March 21, 2000
By DAVID DROSCHAK
AP Sports Writer
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - North Carolina State reverted to a defense it hadn't used all season Tuesday night to advance to the third round of the NIT.
There was good reason: Arizona State's Eddie House.
The Wolfpack (19-12), which lost in the second round the previous three years, had to overcome a 32-point effort by House for a 60-57 victory over the Sun Devils.
"We worked on it all week," Wolfpack coach Herb Sendek said of the gimmick defense used to stop the 6-foot-1 senior guard, who had his eighth 30-point game of the season.
"Fortunately we had that much time between (NIT) games because watching Eddie House on tape you had to have a secondary defense ready because he's that good. It really came in handy for us."
House had only two of his points over the final 12 minutes. He missed the front end of a 1-and-1 opportunity with 1:18 left that could have given Arizona State a three-point lead, then missed a last-second shot after breaking open in the corner.
"I was thinking, `How in the world did he get that wide open?"' Sendek said.
House said he had faced a box-and-one in most games this season.
"If you put one person on somebody and just follow them around it's pretty tough for them to get started," House said. "It just shows they can't guard man-to-man. Other people just have to step up, but it kind of slowed us down."
Kenny Inge scored 19 points, including the go-ahead follow dunk with 57.5 seconds left, in the rematch of N.C. State's 79-68 victory here on Jan. 29.
Inge made his follow shot off Damien Wilkins' miss and, after a missed shot and a walking call against Arizona State in a 30-second span, Wilkins closed it out with two free throws with 7.4 seconds left.
"Kenny Inge was fantastic," Sendek said of his 6-8 junior, who also had 12 rebounds. "We needed somebody desperately to step up and have the kind of night he did on our frontcourt."
The Sun Devils (19-13) were held to their second-lowest point total of the season.
N.C. State trailed 41-33 with 14:15 left as House scored 24 of his team's 26 points during one span. But a 19-6 run highlighted by two 3-pointers by Tim Wells gave the Wolfpack a five-point lead with 5 1/2 minutes left.
The score was tied twice down the stretch before Inge's winning shot.
House scored 17 of Arizona State's final 19 points of the first half and assisted on the other basket. Over the last 3:50, he sank two 3-pointers, hit a baseline jumper, a shot in the lane and a three-point play.
House's scoring outburst came after the Sun Devils went scoreless for almost six minutes as the Wolfpack built a seven-point lead.
Arizona State closed the gap with a 13-4 run to grab a 27-20 lead before settling for a three-point advantage at the break as N.C. State had 10 turnovers.
House took 20 of Arizona State's 31 first-half shots and accounted for 21 of the team's 29 points in the opening 20 minutes as the Wolfpack alternated five defenders on the quick guard.