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NC State Basketball

State Lays Egg Against BC: 79-63

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I am at a loss for words as NC State looked lethargic and apathetic as they allowed a lowly Boston College team to wipe them off the floor. There isn’t anything to be gained from this game as State allowed the Eagles to shoot lights out (57%) and get to any spot they wanted with ease. The difference between our big win over UNC makes this loss even more puzzling…But should it be puzzling? A young team comes off a huge win to much fanfare and must travel to last place Boston College. Look I am not making excuses as I know there is no reason why the Pack should drop a game to the Eagles; who have had little success all season. These are the type of games that require extra effort as you must put bad teams away early. NC State allowed Boston College to get into a flow early and the result was that every player on their team played the whole game with an extra step.

Olivier Hanlan is undeniably their top player. He is the only player on this team that I respect as he has torched many teams in his career, but that is all the more reason to try and take him away. The Pack gave him clean looks as he easily beat whoever was guarding him off the bounce to get clean looks. Hanlan also hit a couple of heat check shots for good measure. Offensively the Pack got away from attacking the rim and settled for contested jumpers. On a positive note we managed 18 offensive rebounds in large part due to the bricks from the perimeter; however, we still showed the effort to chase down the loose balls. I think we all need to take a step back and take this game for what it is…A loss but we are still in the NCAA Tourney (Joe Lunardi) as a 9 seed. I am sure we will drop after this result but on the plus side we have two big games remaining that can rectify today’s performance.

Sure there are a ton of negatives that we could talk about but lets air on the side of optimism and look forward. I think today’s effort is more the exception versus the rule for our guys this season. Prior to today our guys have displayed progress as they beat Louisville, VT, and UNC. I am confident that our guys will put this performance behind them and use it as a lesson going forward. The reality of all of this is that you cannot judge a book by its cover, especially in the ACC. Boston College was the last place team but nonetheless kicked our can. When the ball is thrown upwards at the start of the game records and history are out the window. We must play each game with the same intensity no matter the opponent we are matched up against.

State returns to action Tuesday night as they travel to Little John’s Coliseum to face Clemson. Tip-off is slated for 9PM and can be seen on ACCN/Raycom

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THEOKEEP
THEOKEEP
9 years ago

When they have big wins it seems like they change everything the next game that got them the win. Especially in the rotations!

ryanmcollier
ryanmcollier
9 years ago

wolfpack74 Wolfer96 ryanmcollier I’ve been hearing if we finish 2-2 we’re in. According to a lot of bracketology prediction sites our magic number is 20 wins. 

Feeling like it’s unfortunate that we’ll have to play a Syracuse team in what will be their last game of the season. Could be a tougher win than it would normally be. Syracuse should tank for the good of the conference.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

wolfpack74 Wolfer96 ryanmcollier I mean let’s be honest here. If we want to get off of bubble status we need to win every remaining game and win at least one in ACC tourney. Then you could sleep at night without worry.

Hooray for Wolfpack SWIM! Is that the first ACC banner in any sport since the 80’s or 90s? Unfreaking believable that it’s been so long.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

ryanmcollier Wolfer96 PackJunky Cat is exactly that. An Iverson-like score first PG. The problem with ranking H.S. kids is that too often scoring ability is the main focus. If you are athletic in H.S. you can dominate games because most teams you play against don’t have matching talent. So when our staff went to watch Cat play they saw him dominate his opponent. What they didn’t look for were those other skills necessary to be a good PG at the next level… court vision, interior passing, ability to penetrate and kick to open man.  If Cat shot better from the 3 he… Read more »

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
9 years ago

Wolfer96 wolfpack74 ryanmcollier Thank god for the swim team.  IMO, if we beat Clemson, it will be as valuable as the Duke, Louisville, and UNC upsets.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

wolfpack74 Wolfer96 ryanmcollier Well it has been too long since State has hung any banners that’s for sure.

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
9 years ago

Wolfer96 wolfpack74 ryanmcollier I should be, I am the oldest.  I had to endure mediocre as over achieving since the early 90’s when the fabulous Les Robinson took over and ruined the Pack.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

wolfpack74 Wolfer96 ryanmcollier Well you are the angriest person on this blog 🙂

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

ryanmcollier Wolfer96 Of that list I would say only SF has less of a chance than the Wolfpack of winning another one. Both MSU and UF have won in recent memory. Cincy and OSU have both had a resurgence recently and we have lost to both teams under Gott if I recall correctly. OSU whipped us pretty good in that PR tourney. Expectations are funny. After making the tourney the last 5 seasons with Sendek the expectations were to compete for ACC title and make run at elite 8/final 4. After all, Sendek took us to a sweet 16 so no… Read more »

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

wolfpack74 Wolfer96 ryanmcollier ha

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
9 years ago

Wolfer96 ryanmcollier You better be careful about saying Gott has peaked.  When I said it last week, I was blamed for whinning and not being a true Pack fan.

ryanmcollier
ryanmcollier
9 years ago

Wolfer96 Have won 2*

ryanmcollier
ryanmcollier
9 years ago

Wolfer96 ryanmcollier My expectations right now for this program are consistent NCAA berths, top 5 ACC standing, top 25-30 team. Right NOW emphasized. Typing that out kind of seems like that’s settling. Maybe it’s the obsession with the big dance – just wanting to compete, make it in. 

