What did an ACC Title & Final Four mean to NC State Legend TJ Warren? I caught up with the man who won the ACC Player of the Year Award in 2014 to get his take.
What was it like for you watching NC State go from the #10 seed in the ACC Tournament, to winning the Championship, to going to the Final Four?
I’m a second generation Wolfpack basketball player. Wolf blood runs through my veins, so to be able to witness a ride like that was truly amazing.
What did this run say about Kevin Keatts and these players? In what ways did you see them adapt, change or persevere?
I think that is speaks to the heart that the players have. As a 10th seed in the ACC tournament, it’s easy to pack it in and look towards the offseason, but they did the opposite. They bonded together over adversity and that’s what made them so endearing. Hard work in the face of adversity, that’s something that Wolfpack fans can relate to.
As one of the best players to ever wear the Red & White, what did this run mean to you personally?
As I mentioned earlier, NCSU hoops has been in my family for a long time, so it meant a whole lot personally. This run definitely took me back to some of the fond memories I have of putting on the Red & White and playing in front of a packed house at the PNC.
What was the most memorable moment for you?
I think Mike’s shot to tie the game at the end of regulation. It just felt like destiny at that point. Anytime you get to beat UNC and Duke days apart is special too.
How do you think this run can change things for the NC State Basketball program going forward?
I think that it puts us back on the national radar where we belong. After a magical run like that, I think it makes players want to be a part of that. A run like that reinvigorates a program definitely.
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Warren is 1 of only 6 NC State players to ever be named the ACC Player of the Year. In his Sophomore season, Warren was named a 2nd Team All-American by Sporting News and the AP. He averaged 24.9 points per game, which is the 5th best mark in a single season in NC State history. Warren scored 871 points that year, which is the most points ever scored in a single season by a Wolfpack player.
TJ was selected by the Phoenix Suns with the 14th overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft.
NC State Forward Ernest Ross announced today that he is entering the Transfer Portal.
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Ross played in 14 games this year, averaging 3.4 minutes per contest. After playing in 34 games last season, averaging 11.4 minutes per contest, Ross saw his participation dip to a career low this season, but that didn’t for a second break his infectious personality. On the sideline, you could count on Ross every single game to be the heart and soul of the Wolfpack on the bench. To watch a player who played as little as he did, care as much as he did, makes me super proud that this young man represented NC State so well.
Ross was a consensus 4-star player in the 2021 recruiting class, with 247Sports ranking him as the #60 overall player nationally. ESPN ranked him as the #5 overall player in the state of Florida.
Ross has one more year of eligibility remaining.
NC State has 3 scholarships available now.
Best of luck Ernest!
I disagree with Wolfer96. We already knew that Gottfried is a horrible in-game coach. Maybe when the team gels, they can disregard him completely and dominate in spite of him.
Let me temper my opinion. It’s based on him giving me a heart attack each year with recruiting.
What I learned from this tourney is that we have lots and lots of talent but Gottfried is a horrible in-game coach. He failed to take advantage of the whistle happy refs. Instead his kids jacked up a bunch of jumpers. The avg fan could not name one guy on any of these other teams. We have the guys the press is talking about so we need to do better. Better on D and smarter on offense.
Dennis has to realize that he controls his own destiny. He can play himself into #1 pick in the NBA draft or #15. During this tourney when he keyed in on defense he was really good. At other times he wasn’t engaged and left his man wide open on the perimeter or gave his man an open lane to the basket. What takes him from #15 to #1 is that all out effort on D to match his offense.
My pick for consistent effort in this tourney would be either Markell or Torin. Markell played hard on defense for most of the tourney while Torin provided consistent scoring and did all the little things. Really like these 2 players. Torin’s defense has been a little suspect but then he is playing out of position a lot of times so I guess he gets a pass.
It’s crazy the streakiness this team has from the perimeter. Last game Torin could not miss and before that Terry was on fire. Hopefully as the season progresses we don’t have to rely on just one person getting hot from outside. Need more balanced scoring.
Only saw the 2nd half but Dennis played like he should have played all tourney. He was aggressive. He was driving to the rim. It doesn’t matter that he scores every time. The point is that with dribble penetration it causes the defenses to collapse and that opens up other guys or gets Dennis to the FT line. Can’t believe it took the last game for Gott to figure this out. We should have won it all.
What happened to the start time? I saw that it was scheduled for 7pm but when I tuned in the 2nd half was starting.