NC State Basketball
Duke too big for NC State, Winning 94-78 in Cameron Indoor
Last night, NC State fell to #2 Duke 94-78 in Cameron Indoor Stadium. The result was not what they wanted, but the Wolfpack players shouldn’t hang their heads.
NC State went into a hostile environment and shot 50% from the field. That’s not easy to do with the Cameron Crazies in your grill.
Senior Torin Dorn might have played his best (and most confident) game in ACC play this season, leading the Pack with 17 points, on 8 of 13 shooting.
Junior Markell Johnson found the balance Coach Keatts wants him to have last night. He dished the ball like he did last season, but scored the ball like this team needs him to. Johnson finished with a double-double of 16 points and 10 assists, marking the 1st time all-season he’s recorded double-digit assists.
Redshirt Junior CJ Bryce wasn’t intimidated by Duke, scoring 13 points (5-10 FG/2-2 3PT), and grabbing 5 rebounds (team lead).
Despite all of that, defensively, NC State had no answers for the Freshman dynamic duo of Zion Williamson and RJ Barrett.
Williamson finished with 32 points (12-16 FG), and Barrett dropped the 4th triple-double in Duke history, with 23 points, 11 rebounds and 10 rebounds.
The Wolfpack shot well, but their opponent shot better, with the Blue Devils shooting 53% from the field.
Ultimately this game came down to two things: the free throw line and the offensive glass.
Duke made 15 more free throws (NC State – 6-11/Duke – 21-28) and had 9 more offensive rebounds (14-5). The Blue Devils scored 17 points off of those 9 offensive boards (The Wolfpack scored 2 points off of their 5 offensive boards.).
Balance out either one of those, and it’s a completely different ball game.
Also, the Wolfpack were only able to turn 12 turnovers into 2 points. The Blue Devils turned 12 points into 22 points.
NC State was outsized, especially with their only 2 ‘bigs’ getting in foul trouble. Keatts didn’t use Duke’s size as an excuse after the game, but as a learning point for his team to be tougher. The Wolfpack will run into bigger teams, and they will have to learn to be tougher than their bigger opponent.
Boxing out is fundamental basketball, but it is vital for a smaller team, giving them the ability to grab rebounds against bigger opponents, or forcing them to commit over-the-back fouls.
NC State will be favored in 4 of their last 5 games of ACC play, with an opportunity to head into the ACC Tournament with wind behind their sails.
The Wolfpack will host Boston College on Wednesday night at 7pm.
Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James (6’5″/200) has announced his commitment to NC State!
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This past year, James averaged 12.6 points per game (3rd on the team) and 5 rebounds. He’s extremely physical and aggressive, taking 47% of his field goal attempts at the rim (making 46%). As a result, he draws a lot of fouls, ranking 10th in the ACC in Fouls Drawn, and 4th in Free Throw Rate. James made opponents pay this year when they put him on the line, making 81.8% from the charity stripe, which ranked 15th in the ACC.
James shot the ball better as a Redshirt Freshman, than he did this past season. His Effective Field Goal Percentage in 2022-23 was 55.8%, which ranked 19th in the ACC, and his True Shooting Percentage of 59.6% ranked 14th.
News broke about James entering the Transfer Portal back on March 25th, and NC State was quick to reach out. Kevin Keatts and his staff recruited the former 4-star prospect out of high school heavily, but he ultimately chose the Cardinals.
After redshirting his first year in Louisville due to torn achilles, James has been a starter for the Cardinals the past two years.
He does have the ability to knock down a three, making 34.8% for his career.
James has 2 years of eligibility remaining. With James’ commitment, NC State currently has 1 scholarship available for next season.
Bowling Green Transfer Guard Marcus Hill (6’4″/185) confirmed with me that he is currently on a visit at NC State.
Hill averaged 20.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game for the Falcons this season. He earned 1st Team All-MAC honors. Even though he was only at Bowling Green one season, he had one of the best seasons in school history, scoring 698 points, which ranks 5th all-time in program history for a single season.
For his first two years of collegiate ball, Hill played for Southern Union State College (JUCO) in Alabama. In 2022-23, Hill earned 3rd Team NJCAA All-American honors, and ranked as the #32 overall Junior College prospect.
247Sports ranks Hill as a 4-Star Transfer Prospect, and the #78 overall player in the Transfer Portal, and the #11 Shooting Guard.
According to a source, the NC State Coaching Staff is extremely high on Hill, and they are recruiting him as a Point Guard.
What did an ACC Title & Final Four mean to NC State Legend Dennis Smith Jr.? The man who won the ACC Rookie of the Year Award in 2017 gave me a statement.
It means a lot. It means a lot to the university, the state of North Carolina and a lot more to my dad, grandma, and myself. They have been NC State fans since forever, so their excitement level was though the roof when they saw BOTH of our basketball teams shining like that. It was a great feeling!
2017 was Smith Jr.’s only year of College ball, averaging 18.1 points, 6.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.9 steals. He earned 2nd Team All-ACC honors, and obviously, he earned a spot on the ACC All-Freshman Team.
DSJ was drafted by the Dallas Mavericks with the 9th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.
Smith Jr. just wrapped up his 7th season in the NBA. This was his 1st season with Brooklyn, playing in 56 games for the Nets. He averaged 6.6 points, 3.6 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game, averaging 18.9 minutes per contest.
NC State’s DJ Horne played in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament this weekend, and he was named to the All-Tournament Team.
In 3 games, Horne averaged 14.3 points, shooting 41.5% from the field, and 30% from three.
Horne’s Portsmouth Partnership team made it to the finals, but lost to Jani-King 68-75.
The Portsmouth Invitational is an annual pre-draft camp that has been showcasing College Seniors to professional scouts since 1953.
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