^^^ That was my argument...why transfer and only have one year of eligibility. Not to mention, if the predictions are correct on Hickson and he enters the draft at the end of the year (I hope he doesn't, and listens to his grandmother who wants him to stay for 4 years and get a degree), Costner will be in high demand next year. I was just throwing out a rumor, that way it could be discussed and discarded.

2/6/2008 8:47:47 AM

it would be dumb for costner to transfer and sit out a year. hopefully he stays. we've seen what he is capable of, maybe he's just in a reeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaally long slump.

haha.

2/6/2008 8:51:11 AM

Quote :

"Ohh yeah, what was up with Costner wearing a suit on a sideline, a Carolina blue shirt and tie at that? Purely coincidence I'm sure, but still...Costner could have sported a white shirt and red striped tie...matching Sidney"

report said he has "bruised ego ribs"

and what you heard is just that, a rumor
Brandon isnt going to transfer...if there was any legs to this, packpride would be all over it

oh and speaking of packpride

Quote :

"Brandon Costner suffered a rib injury in practice and will not play tonight against Virginia Tech, according to NC State media relations. X-rays were taken and came back negative."

2/6/2008 8:57:15 AM

so has he quit the team yet?

2/6/2008 10:24:39 AM

Where's simonn now?

Costner plays 0 minutes and we arguably have our best game in over a month.

2/6/2008 11:03:30 AM

when i was told costner was out with a rib injury, i replied with "mcrib?" LOLOLOLOL i thought it was funny at the time

2/6/2008 12:30:07 PM

Is there any status on Costner right now? Will he play at MD saturday night or not?

2/8/2008 11:33:45 AM

let's hope not

2/8/2008 11:37:04 AM

^/signed

2/8/2008 11:37:57 AM

Quote :

"Where's simonn now? Costner plays 0 minutes and we arguably have our best game in over a month."

mccauley played better than he had been last game.

2/8/2008 12:50:37 PM

yeah b/c he got more minutes, costner's minutes

2/8/2008 12:52:13 PM

he might have done some stuff that wasn't seen on the stat sheet(defense?), and admittedly i didn't watch the game, but it's not like mccauley was super productive last game. only 8 points (only 2 above his average), 3 rebounds, and 0 assists.

that's a far cry from "stepping it up."

[Edited on February 8, 2008 at 1:02 PM. Reason : adf]

2/8/2008 1:02:13 PM

If you guys can't tell we are a better basketball team with McCauley on the court I am not going to argue with you. His defense is way better than Costner's in the post. Plus on offense he acts as the floor general and when he does shot usually takes good shots.

2/8/2008 1:14:37 PM

just saying he didn't do anything out of the ordinary...


in related news, costner is doubful for the maryland game anyway. (according to rivals.com)

Quote :

"North Carolina State redshirt sophomore power forward Brandon Costner could miss Saturday's Maryland game because of the rib injury he sustained during Monday's practice. Costner, who missed Tuesday's game against Virginia Tech, had an X-ray done, but it was negative. NC State coach Sidney Lowe discussed Costner's injury and how he was disappointed to hear some individuals talk about how the Wolfpack are a better team without him."

[Edited on February 8, 2008 at 1:20 PM. Reason : lawls at sid.]

2/8/2008 1:19:25 PM

it must suck to have thousands of fans and news media outlets loving you after your spectacular performance one year and then the very next have all of those people turn on you.

but he needs to get over that and play ball, he may be hurting the team with his lackodaisical behavior, but he is hurting himself even more.


Costner - You really want to go out with people remembering you like this?

2/8/2008 1:39:54 PM

Like I've said before, if he can't handle the media and us talking about how shitty his play has been, how is he supposed to deal with the coaches bitching him out? Maybe the problem is the coaches haven't been bitching him out enough.

