RALEIGH, N.C. -- The perception is North Carolina State is a struggling basketball program under Herb Sendek. With two national championship banners hanging over a team that hasn't been to the NCAA Tournament under Sendek's guidance, it's easy to understand what is actually an unwarranted label.

The perception is that N.C. State has been an average team in a very good, but no longer great, conference over the last few years. But, while the ACC may not have lived up to its exalted billing the past two seasons, the Wolfpack has been more than competitive.

	N.C. State's annual Red-White scrimmage brought out the lighter side of N.C. State head coach Herb Sendek.

And the personal perception of Sendek is he's just too uptight. Perhaps even too intellectual, and too guarded, to truly excel in a profession of extroverts and characters.

But perception is far from N.C. State reality. Granted, Sendek will never be a nightclub comic, or give the same animated and dynamic performances on the sidelines as one Jim Valvano. No mild-mannered kid from Pittsburgh can match that personality, right?

Well, during a mid-October practice session, Sendek certainly didn't appear at all uptight or circumspect. Sendek conducted his practice with energy and enthusiasm, and he clearly enjoyed his exchanges with his players and fellow coaches. When a player passed up an open shot, Sendek good-naturedly got on him to shoot, because shooting was the right play.

"Shooting the ball definitely wasn't your problem last year," Sendek belts out.

Those who watch the unfailingly polite Sendek on television, or listen his radio interviews, may find in difficult to believe Sendek could crack such a joke in practice, or be funny while giving a keynote address at a rubber chicken dinner. But he can. And Sendek appears looser this season then ever before.

As for for the Wolfpack, they've reached the postseason in each of its four seasons under Sendek. The program has never endured a losing season and only a seven-game losing skid in February derailed what appeared to be a breakthrough campaign a year ago.

Still, N.C. State finished strong, reached the NIT Final Four and showed flashes of what could be possible in 2000-01.

"I was very pleased with the way we finished the season last year," Sendek said after a recent practice during ESPN.com's preseason tour. "Nobody pointed fingers, nobody quit and nobody made excuses. Our team saw a window of opportunity to finish in a positive fashion, and that led to our NIT success."

Sendek still conducts a structured, well thought-out practice that is focused and alert, with no wasted time. Attention is paid, by all, to the idea of togetherness. When a player takes a charge, the entire team sprints over to him to pick him up off the floor, because that guy has, literally, taken one for the team.

Throughout the practice, the team will huddle up at different times, and break the huddle by saying in unison, "1,2,3, Finish!"

	“	I was very pleased with the way we finished the season last year. Nobody pointed fingers, nobody quit and nobody made excuses. Our team saw a window of opportunity to finish in a positive fashion, and that led to our NIT success. ”
		— Herb Sendek, N.C. State head coach

"We want to finish everything we do," Sendek explains. "We have four seniors, we want them to finish their degrees. We want to finish plays, finish games, finish drills, to finish everything."

Sendek wants this team to finish the 2000-01 season, as well.

N.C. State has been close to turning the corner, winning 17 games in each of the first two seasons under Sendek and then 19 and 20 the past two seasons. State, however, remains a program that hasn't been back to the NCAA Tournament since 1991.

"Every team is unique to itself in the context of a given season," Sendek said. "We have six guys that were not here before, and we have to work on relationships this year. We can't just assume it will happen."

Clearly, Sendek likes this team. More importantly, he feels comfortable that it is his team. And while the perception (yes, there's that word again) has been that Sendek's teams play a ball-control style of offense and don't run, but instead squeezes the ball in complicated set plays, the coach begs to differ.

"That perception is based on our first couple of years here, when we had to be creative to be competitive," Sendek said. "We want to play up-tempo. We want to push it on makes as well as misses."

Without the personnel to play in completely straight in the ACC, Sendek had to instead go with undersized lineups, which had to be in turn imaginative and resourceful with the ball. Now, with more depth and talent, Sendek can play the way he has wanted to since his arrival in 1996.

"We have a good group, and its fun to be around them," Sendek candidly said of this year's team. "Our freshmen have really added a certain character to our program, and are some of the nicest guys. As the coach, I'd just like to see our whole team together today in practice."

Minor maladies and injuries to sophomore point guard Clifford Crawford (strep throat), senior big man Cornelius Williams (foot) and freshman swingman Michael Bell left the Wolfpack a bit shorthanded for practice. But with their depth it was not particularly noticeable. What was noticeable was the absence of senior forward Damon Thornton, a career double-figure scorer and last year's top rebounder, who has been suspended indefinitely for a recent DUI arrest.

"It's unfortunate for Damon, and we're hopeful he can do what is necessary to return," Sendek said.

Kenny Inge and Damien Wilkins will take up the slack from Thornton's absence, and Inge has made a quantum leap in his game and his physique.

"Kenny has completely transformed his body," Sendek said. "He is up to 240, and the weight has made a big difference. Last year, he was a little light in the pants, but now it has all come together."

One thing that has come together is Inge's perimeter shot. Quite frankly, he now has one.

After hours upon hours in the gym, putting up 1,000 shots a day using a ball machine called "The Gun", Inge now has a reliable jumpshot that will make him a more complete scoring threat after averaging 10.3 points a game last season.

As for Wilkins, he has a different mentality on the floor. He is finishing plays with greater strength and confidence, which should translate into more than his 11.4 ppg average a season ago.

"Damien could always do everything with his versatility," Sendek said. "But he was always too careful not to overstep his bounds. He is now accepting an ownership role, and being more assertive. He's just brimming with confidence."

Add in freshmen Scooter Sherrill, who Sendek describes as a winner that can beat you in a variety of ways; Michael Bell, a 6-foot-9 skilled perimeter player; Marcus Melvin, a skillful big man; and Trey Guidry, an aptly named shooter, and there is reason for optimism in Raleigh.

Sendek enjoys this team, and he also enjoys playing in the new Entertainment and Sports Arena.

"I was worried at first," Sendek said of leaving Reynolds Coliseum. "Reynolds is a 50-year old pit, and this is a palace. I wondered if it would be the same, tough atmosphere. But 20,000 people can give the same kind of volume, and we're sold out for the season."

N.C. State has clearly taken the next step as far as its facilities. Now look for the Wolfpack to take the next step on the court. Remember, when Sendek arrived at N.C. State, reaching the NIT was cause for celebration. Now, only the NCAA Tournament will do.

That's one perception Sendek welcomes.