced into playing, so they are going to gain experience really fast."

Johnson was a member of the Rivals150 in the class of 2006, and Gonzalez was a three-star recruit a year ago.

"Farnold definitely is the fastest kid on the team and maybe one of the fastest kids in the league, and he's going to help us get the ball out and push it," McCauley said. "Marques is a strong, bigger point guard, and he really works well passing the ball. Javy is hurt with his right hand, so he's really been working on his left hand. All three have their own specific thing they are really good at."

Finding the right answer at point guard will go a long way toward determining N.C. State's early season success. The Wolfpack has nonconference games against Michigan State, Cincinnati, Davidson, Seton Hall, and also plays in the November Old Spice Classic in Orlando, Fla. The field in that event includes Villanova, Kansas State, George Mason and South Carolina.

Prosser's absence felt at Wake

Though it has been nearly three months since the sudden death of Wake Forest coach Skip Prosser, the emotion is still on the surface. Basketball practice has begun in Winston-Salem, N.C., and Prosser isn't there to conduct it.

Because assistant coach Dino Gaudio was promoted to replace Prosser, the Demon Deacons haven't made major adjustments in style of play. However, they know this preseason is different from any other they have experienced.

"The toughest part was just the passing of coach, the feelings we have for his family and the people he left behind," Wake Forest junior forward Cameron Stanley said Sunday at the ACC's preseason media day. "But as far as a transition, there hasn't been much of a transition because (Prosser and Gaudio) have the same style and they pretty much emphasize the same points. It's been rough with the tragedy but ? the transition hasn't been much.

"It's like that on a day-to-day basis just going out to practice. Every day you want to go out there and see coach giving the fist pump like he usually gives us, but every day it's tough going out there and he's not there."

Prosser's presence is still very evident throughout the league. One by one as the league schedule rolls on, each ACC coach will reach the Wake Forest game and not have Prosser standing at the other bench to greet.

That will be just a reminder of each coach's lasting impressions of Prosser.

"He had a quality about him that touched people individually that most people don't have," North Carolina coach Roy Williams said. "I think that will be his legacy, that you can truly be a good guy, care about other people, and still compete with them. When we play Wake this year, I'll look down there and see that he's not there and I'll miss him."

Eagles face life without Dudley

The former Boston College star almost never left the court and started 130 games in his career. Along with Dudley's departure, the Eagles also have to learn to fly without Sean Marshall, who had a similar Cal Ripkenesque college career in Chestnut Hill. However, replacing Dudley is the No. 1 challenge for Boston College and coach Al Skinner.

Dudley thrived in multiple facets of the game and brought an intensity rarely matched by competitors.

"You can't really completely replace a guy like Dudley," senior forward John Oates said. "He's a great player. On and off the court, he's a huge presence. We obviously are going to miss him, but at the same time we've done it every year. Losing Craig Smith, losing Jared, you always lose a key guy."

If Skinner's history is any indicator though, expect the Eagles to be just fine this season. The Boston College leader has a knack for developing under-the-radar recruits and molding them into superstars.

What is Skinner's secret?

"He breaks it down and makes it simple," Oates said. "He narrows it down to a very precise thing and says this is what you need to work on. He makes it a lot simpler than a lot of people probably think it is."

With Dudley and Marshall gone, junior guard Tyrese Rice probably will be the player to emerge.

"I think the biggest thing is to be able to see what a guy's strengths are, make him work from his strengths, and don't be overly concerned about his weakness," Skinner said. "That's the most important thing, stay away from the weaknesses and really focus in on (the strengths) and develop yourself from that. We're all different. There's nothing wrong with trying to emulate someone, but you also have to realize who you are, and that's what I try to do when (I tell players) to trim this a little bit so we can understand exactly what you're doing."

Skinner has some time to figure out things. The nonconference schedule includes only one game against a 2007 NCAA tournament squad, and that doesn't come until Jan. 5 against Kansas.

Can backcourt take Seminoles to the Big Dance?