2/8/2008 1:43:28 PM

http://tinyurl.com/3aspbu

Quote :

"N.C. State coach Sidney Lowe rarely speaks out in anger, but there was an edge to his tone of voice today when he talked about sophomore forward Brandon Costner. After saying a rib injury could keep Costner out of the Pack's game Saturday at Maryland, Lowe quickly shifted the dialogue. He said he was tired of "hearing some things" about the possibility of State being better without Costner, who missed State's 73-63 win over Virginia Tech on Tuesday because of the injury. "That's really unfair," Lowe said. "I've had some questions asked to me about that kind of thing. That's not fair. He's hurt. [More:] "We definitely are not better off without Brandon, so that's a stupid question. Brandon is a good basketball player and when he's healthy he's going to come back and help us. But this negative stuff I'm hearing is not fair. "He doing what we ask him to do. Is he shooting the ball the way he was last year? No, but that's just one part of the game." Costner has been in a shooting slump most of the season and is averaging 9.4 points. After a 14-point game at Duke on Jan. 31, he scored two points last Sunday in State's victory over Wake Forest. He then suffered the injury in practice Monday and was not dressed for the Virginia Tech game. Lowe said after hearing Costner's situation discussed on the radio, he talked with the player. "He knew that we didn't feel that way," Lowe said. "But as a coach, I thought it was important that I let him know I'm hearing it. And if I'm hearing it I'm assuming he's hearing it. "And it's not fair to him at all. And it bothers me. I bothers me that they're going to try to pick on this young man when he's hurt and focus on him. Let's focus on our team and to make it clear that are we better without Brandon? No. Period." "

[Edited on February 8, 2008 at 1:45 PM. Reason : link]

2/8/2008 1:43:35 PM

reminds me of TO's speech.

Hope Sid didn't cry

2/8/2008 1:45:58 PM

THATS MY QUARTERBACK MAN

2/8/2008 1:48:48 PM

Quote :

"just saying he didn't do anything out of the ordinary..."

Only missing one shot is out of the ordinary. Playing good defense against a pesky team is out of the ordinary....especially when you're talking about early season Costner and McCauley. Ben played a great game against Tech and you can see that he's getting back into the groove of things.

It's clear to everyone, including Sid, that we're a better team with him in the game currently than Costner.

2/8/2008 2:02:55 PM

^ well, only missing one out of four.

[Edited on February 8, 2008 at 2:17 PM. Reason : oh yeah, it was only four.]

2/8/2008 2:08:05 PM

Quote :

"Only missing one shot is out of the ordinary. Playing good defense against a pesky team is out of the ordinary....especially when you're talking about early season Costner and McCauley. Ben played a great game against Tech and you can see that he's getting back into the groove of things."

he did have a good shooting night, but only took 4 shots. i've always thought ben played pretty tough on defense, so this doesn't seem too out of the ordinary for me. as good a passer he is though you'd think he could throw an assist in there. but it's good to see him getting back to where he was last season.

2/8/2008 2:12:51 PM

McCauley's Stats

493 minutes played /33 turnovers
1 turnover every 14.939 minutes played

Costner's Stats

553 minutes played /56 turnovers
1 turnover every 9.875 minutes played

2/8/2008 2:38:11 PM

lol.. costner has worse TO/min. numbers than Javi-a guy who touches the ball every possession

2/8/2008 2:51:45 PM

Ok, I ran some stats on Costner and McCauley since starting the ACC....and the offensive efficiency increase with McCauley since he started is a huge difference.

Here are the stats: (represents per game stat)

Costner starting:
Costner: 30% shooting 8/27, 10 rebounds (2.5 RPG), 29 points (7.25 PPG), 24.75 MPG
McCauley: 35% shooting 7/20, 14 rebounds (3.5 RPG), 19 points (4.75 PPG), 19 MPG

MCauley starting (Costner in only 3 games):
Costner: 25% shooting 3/12, 8 rebounds (2.7 RPG), 16 points (5.3 PPG), 18 MPG
MCauley: 58% shooting 11/19, 12 rebounds (3 RPG), 32 points (8 PPG), 28 MPG

As you can see, in the first 4 games, both were mediocre offensively, especially in terms of efficiency. In the Last 4 ACC games (when McCauley started), Costner's offensive stats remain the same, but McCauley's much more efficient.

