The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1527657
30 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY NOAH FLEISCHMAN ball had to bounce just the right way last March for NC State's season to continue beyond the ACC Tournament semi- finals. First, the Wolfpack needed Virginia's Isaac McKneely to miss a free throw that would have given the Cavaliers a 4-point lead with 5.3 seconds left. Then they needed to rebound the ball and get it upcourt in a hurry. Finally, they needed their own desperate three-point shot to fall through the hoop. Miraculously, it all happened. Guard Michael O'Connell's last-second heave, a contested shot in front of the Pack bench at Capital One Arena in Wash- ington, D.C., caromed off the backboard before spinning around the rim and fall- ing through the net. NC State went on to win in overtime, 73-65, and advance to the championship game, where it breezed past North Carolina, 84-76, to claim the trophy and an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament. In addition to delivering NC State a eu- phoric victory, O'Connell's shot assured him a permanent place in the school's basketball lore. Was it as big as Lorenzo Charles' buzzer-beating dunk to win the 1983 national championship? No. But it might be the program's most recognizable bucket since that night in Albuquerque, N.M., when the Wolfpack, with Jim Val- vano on the bench, upset No. 1 Houston. O'Connell's miraculous shot has been immortalized everywhere in the seven months since he set in motion NC State's magical postseason run, which ultimately numbered nine wins and ended in a Final Four appearance. It's on plenty of 8x10 photos that O'Connell has signed for fans, while the image has also been screen-printed onto shirts and other memorabilia to remember the Stanford transfer's heroics. "It's definitely pretty cool to have that moment captured in history," O'Connell said recently, wearing a large grin. "For myself, my family and my teammates, it's a pretty cool moment to see and get to relive every once in a while." O'Connell will be able to savor that notoriety in the decades to come, but his shot had a near-term effect, too, in that it came just as he had seemingly unlocked a new part of his game: scor- ing. Now, as he prepares to finish his collegiate career with the Wolfpack this A MAGIC MAN After Earning A Place In NC State Basketball History, Michael O'Connell Looks To Follow Up On His Late-Season Heroics O'Connell is looking to build on a postseason surge last March. After averaging 4.4 points during the regular season, he averaged 13.2 during the Pack's five-game sprint to the ACC Tournament title. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS " The guy is playing at a really high level. ... He's got a lot of confidence, and he should. His run was incredible. Kevin Keatts on O'Connell