The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/470359
MARCH 2015 ■ 79 ■ PACK PAST docks rounded out a starting lineup that reeled off 11 consecutive wins after Mara- vich took over. "We were a good team," Biedenbach said. "Coker was as good as any other big man in the conference, and even though Lakins didn't have the kind of height as some of the bigger players in the league, he held his own. More than anything else, we were a smart basketball team." But it was hardly the best team in the conference. During the downturn for the Wolfpack and the Tar Heels, both Duke (three) and Wake Forest (two) had won a combined five ACC titles. Duke, under the direction of former Wolfpack guard and top Case assistant Vic Bubas, had gone to back-to-back Final Fours, losing to UCLA in the 1964 national title game. Maravich needed more depth to chal- lenge the Blue Devils for the top spot in the league. When both Lakins and Coker found foul trouble during a game at Clem- son in early February, the coach was forced to turn to junior forward Larry Worsley, a slow-talking outside shooter from Oak City, N.C. Worsley developed into the team's sixth man, which bolstered his sometimes lack- ing confidence. With Worsley contributing much needed outside shooting — "Coach said many times he would rather see me shoot from 20 or 25 feet away from the basket than four or five feet away," Worsley said — the Pack won four of its final five regular-season games, with the only set- back being a one-point loss to UNC. "Larry was a great outside shooter, and our big men were able to feed him the ball," Biedenbach said. "He could be a deadly shooter. Our guards were good at getting the big men the ball, and they were good at recognizing when Larry was open for the outside shot." The Wolfpack finished second in the regular-season standings behind the Blue Devils, who won their third of four straight regular-season titles. But the Pack was in- spired, both by its improved play all around and the hope of winning one more title for Case. In the ACC Tournament, again played at Reynolds Coliseum, Worsley came off the bench against Virginia, though his 16 points were hardly necessary with his team setting an ACC team-scoring record in the 106-69 victory. In the semifinals, he led a second-half surge and scored 15 points in a 76-67 win over Maryland. What Worsley did in the finals against the No. 8 Blue Devils, however, was the dream of every bench player who ever drib- bled a basketball. The Blue Devils won 17 of 18 games at Gardner Marsh Gas Equipment Company, Inc. 8209 Brownleigh Drive 2119 Jody Road Raleigh, NC 27617 Florence, SC 29501 Ph: 919 787 8214 Ph: 843 669 3136 Ph: 800 334 9245 Ph: 800 868 8988 Fax: 800 400 2596 Fax: 843 661 5236 Web: www.gardnermarsh.com