NC State 65  – Tennessee 58

Tennessee was billed as having the more dominant front court, but it was the Wolfpack bigs that were the story as NC State owned the paint in their 65-58 win over the Vols.

Leading scorer: TJ Warren – 21
Leading rebounder: TJ Warren – 11
Most blocks: Beejay Anya – 5
Most assists: Cat Barber – 4
Most steals: TJ Warren – 2

Key Quote
“They came in here and I thought they were fearless. They played with poise and stayed with what we wanted to do. I like the fact we came in here and showed some confidence. We were mentally and emotionally ready to start the game. Good win for our team, very excited for our players.” Coach Gottfried

Game Notes:

– Huge credit to the NC State bigs in this one. Tennessee had a bigger, stronger and more experienced front line, but it was no match for the heart and hustle of the Pack’s front court. State out rebounded the Vols 43-41 and had 12 blocks on the night.

– Jordan Vandenberg might have been in foul trouble all night, but the guy is a game changer when he’s on the floor. Tonight was no different. The big Aussie had a big defensive presence, but his big moment came with about 4:25 left in the game when Tennesee was making a surge. They drove, drew Vandy off his man, then dished to that man. Jordan turned around and rejected a dunk, taking the air out of the Vols and giving momentum back to State.

– Speaking of bigs making big impacts, let’s talk about Beejay Anya. This guy has basically been an afterthought lately, but tonight he was a huge factor. With Vandenberg in foul trouble, Beejay was forced into action. Tennessee seemed like they were salivating when he entered. They went right at him, trying to take advantage of the weak link, but the joke was on them. Anya was a block machine and filled in for Vandy rather well with 5 denials. It looks like that front court depth just got a little deeper.

– Want more front court production? Look no further than the other reserve, Kyle Washington. Starter Lennard Freeman played great (8 poionts, 9 boards), but early foul trouble sent him to the bench as well. Enter KWash who was all over the place tonight. This kid is just getting better and better. He hit a lefty hook, and long jumper and he completely dominated on the boards when he was in there. He finished with 5 points and 7 boards in 23 minutes. Right now NC State’s perceived weak spot is turning into a strong suit and most of it is thanks to a group of freshmen.

– How’d we get this far without mentioning a guy who put up a double double and shot 50% for the game? TJ Warren did it again, folks. The sophomore star put up 21 points, added 11 boards and threw in 2 steals for good measure. Warren is the engine that makes this offense go. He’s also the leader that NC State has really been missing. He spurs his team on with his play and his action, and not with his ego. It’s a breath of fresh air to see NC State with a leader that is a team-first guy. Warren is the perfect front man for a group this young. He’s putting the team on his back and making sure they succeed. But, let’s talk about tonight in general. As I started to write this, I was feeling like Warren had a bit of an off-game according to his standards. That’s saying a lot, because he dropped 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. How spoiled are we? The truth, however, is that TJ did look a little off early in the 2nd half, taking some wild shots and got a little loose with the ball for a few possessions. I know I’m just being picky, but that’s how good TJ Warren is. He had a great game overall and is still probably the best pure scorer I’ve seen at NC State in my lifetime.

– Cat Barber continues to grow. This kid still makes some little mistakes, but he’s becoming a star right in front of our eyes. The concerning number is the 6 turnovers, but he did have 12 points, 6 boards and 4 assists on the game. Most of his turnovers were him being too aggressive. There were times in the game last night when things just weren’t going the Wolfpack’s way. The Vols were mounting a comeback, the crowd was going nuts and the refs were making suspect calls. It seemed at that moment that the Pack could lose their hold on this one. That’s when Barber drove the lane and hit a jumper, then followed it with another score, and suddenly NC State was back in control. That is just an example of the player Barber is becoming. Never rattled and with a burning desire to win.

– This team continues to excel despite the off-shooting of Dez Lee. The JUCO guard did drop 1o points, but did so shooting 4-12. Dez Lee is certainly a better scorer than he’s shown and as he continues to get acclimated, he will continue to improve. When he arrives, the ACC might want to start taking note of NC State.

– Good defense all around. I know Jordan McRae went for 21 points, but he also shot 6-22 on the night. Dez Lee, Cat Barber and the bigs played lock down D all night, holding Tennessee under 30% shooting.

– If you’re a consistant reader of this site, then you know we don’t like to bring the reffing into the argument, but every once in a while we deem it necessary. Tonight was one of those nights. After State took a 17 point lead into the half, the refs really tightened up, so much so that the Vols hit the bonus at the 14 minutes mark and NC State still hadn’t with less than 2 minutes to play. The refs seemingly did not want Tennessee out of this game on their home floor. Anytime NC State made a bucket, it was followed by a foul. The referees completely changed the way they were calling the game and took the air out of the back anytime they seemed to build some second half momentum. State hung on to win despite this, which is pretty impressive for a young team who is just getting used to playing on the road.

– According to Ken Pom rankings this was a big upset. NC State was 81 and Tennessee was 33. This will certainly be a quality win for NC State come March.

– Next game is against ECU in Raleigh on Dec 21st at noon.