6 teams have won at least 2 Nat’l titles. I’d say we compare fairly well to the other teams listed.
Which of these do you think will be the first to win again? (I’ve ranked them in the order I think):
Michigan State
Florida
N.C. State
Cincinnati
Ok State
San Fransisco

ryanmcollier
ryanmcollier
9 years ago

Wolfer96 ryanmcollier PackJunky Kevin Pangos of Gonzaga has that ability. It truly is a difference maker. I’ll have to keep my eyes open for that next game. I wonder if Cat hasn’t honed that skill yet as he’s more of a slashing/attacking PG. I only saw him play once in high school, but seems like he’s openly talked about his ability to get to the bucket Allen Iverson-esque. I’d take 12ppg 5apg 3rpg  42% PG for my program.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

ryanmcollier Wolfer96 PackJunky  Cat is averaging 3.8 Assist to 1.9 Turnovers a game. Not great numbers for a PG. Remember that Lo Brown had much more assists a game and back then they truly ran the high post. This season we barely run the high post. It’s been mostly high screen offense with an occasional high post (most likely due to lack of good passing front court player).

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

ryanmcollier Wolfer96 PackJunky If you watch the games carefully, there are so many instances where Cat is driving the lane and a man is wide open on the other side and a skillful bounce pass would lead to a much easier layup. But almost every time Cat will force the layup himself. Luckily he’s been more successful at it lately but the game could be so much easier if he’d learn to make that interior pass and work on his court vision.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

ryanmcollier Wolfer96 Yes I am a 96 grad. Sorry not A&T but NC Central (last season).  My solutions (just some humble opinions from a long time fan): 1. Need a coach that is a leader and motivator not just a good recruiter. Needs to teach discipline. I was really sad that Gregg Marshall was not interested during last search. 2. Need a coach that has more than one go to play (running Scott Wood/Turner around screens for contested 3). 3. Need coaching staff that is better at recruit evaluation. Prime examples: PG that can’t pass, Center that has no post moves… Read more »

ryanmcollier
ryanmcollier
9 years ago

Wolfer96 PackJunky So true! Abu isn’t a great passer, but he’s the best we’ve got. Kyle showed some evidence of passing abilities in the Duke game, but he is trigger happy, which is why he’s lost playing time, I think.  You think Cat isn’t well-rounded? I don’t think it’s that he doesn’t know how to make an interior pass. I think it’s because the high-low offense doesn’t call for it. Bringing up another point — I don’t really like that offense for our personnel. We have had much more success with ball screen, pick & roll than wing-flares, and the base… Read more »

ryanmcollier
ryanmcollier
9 years ago

Wolfer96 ryanmcollier I’ll agree with your statement about youth. I think it is a viable excuse for inconsistency for any team with youth, but I think Duke’s freshmen are way more talented and better coached making up for some of their inconsistencies. Where as we have lower level talent, lower level coaching meaning that inexperience shows up more often; thus more losses, more often. Duke beats VT in overtime, has a tough go against GT, but pulls it out, but, you know, we beat them. We lose games late, can’t make the little things happen. College basketball – it happens. It’s… Read more »

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

ryanmcollier Wolfer96 Please not another young team reference. If this team is young then everyone in college basketball has a young team. Duke is led by a freshman center and PG. We start maybe one Freshman most games. We have a 5th year senior and a 4th year junior on the starting lineup. Please enough with the young team spiel.  We didn’t hire a new coach to see more of the same. If that was the case we could have stuck with Sendek. The fans wanted more than just barely making the NCAAs every year. The fans wanted a return to… Read more »

ryanmcollier
ryanmcollier
9 years ago

Wolfer96 I would argue that Gottfried is consistent. We were projected 10th in the ACC and one of the very first released bracket projections had us as “last 4 in”. He’s a 20 win guy, winning post-season record, beating in-state competition. I mean, this is a young team – all teams have warts.  It’s not just Gott’s M.O. it’s N.C. State’s M.O. Last ten wins against UNC have been met with a loss to follow. Some of it might be a culture change, maybe some maturity (very young team this year), and maybe some of it is college basketball. If… Read more »

ryanmcollier
ryanmcollier
9 years ago

wtaylor082671 I have wondered several times why we don’t start a game with some pressure. I think that would at least prevent a flat start, maybe get a turnover or two and some easy buckets. We need something to make sure we don’t do what has happened so many times this season. Especially in a jacked-up Little John.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

PackJunky Problem is we only have 1 front court guy that can pass from the post (Abu). And his problem is staying in the game because he’s always in foul trouble. Anya and Freeman are not good passers out of the post and Kyle never saw a shot he didn’t like. Just get used to this one on one offense until Gott can actually recruit or develop a skilled big man and a well rounded PG. If you look at this team, it has a PG that doesn’t know how to make interior passes, a center that has no post… Read more »

