The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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A tenacious defense changed the course of the game — the Pack trailed 44-41 at the half — creating numerous turnovers and turning them into easy buckets. The team shot 68.5 per- cent from the floor in the second half. Thompson tallied 31 along with Kuszmaul's 19, Stoddard's 16 and Towe's 13. NC State 97, Virginia 76 In a rare show of scoring balance for the Wolflets, three players scored 25 or more points when the team went on the road for the first time to play the Cavaliers. Thompson had 27 points and 13 rebounds, while Campbell and Towe had 25 points each. After the game was tied at 40 at intermission, State out- scored the Cavs 57-36 in the second half and improved to 10-0 on the season. UNC-CH 95, NC State 83 In an outcome that would define the next three years and inspire the greatest run of NC State basketball of the last half century, North Carolina's Tar Babies overcame a 14-point halftime deficit to win going away at Carmichael Auditorium on UNC's campus. Thompson scored 19 first-half points to build State's lead against a Carolina 1-3-1 zone defense. The Wolflets scored just four points in the first 10 minutes of the second half against freshman coach Bill Guthridge's man-to-man defense. With 8:45 remaining in the game, UNC stretched its lead to 64-55, completing a 29-6 run. State's freshmen never got closer than five points the rest of the way. However, three Wolfpack players fouled out of the game and North Carolina scored its last 13 points on the free throw line. For eternity, the Wolfpack freshmen believed that the two officials had as big an impact on the game as Carolina freshmen Brad Hoffman, Ed Stahl and Donald Washington. Thompson led all scorers with 35 points, but Tar Baby guard Hoffman poured in 27 points, the 6-10 center Stahl had 23 and Washington 16. After the game, Thompson vowed to his teammates he would never lose to the Tar Heels again, a promise he kept until the final game of his senior season, when leg cramps sidelined him during the championship contest of the 1975 ACC Tournament. North Carolina won the title showdown 70-66 in Greens- boro to end the career of Thompson, Towe, Stoddard and the other freshmen that arrived in the fall of 1971. NC State 103, Wake Forest 76 Thompson had only nine points in the first half, but he took flight in the second, scoring 20 points to finish as the game's leading scorer. Stoddard posted 17 points and had a game-high 18 rebounds. NC State 94, Duke 85 With Thompson on the bench with four fouls midway through the second half, Duke's Blue Imps tied the game at 67-67, the latest threat the State yearlings had in a victory all season. All it took, however, was for Thompson to return to the ac- tion for the Wolflets with six minutes to play. State went on a decisive 18-4 run. Thompson ended the game with 38 points before fouling out with 15 seconds to play. As he walked off the court, the Duke crowd gave him a standing ovation. NC State 118, East Carolina 89 For the second time all season, someone other than Thomp- son was NC State's leading scorer. Towe outscored his team- mate 29-25 in a game at Reynolds Coliseum. NC State 99, UNC-CH 73 Thousands of fans showed up early to see the two freshmen teams face each other, with the Wolfpack intent on revenge. "The noise during that preliminary was as high as it is for many varsity games," wrote The News & Observer. And the first half was no contest, with State jumping out to a 45-27 halftime lead. Thompson did his best to fulfill his prom- ise, scoring 49 points, despite fouling out of the game with five minutes to play. He made 18 of 25 field goal attempts and 13 of 14 free throws, plus pulled down 13 rebounds. During one stretch of the second half, he made 13 consecutive field goals. "He's the best looking freshman I've seen since Jerry West," said Los Angeles Laker general manager Fred Schaus, compar- ing the 17-year-old Thompson to his team's superstar guard. Schaus watched the game along with a half dozen NBA scouts. "State fans had plenty to cheer about as David Thompson put on one of the most remarkable exhibitions seen anywhere," wrote The N&O. "He was simply unstoppable. It looked as if Thompson could score anytime he got the ball." NC State 89, Wake Forest 77 With the Freshman Big Four championship on the line, Thompson netted 29 points to secure the victory and the crown in the final game played by the two freshmen teams. Towe had 20 points and Stoddard 13. State finished with a 15-1 overall record and a 5-1 mark against its Big Four brethren. — Tim Peeler MARCH/APRIL 2022 ■ 49 Leo Campbell, a forward, averaged 11.2 points per game, making him one of the high-flying Wolflets' five double-figure scorers. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS