Tonight NC State plays the biggest game of their season as they take on #1 seeded Villanova in the round of 32. For many teams this would be the toughest game they’ve played all season, but not the Wolfpack. With the ACC so strong this season State has faced both Duke and Virginia twice, two teams who are arguably better than Villanova this season. So it’s not like State is going to come out and just be overwhelmed by talent, however Nova poses a threat that is a little unique. This is a team that has dominant guards. A team that has shoots the ball very well and is completely unselfish. They are a tough matchup, but actually are kind of similar to State. Here are our keys to the Wolfpack pulling off the upset.

Handle Their Guards
This is really the biggest thing. Nova relies Dylan Ennis, Darrun Hilliard, and Ryan Arcidiacono. Ennis is the guy that creates. He’s a steady PG who is their true defensive stopper. He will certainly guard Lacey and at 6’2 could really bother him. Hilliard is the scorer. He’s averaging 14ppg and can score in a variety of ways. The 6’6 senior is certainly going to be a tough guard for NC State. He can shoot is over top and he can use his size to take to the rim. Stopping Hilliard needs to be priority for Gottfried and company. After that you have Arcidiacono. He’s averaging 10ppg and 4 boards. He too is shooting around 38% and can really heat up of he gets going. Those 3 guys are a handful, but that’s not all their guards. Aside form these main three you have sixth man Josh Hart. Hart is another one of these giant guards. He’s 6’5 and is also averaging 10ppg. He doesn’t shoot a ton of 3s, but he’ll light you up if you don’t watch out. He’s hitting 47% from outside.

So as you see this is a team of big guards that can all shoot, pass and attack the rim. They are good, but State has some pretty good guards themselves. One thing Lacey and Turner will have to do is keep the Nova backcourt out of the lane. Ralston has had trouble keeping guys in front of him and if that happens here you might see a little more of the Martins in this one.

On offense State is going to have to move the basketball. So often State is trying to go one on one and isolate Lacey. Nova is too big for Lacey to do that and their length is going to make it hard for Turner to get clean looks. One guy that could have  huge game is Cat Barber. The uber-quick PG is a mismatch for Nova, who really doesn’t have anyone to match his speed. He’ll need to get into the lane and create havoc if  State wants a chance to win this.

Win the Front Court Battle
This is where State COULD surprise some people. Nova has the experienced bigs in Pinkston and Ochefu, but State’s bigs might be turning the corner right at the right time. Abu is becoming a go-to guy in the post with his athleticism and physicality and you better believe Anya is feeling real confident after his game winner. But an x-factor here is Kyle Washington. The sophomore finally got back in the swing of things last game and gave the Pack a boost they sorely needed. This team really need Kyle’s intensity, hustle and ability to bring their bigs out of paint with this jumpers. He adds a different dimension to the Wolfpack and if he has a big night, Nova may not have an answer.

Play With Fire
The Pack can’t come out lackadaisical like they did against LSU. They’ve played well as world beaters this season, so there is a good chance they’ll come out hyped. They need to be in passing lanes, locking down on the ball, rotating quick on help-side D and closing out on shooters under control. If they can play smart and play with some conviction then the Pack has a real chance to shock the world.