The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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14 ■ THE WOLFPACKER TRACKING THE PACK The Wolfpacker staff has enjoyed getting to know various guests on their podcast nearly every Tuesday at 12:30 p.m. inside of Amedeo's Italian Restaurant in Raleigh. The show is always available to listen to on TheWolfpacker.com, iTunes and most ev- erywhere else podcasts can be downloaded. Here are some excerpts from former NC State men's basketball player Ernie Myers, who also has announced some Wolfpack men's and women's basketball games. He appeared on the podcast Feb. 4 to talk about how the two programs' seasons are going: What impressed you about fifth-year senior Grace Hunter coming off the bench to hit three big three-pointers in a 63-60 win over Duke Feb. 2? "Grace Hunter was the leading scorer for the team last year. She transferred from Charlotte, and I have watched her career. She was at [Raleigh] Athens Drive High School and she scored 50 points in a game. She can play. Her twitter account is: @Crave_Buckets23. "She injured herself with a tear in her knee. It was kind of slow [recovering] be- cause she had never been injured. She was slow coming back with the training. At the start of the season, she wasn't at 100 per- cent. She kept practicing and practicing. "Coach [Wes Moore] has a good prob- lem — he has a lot of players. It's hard to find time for them, for everybody. [Hunter] isn't afraid of the moment. She loves play- ing the game. I can relate to her struggle." Does the women's team have more up- side this season because of how injuries affected last year's squad? "I think so. The players who were hurt and injured last year are contributing now. You got [freshman wing Jakia] Brown- Turner, who is a knockdown shooter and she isn't afraid of the moment either. You have [sophomore center Elissa] Cunane, who is playing like an All-American. [Ju- nior forward] Kayla Jones, you can't sleep on her. She's the glue to the team. Not to mention [senior guard] Ace [Konig], against Clemson, she was unbelievable. She was hotter than fish grease against Clemson. "You got the experience and the youth and you have the great coach, I think they'll go on a long run this year in the tournament." For the NC State men's basketball team, how much have the various inju- ries disrupted their offensive flow? "That's a huge part of it. If you aren't playing with your players, and you don't have your players to practice with and key guys are getting hurt, my experience is the Myers played at NC State from 1983-86 and was a freshman on Jim Valvano's national champion- ship team in 1983. He now serves as an analyst on ACC Network Extra for Wolfpack men's and women's basketball. PHOTO BY SIMON GRIFFITHS Former NC State Basketball Player ERNIE MYERS " You are playing for something bigger than yourself. You are playing for the team, playing for the people coming to see you play and love NC State. That is what Coach V [Jim Valvano] used to tell us. … You are playing for the front of the jersey and not the back. " Myers PODCAST HIGHLIGHTS