By Brian Murphy, WRAL

North Carolina State Wolfpack
North Carolina Tar Heels
ESPN | Wednesday, February 19th 7:00 PM EST

North Carolina still holds hopes of reaching the NCAA Tournament. NC State is trying its best to qualify for the ACC Tournament.

Not quite where either team expected to be in mid-February.

The disappointing rivals are scheduled, weather permitting, to play Wednesday night in Chapel Hill. A winter storm is expected to hit the Triangle on Wednesday. ACC policy states that a game can only be postponed if the conditions affect the safety of the teams or game officials involved. The policy further states that no decision should be made earlier than 24 hours prior to the game. Even if inclement weather alters game operations and results in less desirable situations, the game should be played, according to the policy.

A year ago, UNC won the ACC regular-season title and claimed a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. NC State went on an improbable March run, beating UNC for the ACC Tournament title and reaching the Final Four.

All that seems a long time ago now.

The Tar Heels (15-11 overall, 8-6 in the ACC) are on the wrong side of the bubble, hamstrung by a 1-10 record in Quad 1 games and a home loss to Stanford. UNC, which is 3-5 in its last eight games, can’t afford a loss to NC State or most of the teams left on its schedule.

UNC may have found a spark in its last game, a victory at Syracuse.

Forward Jae’Lyn Withers scored a season-high 19 points. Withers made 7-of-10 field-goal attempts, including three from 3-point range. It was his first double-digit scoring game since Nov. 26 against Auburn and just his fourth of the season. Withers played 24 minutes against Syracuse, his most since Nov. 27 against Michigan State.

UNC coach Hubert Davis said Withers’ presence “just changes us completely.” At 6-foot-9, Withers allows the Tar Heels to play with two bigger players instead of the four-guard lineups that have been common throughout the year.

“Defensively, it just really helps us,” Davis said. “It’s another rebounder, and with his athleticism and being able to run the floor.”

Additional minutes for Withers could mean fewer for Eliot Cadeau and Seth Trimble. Cadeau, who battled foul trouble, played a season-low 18 minutes against Syracuse. Trimble played 26 minutes, about four minutes less than his season average.

Withers was scoreless and did not take a shot in four minutes against NC State in the Tar Heels’ 63-61 victory against NC State in Raleigh on Jan. 11. Jalen Washington had a game-winning dunk and block in the final seconds for UNC.

The game started a nine-game skid for the Wolfpack, which ended Saturday with a 70-62 victory over Boston College. NC State never trailed in the game and led by double figures for much of the contest.

“It may have been the best two halves that we’ve played, especially on the defensive end,” NC State coach Kevin Keatts said. “It was refreshing. Our backs were against the wall a little bit.”

In the new 18-team ACC, the teams that finish in the bottom three don’t qualify for the conference tournament in Charlotte.

NC State (10-15 overall, 3-11 in the ACC) is currently out of the bracket and in 16th place, two conference wins behind Notre Dame, California and Syracuse with six games left to play.

Whatever positive momentum the program had from last year’s magical Final Four run, its first appearance since 1983, is now gone. All five projected starters are transfers, though three of them were members of last year’s team.

NC State returned five scholarship players from last year and brought in eight new scholarship players.

“It will not be an easy thing from year to year just because there is going to be turnover,” Keatts said. “You might bring in eight to 10 guys every year from this point on.”

Source: wralsportsfan.com