NC State Basketball: Regular Season Awards for Wolfpack

The NC State basketball team is well on its way to a fourth straight NCAA tournament appearance under head coach Mark Gottfried. Following an ACC tournament victory over Pitt last night, the Wolfpack notched their 20th win on the season and have won six out of their last seven games. In short, this team is firing on all cylinders.

With that said, it's time to hand out some accolades. NC State has been led by some absolutely stellar guard play this year, but it's been a total team effort all around. Without further ado, let's have a look at some end-of-season awards for the Wolfpack. 

MVP: Anthony "Cat" Barber

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You very well could make the case for Trevor Lacey in this space, and you'd get absolutely no argument from me. He did after all, get a second team All-ACC nod. However, point guard Cat Barber has been the driving force behind the Wolfpack's late-season resurgence.

NC State looked dead in the water two weeks into February, especially after dropping five out of its last six ACC games. Then, magic happened. Leading up to the Pack's top-10 road matchup against Louisville, there was an aura surrounding Barber—as if his maturation developed before our very eyes.

First, there was the 23 point explosion on the road against Georgia Tech. Then, 28 more versus Wake Forest. Enter the Louisville game—Barber hands down looked like the best player on the court from the get-go. He owned the game in just about every facet, scoring 21 points to go with just two turnovers. Even Louisville head coach Rick Pitino knew Barber was the focal point, noting in his post-game press conference that "he dominated the game".  

Barber's sudden emergence has catapulted NC State to 20-12 overall and 11-8 in the ACC. His impact on the team was only reaffirmed in last night's win over Pitt in which he scored a career high 34 points. Here's what BeeJay Anya had to say after the game, per James Henderson of Pack Pride:

"

When Cat's playing like that, we love it so much. He's playing with confidence. We've tried to get it in his head that...coming out of high school, Cat was one of the best point guards in the country

"

Obviously, Barber is the player that makes this team go. As Joe Giglio of the News and Observer noted, Barber averaged 10 points per game over the Pack's first 21 games, and has been averaging 17.6 points per game over the last 10 games. That's what you call clutch production in a time when NC State needed it most. 

On top of that, Barber does so many things that do not show up on the stat sheet—maybe it's diving on the floor for a loose ball, or brilliantly setting up a charge, or even making a crafty steal. Point blank, Barber can do it all. 

For those reasons, he is this team's most valuable player. 

Best Newcomer: Trevor Lacey

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Trevor Lacey has been nothing short of outstanding in his first year at NC State. Following a transfer from Alabama in which he sat out a year, Lacey stepped in immediately and became "the guy" for the Wolfpack. 

He's been the team's leading scorer all year (16.4 points per game), and has hit double-digit scoring in all 19 conference games this season. That's quite the feat. In fact, he's only failed to score less than 10 points in just three games all year. 

Lacey is the player the Wolfpack turn to when a big shot is needed—such as his season-saving three pointer against Georgia Tech at the buzzer, or his buzzer beater against Wofford that was waved off. Not to mention, Lacey's shots always seem to be incredibly timely. In fact, the statistics suggest he's the most accomplished player in the country in isolation situations, per Bret Strelow of the Fayetteville Observer. 

His ability to create is just uncanny. The shots he makes are simply jaw-dropping at times. That's why, when the game is on the line, the ball is likely to be in Lacey's hands. And that's exactly how it should be. 

Most Improved: BeeJay Anya

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BeeJay Anya has been an absolute menace for the Pack down low this season, especially on the defensive side of the ball. He's a space-eating monster that gobbles up the lane and makes it difficult for opposing players to make shots. He is what they call an "immovable object."

He led the ACC in blocks this season and also ranked 20th in the nation with 2.71 blocked shots per game. On top of that, he set a school record with 10 blocks in one game, per Pack Pride. That type of awesome production was recently recognized by the ACC, as Anya was named the conference's sixth man of the year.

For Anya to receive that kind of accolade just shows how far he's come in his two years at NC State. While he's been dominant this year up front, that wasn't always the case. Let's flashback to his freshman year, in which he checked in at 337 pounds upon his arrival in Raleigh, per Lauren Brownlow of FOX Sports Carolinas. That year, his weight fluctuated, but mostly stayed the same. He managed to play just 11 minutes per game. His contribution was minimal. However, it was clear that the potential was there.

Enter 2014. Anya was able to adhere to a more strict diet and lost an incredible 60 pounds. The results have been transformative. Anya's minutes have almost doubled this season and his statistical averages have also doubled in every major category.

Half of what Anya does on the court doesn't even show up on the stat-sheet—he's been absolutely critical in altering shots in the lane, making them exponentially more difficult for opponents. Not to mention, 79 percent of his blocks come on rotations and 59 percent of his blocks ignite the Pack's transition game, per Debbie Antonelli. 

Anya has developed into an awesome role player his sophomore year, thus earning the most improved player on the team. 

The Glue: Ralston Turner

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When Ralston Turner isn't knocking down three-pointers off screens (don't worry, he does a lot of that, too), it's because he's busting his butt trying to get open. The amount of conditioning it takes for one player to constantly get open for three-pointers is mind-boggling, but Turner does it every single night and thrives. 

It's honestly like watching an architect at work. Turner is the Pack's second-leading scorer (13.4 points per game), and is absolutely lethal behind the arc. In fact, his 84 made three-pointers ties for 36th in the nation. It's one thing to be able to make that many threes, but it's quite another to be doing it when everyone expects it. But that's what Turner does night in and night out. 

The great thing with Turner is his consistency. He's notched six games in which he's scored 20-plus points, including a career-high 33 in a win against Tennessee. He's also scored double-digit points in 22 out of a possible 32 games this season. 

Turner is so valuable to NC State because he's a threat to add three points on every single possession. Teams must account for his deadly shooting, which opens things up for other players on the court. In other words, if Barber and Lacey are igniting the team, then Turner is the one that keeps everything moving. 

Per Pack Pride, the Wolfpack are 9-2 when the trio of Barber, Lacey, and Turner all score in double figures. Their performances in the postseason will determine how far this team can go.