ACC notes: Fouls catch up to Richard Howell

By Andy Johnston

For the AJC

Fouling out is in for North Carolina State’s Richard Howell.

Howell, a junior forward who starred at Wheeler High, has fouled out of three consecutive games, and he has played just 18, 16 and 28 minutes in a victory over Miami and losses to North Carolina and Virginia.

“He’s had some foul issues in a lot of games this year,” N.C. State coach Mark Gottfried said on a weekly teleconference. “It’s something that we talk to Richard about continually. He’s got to stay aggressive, but at the same time eliminate the fouls that are inconsequential. Sometimes he’ll get one or two [where] he’s reaching for a ball. Those are the ones that catch up to him.”

Howell fouled out of only two games in his first two seasons. But he was gone in 18 minutes against Miami and two minutes quicker against the Tar Heels. Howell lasted 28 minutes against Virginia, finishing with 11 points and an ACC season-high and career-best 18 rebounds Saturday.

Howell leads the Wolfpack and is third in the ACC with 9.4 rebounds per game. He also had 17 rebounds against Campbell on Dec. 29 and 16 against Boston College on Jan. 19.

“He’s going to get some fouls just because of how hard he’s playing, but where he has to improve is to eliminate some of the other ones,” Gottfried said.

Hot shot

Florida State has shot 41.7 percent from the 3-point line (33-of-70) in its past four games, including 50 percent (15-of-30) in its past two.

The Seminoles have won five consecutive games for the first time since 1993, scoring at least 75 points in four of those games.

“I think our guys have accepted their skill-sets and are playing within our ability and are not trying to do things that we’re maybe not quite as skilled at,” coach Leonard Hamilton said. “We have a better understanding of how to playing with each other and to each other. Maybe they’re listening better and accepting their roles better.”

Have not

Duke’s Seth Curry has made only five of his past 26 3-point attempts and has shot 38 percent from the field in the past seven games.

“Overall, he’s been good, but I think Seth can be a lot better,” coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “In the last couple weeks, he’s not played to the level that he can play at. Some of it could be the change of going back and handling the ball more or just being a human being.”

On a roll

• Maryland’s Terrell Stoglin leads the ACC at 21.3 points per game and has scored 20 or more points in 14 of his 20 games. He has reached double figures 18 consecutive games.
• Erick Green led Virginia Tech with 18 points in a loss to Maryland and has scored in double figures in an ACC-best 22 consecutive games. Green has averaged 15.9 points.
• Andre Young (Deerfield-Windsor School) shot 66.7 percent from 3-point range (10-of-15) in Clemson’s past two games, contributing to a combined 48 points in wins over Wake Forest and Georgia Tech.

Local ties

The last time Miami played Maryland, freshman Rion Brown came off the bench to make six 3-pointers and score 19 points in 30 minutes in a victory over the Terrapins.

That was almost one year ago, but Brown, a sophomore from Hinesville (Liberty County High), hasn’t improved on those numbers, even though he went on to start five games last season.

Brown twice scored 15 points earlier this season and he added 10 against Clemson on Jan. 22, but has averaged only 5.5 points.

Around the conference

Miami’s Malcolm Grant needs four 3-pointers to reach 200 for his career. ... First-year Maryland coach Mark Turgeon was an assistant under Roy Williams at Kansas from 1989-92. The two teams meet for the first time this season Saturday. ... Duke’s Mason Plumlee leads the ACC with nine double-doubles. ... Virginia Tech’s Jarell Eddie averaged 11.5 points and 8.3 rebounds in the Hokies’ past four games.

Must-see TV

• Virginia at Florida State, 1 p.m. Saturday (WUPA)

FSU guard Michael Snaer guaranteed the Seminoles will win the ACC title in a recent TV interview. Hamilton said Snaer stuck his foot in his mouth, but if that’s going to happen, FSU needs to defeat the surprising Cavaliers.

Quotable

“Has your wife ever cheated on you? That’s probably how frustrating it is.” — N.C. State’s Scott Wood to the Fayetteville (N.C.) Observer after the Wolfpack lost to North Carolina for the 11th consecutive time and 17th time in 18 games

By the numbers

1 Miami’s Jim Larranaga is the only ACC coach other than Krzyzewski or Williams who has taken a team to the Final Four. He led George Mason to the Final Four in 2006.

2 Boston College and Kentucky are the only two teams in the country with three freshmen who have averaged at least 9.0 points per game.