News & Observer | newsobserver.com | 2008 NCAA Men's Bracket

Sidney Lowe's fourth season at N.C. State will be the first with his players.

The Wolfpack basketball coach expects progress in 2009-10, not a fight for his job. Lowe's boss, State athletic director Lee Fowler, agrees.

"There's no ultimatum that he has to make the [NCAA] tournament to keep his job," Fowler said Thursday. "The main thing is to make progress."

Notes from Sidney Lowe's press conference on Thursday:

• The Wolfpack went 1-for-2 in the late recruiting period, landing forward DeShawn Painter but losing out on point guard John Wall.

Painter, a 6-9 power forward, orginally signed with Florida but was released from his LOI and chose the Wolfpack in May. Lowe called Painter's decision a "great break."

CLEMSON — Oliver Purnell has agreed to a two-year contract extension that keeps him among the top highest-paid basketball coaches in the ACC.

Purnell is slated to make at least $1.35 million in guaranteed income next season, a bump from last season’s $1 million.

• The State's SEC preview 

Now that we know who's coming back, and Virginia's coach, let's take a second look (here's the first) at ACC hoops in 2009-10.

Robbi Pickeral and I will do this for the record in July, with the Summer Hoops Preview, but just for the sake of newness of the draft impact, the quick-and-dirty predicted order of finish:

So what does a soon-to-be first-round draft pick do between workouts?

Go car shopping.

Former North Carolina forward Tyler Hansbrough spent last weekend checking out the sleek rides at Performance BMW in Chapel Hill, he writes in his blog at NBA.com.

Wake Forest coach Dino Gaudio and assistant Jeff Battle met with point guard Jeff Teague and his family in Indianapolis on Sunday night to discuss the plusses and minuses of leaving his name in the NBA draft.

Gaudio said he had "an inkling" when he left about what the sophomore would do. And at around 3:15 p.m. today, the player made it official.

In a shock to no one, Greivis Vasquez — a second-round pick at best — will return to Maryland for his senior season, rescuing the Terps from a season in the abyss.

That makes the Terps the big winner in this year's draft version of "In or Out." Maryland gets to chase another 8-8 season with its best player, which puts them slightly behind last year's draft exit-strategy winner (UNC, duh).

Take note, ACC teams, ECU announced the game times for its six home football games and the world did not spin off its axis.

The Pirates' opener with Appalachian State will kickoff at noon on Sept. 5. Their C-USA title defense begins on Sept. 19 with a 3:30 game with Central Florida.

Update: Official release from Wake Forest

Wake Forest point guard Jeff Teague will stay in the NBA Draft, school announced Monday.

"I'm in 100 percent," Teague told the Indy Star after working out with the Indiana Pacers.