Few teams have suffered more on-court setbacks in the last two years than Florida State. Even with All-American Al Thornton leading the way, the Seminoles fell just short of the NCAA Tournament.

In 05-06, Florida State finished 9-7 in ACC regular-season play but was left on the outside of the tourney bubble. Last year, the Seminoles lost four games by three or fewer points, any of which would have strengthened their tournament résumé.

Even without Thornton, the Seminoles have a luxury many coaches would love to have. Jason Rich, Isaiah Swann, Toney Douglas and Ralph Mims give the backcourt three seniors and a fourth-year junior, making it not only one of college basketball's best guard quartets, but also one of the most experienced.

"We understand that me, Tony and Jason are pretty much the key to our team," Swann said. "We understand, we know that it's no secret, it's a fact. ?Whatever we've got to do to win, we're going to do. We've been through the battles, we've been through the trenches, we've been through all the wars, and we've lost. We've lost several games by one or two points, and we understand what we need. In critical situations, it's good to have an experienced backcourt."

Rich concurs and hopes the experience will push the Seminoles over the hump and into the tournament.

"Most teams can't say they have three senior guards that have been in big-time environments and have played against some big-time teams. We know what it's like to be close and not to make it, and that's fuel to that fire as well."

Don't be so quick to put Florida State in your NCAA tournament bracket though, at least if you put trust in what FSU coach Leonard Hamilton says.

"Just because they are seniors doesn't necessarily guarantee you anything," Hamilton said. "They have to be efficient, successful, and play well. Age doesn't have any lock on success. ? The Fab Five went to the Final Four with all freshmen, so I don't think age has anything to do with us having a luxury or any kind of security. It means that we should be more efficient, we should be knowledgeable of the system, those guys should demonstrate leadership, and hopefully that will give us a chance to be better in those close games."

Will Coach K follow Boeheim's lead?

Syracuse announced assistant coach Mike Hopkins will replace coach Jim Boeheim when Boeheim retires, and that approach looks appealing to Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, who is entering his 28th year leading the Blue Devils. "I think at sometime that is something I would like to talk about with the Duke people," Krzyzewski said. "Whenever I do step aside, I would like for there to be as seamless as possible a transition, to have continuity. We have enough really good people who have been Duke players and coaches that there should be somebody who should be able to continue that. It's really good for the continuity of the program."

? Magic man
? Country roads
? Top centers
? Top small forwards
? Countdown to Tipoff

Don't expect a change at Duke to happen soon though, even though questions about when he may retire are coming more frequently now for Krzyzewski.

"I think it's a legitimate question, and I think you have to ask yourself that at some time, but I don't ask myself that, hardly ever," he said. "I'm not ready to do that, and I feel pretty good about what I'm doing."

Clemson seeks consistency

On Jan. 9 of last season, an NCAA tournament without Clemson looked very unlikely. The Tigers were 17-0 overall and 3-0 in the ACC, but then proceeded to lose nine of their next 11 games. By Selection Sunday, they were mostly an afterthought.

A run to the NIT championship game did make the late-season collapse a little less devastating, but there is no question the Tigers want more than a trip to Madison Square Garden this season.

With a strong roster that includes James Mays, K.C. Rivers and Cliff Hammonds, the opportunity is there to reach the Big Dance.

Clemson coach Oliver Purnell agrees with that sentiment, but believes the key to the goal being realized is quick development from freshman point guard Demontez Stitt.

"We are going to be depending on (Stitt) a good deal," Purnell said. "He's talented, but depending on how long it takes him to adjust, Cliff Hammonds will be kind of our security blanket who we can move over from the two spot if Demontez struggles early - which he most certainly will. Every freshman struggles a little bit early.

"Our situation is we have everybody back, but how soon are we going to be good at the point guard position? If I knew that, I could tell you how soon we are going to be really good."

Even as solid as Vernon Hamilton was at point guard last year, he was just a 50-percent free-throw shooter. Stitt, along with fellow freshman guard Terrence Oglesby, should help the Tigers improve in that department.

Randall Thomason is the ACC producer for Rivals.com. He can be reached at randall@rivals.com.