Also, in the first four ACC games, we shot 44% and our opponents shot 49%. In the last 4 ACC games, we shot 49% while our opponents shot 45%.

EDIT: Ok, Rat put me to shame. Was going to try to do a quick analysis of the past ACC games....wow, nice job Rat.

[Edited on February 8, 2008 at 3:16 PM. Reason : ]

2/8/2008 3:15:19 PM

lol.

but what do costner and mccauley's other stats look like per min?

pts, assists, rebs...

2/8/2008 3:15:21 PM

Points per minute isn't really a good stat to track because you can jack up shots while you play left and right and have an inflated point per minute and not help your team. Ala, Costner this year.

Assists are good and Costner does prally beat out Ben slightly in assists so far. But keep in mind that earlier in the year, guard play was so much shakier. In fact, that might have a lot to do with Ben's increased efficiency.

Rebounds it's pretty much a wash, Ben gets around 1 more RPG than Costner in the ACC and it's remained unchanged since he started.

2/8/2008 3:22:22 PM

^ good point. i was just curious really.

^^^ nice work there. that was more the kind of thing i was looking for, but was too lazy to do. hah.

2/8/2008 3:26:15 PM

Could Atsur's departure have hurt Costner a lot? We ran the pick and roll and lot better last year with Atsur and that would definitely seem like it would have a positive effect on Costner's game, what with his good shooting for a big man and all. I mean, I'm really no fan of Costner's play this year (he looks like he's about to trip every time he runs) but point guard play could have had a big effect on his much lower points this year.

Rebounding is a different story. You should be able to rebound consistently every game. The problem here might be all the isos we run for Hickson, clearing out the post. We really need a new offensive strategy. We have all the pieces, but they're just not clicking. That falls on Lowe's shoulders.

2/8/2008 3:42:08 PM

If you've been watching we've been running a whole lot less of the Hickson Iso offense, especially in the last 2-3 games. It was a much more traditional set.

PG play affects nearly everything, but when a guy goes from All-ACC type of player to a 6th man on a mediocre team, you know it's not just the guy dishing him the ball.

Likewise, McCauley's improved play is partially credited to our improved PG situation now. But IMO it's not enough of a change to explain it all. McCauley is actually playing even better and Costner's actually getting worse.

2/8/2008 3:47:32 PM

I don't really mind that his offensive production has gone down. It's obvious our offense has looked like a trainwreck for a good portion of every game.

It is his lack of intensity on the glass and on D that I have a big problem with. Those are two things that don't depend on schemes or spacing or chemistry. They are all about heart and desire, and so far this season he has very rarely displayed any.

2/8/2008 3:48:27 PM

Quote :

"Points per minute isn't really a good stat to track because you can jack up shots while you play left and right and have an inflated point per minute and not help your team. Ala, Costner this year."

give me a fucking break. you lay out all these stats and then say that stats where costner is better are garbage b/c you don't like the way he gets them?

2/8/2008 3:54:45 PM

So you think a high number of points with a low shooting percentage is a good thing?

2/8/2008 4:03:03 PM

all i'm saying is if you're going to look at stats, you're already agreeing to disregard personal opinion on how someone's playing and just look at numbers. you can't pick and choose which stats are valid or not.

2/8/2008 4:09:29 PM

Well, to accurately view Points per minute, you'd also have to take into account shot per minute.

That's all I'm saying. Because of how complex it is, points per minute is an even less telling stat than all the others.

Even stats aside, it's clear now that Ben is the better choice for right now.

EDIT:

Quote :

"you can't pick and choose which stats are valid or not."

Sure you can. Some stats are much more meaningful than others. The stats don't all point to McCauley being better than Costner right now, and I admit as much (see assists). But some stats like rebounding, field goal percentage, etc. should be comparable when two guys are playing the same position. Some stats vary greatly depending on a whole lot of factors.