PackJunky
PackJunky
9 years ago

We played poor D. Some of that was b/c they had guys hitting lights out who have been mediocre all season on offense…  but that seems to be a pattern against us. I don’t know what to make of it… Maybe we have a reputation of being inconsistent and so always potentially beatable, so teams come into a game against us with a chip on their shoulder, like they know we are not mentally focused all the time, so they feel they can exploit our lapses and get on a run, then once we are down double digits, we can’t… Read more »

wtaylor082671
wtaylor082671
9 years ago

12 o’clock game, on the road, cold outside, after a big win… the writing was on the wall to come out flat. As a staff, they need to recognize this… perhaps come out in a full court press. Get the juices and intensity up out of the gate. Force the issue.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

Classic Mark Gottfried coached result. Win vs unc then lose to lesser team. Kind of the opposite of Sendek who used to beat all the cream puffs but lose every game to unc and duke. I do recall fans being vocal about getting a coach who can beat unc and duke so all things considered Gott is delivering there better than his last 3 predecessors. Consistency would be nice though. After having beaten louisville and unc on the road, I have less to complain about than before those wins.  Just wish he could keep his kids motivated. A team takes… Read more »

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
9 years ago

This is why we can’t get any good recruits anymore.

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
9 years ago

That was not an egg they laid today.  It was their NCAA tournament life.  Now they will have to win at Clemson and beat Syracuse.  Probably not going to happen.  Good bye State.

NC State Basketball

An NC State Win Over Marquette in the Sweet 16 Would Be…

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Awesome. Obviously.

#11 seed NC State will play #2 seed Marquette tomorrow night in the Sweet 16. What would a win mean for the Wolfpack? Many things, but here’s just a few:

It would give NC State 25 wins on the year (25-14), which would be the most wins since 1982-83, when the Wolfpack went 26-10, winning the National Championship.

It would mark the 12th time in school history that NC State has won 25+ games in a single season.

1982-83 – 26-10 

1973-74 – 30-1 

1972-73 – 27-0 

1954-55 – 28-4 

1953-54 – 26-7

1952-53 – 26-6 

1950-51 – 30-7 

1949-50 – 27-6 

1948-49 – 25-8 

1947-48 – 29-3

1946-47- 26-5

It would be the 7th time NC State has advanced to the Elite 8 in the NCAA Tournament.

1950

1951

1974

1983

1985

1986

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NC State Basketball

NC State has Won 5 ACC Championships this Year

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NC State has won 5 ACC Championships this year, which is the most of any athletic program in the conference this year.

The Wolfpack has won ACC Titles in Women’s Cross Country, Men’s Swimming & Diving, Wrestling, Men’s Basketball and Gymnastics.

The last time NC State won 5 ACC Championships in one year was 1979-80.

As far as I can tell, here’s a look at the Wolfpack Conference Titles from 1979-80:

Football
Women’s Basketball
Women’s Cross Country
Men’s Swimming & Diving
Men’s Tennis

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NC State Basketball

NC State is 1 of 4 Schools to Have Both Men & Women’s Basketball Teams in Sweet 16

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NC State is 1 of 4 schools to have their Men and Women’s Basketball teams BOTH advance to the Sweet 16, along with Duke, Gonzaga and UCONN.

NC State and Duke are the only two schools in the country to send both Basketball teams to the Sweet 16, and also send the Football team to a bowl game.

This marks only the third time in school history that BOTH teams made the Sweet 16.

Years NC State’s Men & Women’s Teams Made the Sweet 16

1985
1989
2024

Despite the fact that the Men’s team has made the Elite 8 six times (1950, 1951, 1974, 1983, 1985, 1986), and the Women have made it 2 times (1998 & 2022), in the three occasions they both went to the Sweet 16 in the same year, neither team advanced to the Elite 8.

In 2024, Why Not Us?

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NC State Basketball

#3 seed NC State Holds on Against #6 Seed Tennessee, Defeating the Vols 79-72 to Advance to the Sweet 16

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#3 seed NC State held on last night, defeating #6 seed Tennessee 79-72 in Reynolds Coliseum to advance to the Sweet 16 for the 5th time in the last 6 tournaments.

The Wolfpack led by only 1 after the 1st Quarter, but they looked like they had things under control at halftime, leading by 18 points.

At one point, NC State led by as much as 20 points in the 3rd Quarter, but the Lady Volunteers weren’t about to give up.

With 4:19 left in the 4th, Tennessee cut the lead to 2 points, but NC State might have bent, but they wouldn’t break.

Junior Guard Aziaha James led the way with 22 points and 7 assists, which were both team highs. She scored 7 points in the final 3.5 minutes, helping to squash tue Last Vols’ comeback attempt.

Junior Guard Saniya Rivers had 20 points (6-14 FG) and 6 boards.

Freshman Zoe Brooks was clutch off the bench, chipping in 16 points and 6 boards.

This marks the 16th time the NC State Women’s Basketball team has advanced to the Sweet 16.

The Wolfpack will play #2 seed Stanford on Friday night at 7:30pm on ESPN in Portland.

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