State Needs Energy on Senior Night

N.C. State and Wake Forest, two old foes that have battled for years, will battle tonight to see who can avoid the ACC basement. Both are 4-10 in the ACC and tied with Miami for the distinction of holding up the rest of the league.

Wake Forest is 13-14 overall and seems to be getting a little better having won two of its last three while the Wolfpack just seems tired. At 14-13, State needs this one badly if they want to avoid a losing season. Nobody in the red and white wants that.

While the future is much brighter for Sidney Lowe's program with the nucleus of this team returning coupled with a good recruiting year, a losing season would cut deep.

One player who won't be a part of the future is senior point guard Engin Atsur who will play his final home game tonight. His absence for a good part of the season with hamstring problems only solidified how important he really is.

When Atsur plays State is more in control. Junior Gavin Grant said that Atsur just knows the game of basketball so well. He knows when to speed things up, when to slow it down. He's like having a coach on the floor. Grant, who's had to fill in some at the point when Atsur was out, said he appreciates so much what the senior from Istanbul brings to the team.

"If we had Engin the entire year, I'm definitely sure the year would have turned out different," Grant said. He adds though, "You can't live your life on ifs and buts. We are what we are."

Well, I don't think there's any question that State would be in a better position if Atsur hadn't gotten hurt. Grant is right, State's season would be different. You take a senior leader away from an already thin team and good things will probably not happen and they didn't for the Pack.

Right now, State is a team that seems to be running on fumes. Still, the Wolfpack starts five pretty good players and if they have the emotion and energy, they can give anyone a scrap. A win over Carolina and two over Virginia Tech, both of whom happen to be tied for the ACC lead, prove that.

The question is: Are they spent? Is there any fight still left? I'm not sure. They had none at Florida State, but I would expect State on senior night to give Wake Forest its best. This is a team State dominated in January and while the Deacons are improved, they're still a team with a lot of problems. If an energized Pack team shows up, State should win at home.

Also, Grant said, "We want to win this one for Atsur."

"I've been a teammate of his for three years. He's one of the better players and people I've ever played with. I'm proud of what he's accomplished and I hope we can send him off the right way."

A win tonight would be a huge step towards avoiding a losing season. That and Senior Night should be plenty of motivation.