Michael O’Connell the glue to NC State basketball’s appearance in NCAA Tournament Sweet 16

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DALLAS — Lacrosse and basketball are pretty interchangeable, according to Michael O’Connell.

A former lacrosse player himself, O’Connell knows the similarities rather well. In a previous life, he committed to Maryland for the sport with the stick, helmets and a much smaller ball. Aside from that, and playing outside rather than in 20,000-seat arenas like the American Airlines Center, O’Connell said the two sports are almost identical.

O’Connell, though, gave up lacrosse to pursue his basketball ambitions, a decision he doesn’t reflect upon negatively.

“I definitely miss it,” the NC State basketball graduate senior said Thursday, “but I’m in the Sweet 16 right now. March Madness. It’s kind of hard to look back on and regret anything in my decision. I’m definitely enjoying where I’m at.”

Not only does O’Connell not regret sticking to the hardwood, it’s his recent play that has been a big part of the 11-seed Wolfpack’s run to Friday’s South Region semifinal clash with 2-seed Marquette. Since the beginning of the postseason, which includes NC State’s five-wins-in-five-days run through the ACC Tournament, O’Connell has had the best scoring stretch of his collegiate career.

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Over the past seven games, O’Connell — who averages 5.7 points for the season — has averaged 9.7 points per contest for the Wolfpack. That average is skewed from his overall impact thanks to a zero-point showing in the first round NCAA Tournament win over Texas Tech. In each of the other six games, the Mineola, New York, native has scored 12 points three times, 16 points in two other and 10 in another.

Put another way, 31% of O’Connell’s total points during the 2023-24 season have come in the postseason. Before this run, he had just three games scoring in double figures. And the five-straight games with 10 points or more in the ACC Tournament were the longest stretch of his collegiate career, including…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/michael-oconnell-glue-nc-state-093344057.html

Author : The Fayetteville Observer

Publish date : 2024-03-29 09:33:44

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