The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1530878
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2025 ■ 47 March 6, 1965: No. 8 Duke, which had won 17 of 18 games going into the 1965 ACC championship game, never really had a chance despite being heav- ily favored to become the second team to win back-to-back conference titles. Because of early foul trouble, first- year coach Press Maravich turned to junior super reserve Larry Worsley to provide the bulk of the Wolfpack of- fense. He was unstoppable, making 14 of 19 field goals for a career-high 30 points in a 91-85 win that gave NC State its sixth ACC title. What made the game most memo- rable, however, was that after the fi- nal horn sounded, the team ran over to the scorer's table toward Case, who had retired two games into the season for health reasons, and lifted him out of his wheelchair up to one of the baskets to cut down the nets one last time. The only other time Reynolds was so weepingly quiet was on Feb. 21, 1993, when Jim Valvano gave a preview of his famous "Never Give Up" speech at midcourt during pregame ceremonies of a nationally televised Duke-NC State game. Feb. 29, 1972: In a freshman-varsity doubleheader against North Carolina, State set the stage for its future half- decade dominance of the ACC. In the first game, thousands of fans showed up early to see the two teams face off against each other, filling the coliseum to capacity. That happened often in '72; Wolfpack friends and en- emies were interested to see if what they had heard about talented freshman sen- sation David Thompson was true. Any doubters left the building that night convinced. Thompson helped his team jump out to a 45-27 halftime lead and cruise to a 99-73 victory. He finished with 49 points, a total he only eclipsed when he scored a school-re- cord 57 points as a senior against Buffalo State. Against the Tar Heels, the young player made 18 of 25 field goals, includ- ing 13 in a row at one point, and might have scored more points had he not fouled out with five minutes to play. In the second game, Norm Sloan's un- ranked varsity team faced Dean Smith's No. 3 Tar Heels. With 36 seconds to play, senior forward Paul Coder scored the game's final five points, including the game-winning free throw with sec- onds to play, in the 85-84 victory. Feb. 19, 1983: Valvano was starting to feel the heat for not yet beating rival North Carolina, and the outlook wasn't good prior to this game against the de- fending NCAA champion Tar Heels and star guard Michael Jordan. Smith, however, got two techni- cal fouls in the first half, while Jordan fouled out midway through the second half. Reynolds was never louder than when Sidney Lowe bounced a ball be- tween his legs to a trailing Thurl Bailey for an exclamation point dunk in the 70-63 victory that set the stage for the Wolfpack's miracle March run to the school's second national title. Jan. 13, 1991: All-time NC State scoring leader Rodney Monroe, who later won the 1991 ACC Player of the Year award, scored 31 of his career-high 48 points in the second half of a 90-83 victory over Georgia Tech. It was one of five individual scoring games of 45 points or more by a Wolf- pack men's player at Reynolds. Thomp- son scored a school-record 57 points In the first game ever played at Reynolds Coliseum, NC State defeated Washington & Lee, 67-47, on Dec. 2, 1949. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS