NCAA Basketball north carolina state Wolfpack

Kay Yow is still very much a presence in the North Carolina State women's basketball program.

Her name is on the athletic department's Wall of Fame, and on the basketball court at Reynolds Coliseum. Her photo still hangs in the women's basketball locker room.

"She was North Carolina State basketball, and you don't and you can't wipe that away with a new staff," said new N.C. State head coach Kellie Jolly Harper.

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- The talk of the Atlantic Coast Conference's basketball media day Sunday was the trouble a player could get into if he talked too much.

Or said the wrong thing, or gestured the wrong way, or celebrated excessively, or did anything else that might be considered "unsporting behavior,'' according to a new zero-tolerance policy approved for this season by the NCAA.

Many of the players and coaches gathered at Greensboro's Grandover Resort bluntly said they either did not like the change, didn't understand why it was necessary, or both. The biggest issue: there is too much room left for the wrong interpretation.

John Wall, the nation's top point guard recruit and possible No. 1 pick of the 2010 NBA draft, was charged with misdemeanor breaking and entering yesterday.

Contrary to what my colleague wrote, this will likely have minimal impact on the teams recruiting him.

March started days ago. The Madness started Wednesday night.

On an evening where bubble teams could've punched their ticket to the NCAA tournament and boosters could've started humming bars of "One Shining Moment," teams turned down invitations like they were to a wedding without an open bar or the People's Choice Awards.

A memo, fellows. This isn't an invitation to a candlelight dinner with Randy Johnson. "Big Dance" doesn't mean you're cutting a rug with Mark Madsen or waltzing cheek-to-cheek with Mike Tyson.

You actually want to go to this thing.

North Carolina effectively handled N.C. State last night, further cementing their status as top dog in the ACC. Roy Williams, however, didn't really have a predictable reaction. See, normally, you expect Williams to toast everyone with a Coca-Cola and to throw out an "Aw, shucks, ya'll" to help complete his public persona.

Instead of doing that, though, when repeatedly asked by ACC writer Andrew Jones about his team's inability to properly apply full court defensive pressure, he let loose with a little F-bomb.

North Carolina remained one of the nation's hottest team heading into the conference home stretch last week, beating up on Duke and then squeaking by a dangerous Miami team. They now have a very minor speed bump in their quest to win the ACC regular-season championship with a rivalry game against N.C. State Wednesday.

However, that hump may have gotten a touch bigger with the news that Tyler Hansbrough suffered a concussion during Sunday's game against the Hurricanes.

The way the first half of N.C. State's game against Virginia Tech played out Sunday, you'd be excused for thinking the Wolfpack were on the heels of Duke and North Carolina in the ACC. But as has been typical of N.C. State all season, they couldn't hold a lead in the second half and let Virginia Tech claw its way into overtime and an 91-87 win.

This was essentially a must-win game for both teams, but particularly for the Hokies, who rebounded from a so-so non-conference performance into a spot on the happy side of the NCAA tournament bubble and are in the mix for a possible ACC tournament bye . The Wolfpack, meanwhile, were merely trying to eke out their third consecutive ACC win and move within two games of .500 in the ACC.

Kay Yow's recent passing struck an emotional chord, not just in Raleigh and North Carolina, but across the sports world as a whole. The level of respect that Coach Yow received from fans, friends, family and colleagues cannot be understated.

Which makes it that much more difficult to comprehend why vandals would deface a memorial created to honor Coach Yow with a "blue mustache" and the phrase, "Cancer Rules."

Brandon Costner, right now, is all that Sidney Lowe has in Raleigh. Take him away and there's the semi-emergence of Courtney Fells, Ben McCauley's swan song, and the unlikely possibility of landing John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins. Which isn't saying much.

Logically, the news/rumor that Costner was bolting for the NBA after this season should be terrifying for Sid. Fortunately for Lowe, though, Costner is referring to that report as "one of those crazy Internet rumors."

When N.C. State plays North Carolina, it is a rivalry game. Ignore what many Tar Heel fans will say -- beating the Wolfpack matters (albeit a lot less than defeating Duke in basketball.)

If it wasn't an important matchup, then Danny Green wouldn't bother referring to State fans as "country."