[Edited on February 8, 2008 at 4:12 PM. Reason : ]

2/8/2008 4:09:30 PM

ok fine, but when you bring stats to the table and someone asks you about a particular stat, don't say "i didn't include those b/c they don't help my cause". that's a ridiculous way to argue.

2/8/2008 4:11:21 PM

Brandon Costner is going to get out of his slump sooner or later. I'm betting within the next 3 games, and he's going to jack up the acc like he did last year in the tourney.

It's going to begin with a win vs. Unc/duke/ or clemson at home were he scores about 35 points and we are all going to celebrate b/c it's most likely going to guarantee us a bid into the ncaa tournament.

All in all, fuck this thread. Soon it will be fucked on it's own, and there will be a new Costners improvement thread

so i'm not worried at all.

gg to all the people defending him. the kid has talent and it will soon be utilized.

2/8/2008 4:26:10 PM

LOL to you Rat, basher of Javi.

I don't think that Costner sucks balls. I can't speak for everyone else, but I think he is a great player--All-ACC, for sure-- if he plays to his potential. If he can bring some intensity and heart to the floor on defense and rebounding, I am convinced the offense will come naturally for him. I also expect a breakthrough before the end of the season. The kid is a player, and I don't want to see him continue to underachieve.

[Edited on February 8, 2008 at 4:46 PM. Reason : V got me]

2/8/2008 4:38:24 PM

Quote :

"Noone here thinks..."

Quote :

"I can't speak for everyone else"

2/8/2008 4:40:05 PM

Javi's success is simply b/c other teams underestimate him and more playing time.

2/8/2008 4:57:08 PM

not because he doesn't turn the ball over as much or occassionally makes a shot or two.

2/8/2008 5:30:09 PM

^ lol

javi averages a turnover every 10 minutes as does costner

yet costner outscores him easily and has the same assists per game average


also, javi is the only pg we've got basically.


so yeah you have a HUGE comeback there buddy

2/8/2008 5:44:12 PM

Quote :

"javi averages a turnover every 10 minutes as does costner"

Actually, costner's turnovers per minute are slightly higher than javi AND costner doesn't have to take the ball up the court every time.


It's awesome how you will continue to slam Javi and then in the same breath call those who are critical of Costner idiots.

2/8/2008 6:26:36 PM

Quote :

"Javi's success is simply b/c other teams underestimate him and more playing time."

Quote :

"not because he doesn't turn the ball over as much or occassionally makes a shot or two."

read this again and please show me where i mentioned costner. i was saying javi doesn't turn the ball over as much as he used to.

[Edited on February 8, 2008 at 6:37 PM. Reason : in retrospect, i realize it doesn't make the most sense, but no where did i mention costner.]

2/8/2008 6:34:46 PM

Quote :

"Javi's success is simply b/c other teams underestimate him and more playing time. "

laff.

2/8/2008 6:44:08 PM

costner is not just in a shooting slump. he's in an everything slump. i think the team really is better without him

2/8/2008 7:56:24 PM

point is = costner is a great basketball player who will step it up in the next few games. let's be honest.... we need him to be playing well to have a fighting chance against duke/unc/or clemson

javi really had an abysmal start. so anything close to the light of day is a breathe of fresh air.

2/9/2008 12:47:47 AM

Costner, where oh where have you gone?

A VERY telling stat is that Costner has had only 2 offensive rebounds in ACC play.

For reference, McCauley has 13, Smith has 4 in VERY limited time, Javi has 7, even Horner has 7. It's painfully clear that he isn't hustling or giving a shit.

In the last 4 games, he is 3/14 from 3, for 21.4%. So no rebounding and no perimeter shooting? Let's not even start on his defense the last 4 games.....

2/21/2008 3:48:25 PM

Quote :

"point is = costner is a great lazy basketball player who will step it up sit on the bench the next few games. let's be honest"

2/21/2008 5:16:17 PM

SET EM UP CHEESEBURGER BOI

2/21/2008 8:19:42 PM