The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/714462
20 ■ THE WOLFPACKER TRACKING THE PACK NC STATE MEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE TAKING SHAPE The NC State men's basketball team was still forming its non-conference schedule going into late August, but a few games have leaked out. The two main showcase events in November for the Wolfpack include playing in the Paradise Jam on the U.S. Virgin Islands Nov. 18-21, and playing at Illinois in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge Nov. 29. NC State will open up versus Montana at 7 p.m. Nov. 18, and then play either Creighton or Washington State. If NCSU defeats Mon - tana, the next game is at 9:30 p.m. Nov. 20, but if the Wolfpack falls to the Grizzlies the consolation contest is 7 p.m. Nov. 19. Other teams in the field include Ole Miss, St. Joseph's, Loyola of Chicago and Oral Roberts. The NC State women's team will play in the same event Nov. 24-26, opening up against Kansas State at 2 p.m. Nov. 24. NC State goes against former Wolfpack assistant coach John Groce and Illinois at 9 p.m. Nov. 29 on ESPNU. Groce worked under former head coach Herb Sendek from 1996-2000. The Illini struggled through injuries and inconsistency to finish 15-19 last winter, but return three starters and two other players who were past starters before injuries derailed them, including sixth-year senior center Mike Thorne of Fayetteville (N.C.) Trinity Christian NCSU redshirt sophomore guard Torin Dorn played with Thorne at Charlotte, which was Thorne's first college before he became a graduate transfer in 2015. Freshman point guard Dennis Smith is also from Trinity Christian. Two opponents also announced a pair of games in December. NC State will host Appalachian State Dec. 13 and Rider Dec. 28. The Mountaineers went 9-22 overall and 7-13 in the Sun Belt Conference, while the Broncs finished 13-20 overall and 8-12 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference last year. The Heritage Game at renovated Reynolds Coliseum is Dec. 10. The opponent has not been announced. THE ACC AND ESPN ANNOUNCE A LEAGUE NETWORK The much-anticipated announcement of an ACC Net- work occurred during ACC Kickoff July 21 in Charlotte. The ESPN-partnered venture will begin this fall with a streaming internet service called ACC Network Extra, which will be similar to ESPN3, with more than 600 exclusive ACC sporting events. The TV channel will come by 2019, when the league will move to 20 conference basketball games to help create a higher-demand inventory of games to entice viewers. The two platforms will combine to broadcast more than 1,300 games in 2019. ACC commissioner John Swofford noted, "I don't think you can have a better partner" than ESPN, while explaining that, in addition to the obvious impact on men's basketball and football, the development will provide "a tremendous boom for our Olympic sports." The ACC and ESPN announced that the network will feature 450 exclusive live events, including 40 regular- season football games plus more than 150 men's and women's basketball games when it begins. It will also become an outlet for regular-season and tournament games of many of the league's 27 sponsored sports. "We needed it, to be on that platform and to be teamed with ESPN. We know how world-wide that network is and the job they do," NC State head football coach Dave Doeren said. "It's something that puts us on the playing field that we want to be on, conference-wise, and the exposure not just for football but all of our sports is going to get is going to help tremendously in recruiting. "We want to be the best conference in the country, and you've got to have equal representation in the media and equal opportunity for all of our sports in recruiting. I think this gives us a platform to have that." NC STATE'S ADIDAS APPAREL DEAL RANKS 14TH NATIONALLY Forbes.com did a study in July detailing the 65 most valuable college sports apparel deals, and NC State checked in at No. 14 nationally with an average annual value of $6.45 million. NC State ranked fourth among ACC programs when counting Notre Dame — it also trailed Miami and Lou- isville — and boasted the seventh-highest annual value of all adidas schools, according to Forbes' numbers. NCSU and adidas extended their partnership for six years last November, meaning the current deal runs through June 2022. The original department-wide agree- ment between the two began in April 2012. "For us, it was very significant," director of athletics Debbie Yow said about the extension. "It's six years. I think they would have preferred eight, and I would have preferred four, so we settled on six. "We wanted to keep our options open because I want the next AD to be able to have those opportunities to do these deals again and hopefully get even more money." KIRIN KUMAR NAMED WOLFPACK ASSISTANT SOFTBALL COACH The NC State softball program hired Kirin Kumar as the hitting coach, and she'll also lead the team's defense. Kumar arrives from Tulsa, where she was an assistant coach from 2006-10 and 2014-16. NC State hit .270 and had a .366 on-base percentage in 56 games last year. The Wolfpack slugged 72 homers and 50 doubles en route to scoring 281 runs (5.0 per game). NCSU committed 69 errors and had a .957 fielding percentage. The Golden Hurricanes and Kumar earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament this past season, after winning the American Athletic Conference Tournament. Tulsa hit .289, which led the AAC, and struck out just 192 times, which was the fewest in the league. Kumar previously was an assistant coach at North Carolina, Tennessee Tech and Western Kentucky. Kumar was with the Tar Heels from 2010-11 as hit - ting coach and infield/dugout coach. UNC finished runner-up in the ACC Tournament. She made the move to Western Kentucky from 2011-13 to serve as an as- sistant coach and recruiting coordinators. Kumar spent the 2013-14 year at Tennessee Tech, where she coached the infield, outfield and base running, and was the bench and defensive coach during games. "I'm excited to have Kirin join our staff," NC State softball coach Shawn Rychcik said. "She brings a wealth of knowledge and experience at this level to our pro- gram. She's been successful at all of the schools she's worked at, and we're looking forward to her working with our players." The Santa Ana, Calif., native was a four-year letter winner at Georgia Tech, where she played in 251 career games and graduated in 2005. She was part of Georgia Tech's first two ACC titles, and played in the NCAA Tournament all four years. "Kirin knows the ACC well, having played and coached in this league," Rychcik said. "We think she will have a seamless transition and fit well with our program." ■ Red And White Notebook Head coach Mark Gottfried's team will take part in the Paradise Jam on the U.S. Virgin Islands Nov. 18-21, and will play Montana in the opening round. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN