The big news out of Charlottesville last night wasn’t that Virginia knocked off No. 19 NC State last night -- although that does matter -- or that NC State has now lost three straight road games to opponents that they shouldn’t be losing to.
The bigger issue is the ankle of Lorenzo Brown.
NC State’s starting point guard, who was averaging 14.7 points and 8.7 assists in ACC play, rolled his ankle midway through the first half on Tuesday night and never returned to the game. He’s currently listed as questionable for Saturday’s showdown with Miami. A loss to the Hurricanes would all but end any chance that the Wolfpack has of winning the ACC regular season title.
The issue for Mark Gottfried is that he had essentially gone to a six-man rotation this season, as back-up point guard Tyler Lewis had logged just 21 minutes in ACC play heading into Tuesday night. Lewis played 15 minutes in Brown’s place, finishing with three points and two assists without a turnovers, while Rodney Purvis also slid over to the point guard spot for a chunk of the second half.
CJ Leslie played great, looking dominant in the second half, demanding the ball on his way to a 20-point, 14-rebound performance. But, for the second time on the road in the last two weeks, Leslie struggled down the stretch, missing a layup and dropping a pass on a would-be dunk in the final minutes.
You can find Rob on twitter @RobDauster.