Instant observations: NC State falls to Miami after late-game collapse

One can learn a lot about how a team responds after a drubbing. NC State, after all, had nearly a week to lick its wounds after a 118-77 blowout loss at Louisville from Monday night in a game that the Wolfpack never sniffed the lead.  So how would it bounce back with Miami visiting the Lenovo Center in a critical ACC game? It was something that even Wolfpack coach Will Wade wasn’t sure of what to expect going into the tilt that was going to give the winner an inside track to a top-four seed in next month’s conference tournament.  Well, Wade found out in what turned into a one-possession game for nearly the entire 40 minutes. The two teams traded blows throughout, but a Darrion Williams technical with just under six minutes appeared to ignite both the building and the Wolfpack to work its way past the Hurricanes. NC State went on an 11-0 run to take control of the physical battle, but left the door open in the final two minutes with three turnovers to allow Miami to use an 8-0 run of its own to take the lead after Williams fouled the Hurricanes' Tru Washington on a 3-point attempt with three seconds to play. Washington hit all three free throws to put the visitors up by 1 with just over three seconds to play, which was the difference in NC State's 77-76 loss to Miami. Freshman guard Matt Able led the Pack with 17 points, while senior forward Ven-Allen Lubin added 17 points and nine rebounds and sophomore guard Paul McNeil chipped in with 14 points. Here are TheWolfpacker.com’s observations from the defeat.