At their first meeting NC State got absolutely toasted by Allen to the tune of 28 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists. Most of his points came off of one action…the elbow hand-off/screen. When looking at Allen I see a kid who has lots of physical gifts: strong, quick first step, an ability to elevate over defenders (ask BeeJay). When watching the tape on Allen and the way he got his baskets, it confirmed a couple of things…State is awful at defending ball screens and dribble hand-offs. This is troubling because our guys see this action constantly as Gottfried’s offensive scheme uses some of the exact actions that Duke uses for Allen.
What can State do to slow Allen down?
Sell out on the hand-off…
All too often the NC State big men do not guard anyone (I know for all that have watched State play this season it is not anything new) BUT this has got to change if the Wolfpack stands any chance tomorrow. More times than not, Allen gets his hand-off from Plumlee who is not a threat offensively, especially in the area that the action takes place, this means that Abu or Anya need to hedge hard to keep Allen from turning the corner. There is no reason to hang onto Plumlee 17 feet from the basket!
Play off and bait him into contested jump shots…
Another reason Grayson was able to turn the corner is because whoever was defending him on the perimeter did not give him enough space. Yes, you want to pressure him but he is deceptively quick and can blow by defenders with ease. Cody Martin will get the assignment again and he needs to leverage his length more to his favor, last time out he allowed Allen to get into his body which knocked him completely off balance rendering him useless. If State can coax Allen into settling for long twos and threes they can have success. The type of players that Allen has struggled against are the long athletic wings, Cody fits this bill, but he has to take away the paint and put together his best defensive performance to date.
Summary…Duke does a great job at putting Allen in good spots to use his strengths, he loves to attack the paint and most of the action Duke runs is to create that opportunity. The dribble hand-off is a tough play to defend, especially giving the size of the screener and the Blue Devils’ ability to space a team with its perimeter shooting. State needs to take away the corner when Allen flies off Plumlee, that will mean Abu and Anya have to step out to force Allen towards the sideline. If State can disrupt this action then they will stand a chance tomorrow afternoon at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Oh and go at him on the other end! If State can get Allen into foul trouble which he is prone to, then that would be the best way to stop him.
Highlights of Allen last time out versus the Pack…
NC State Forward Mohamed Diarra will not be returning to NC State for his final season of eligibility. Rather, he will give 100% of his focus to pursuing his professional career.
Diarra is declaring for the NBA Draft, and will explore that possibility as far as it goes, but the likelihood of him playing professionally in his home country of France are high.
Diarra was a significant player for NC State all season long, averaging 6.3 points and 7.8 rebounds (team high), but his impact in March was tremendous, recording 10+ rebounds in 7 of the Wolfpack’s 10 postseason games, and five of those performances were double-doubles.
Wolfpack fans will always remember the grit and mental toughness that Diarra put on display in the NCAA Tournament, playing game-after-game while fasting for Ramadan.
The Wolfpack’s frontcourt just got a little bit thinner. In the past two weeks, NC State has lost Diarra and Ernest Ross. Ben Middlebrooks is returning, and Brandon Huntley-Hatfield transferred in from Louisville. Dontrez Styles transferred in from Georgetown, and while he is more of a Small Forward, in certain lineups, he could play the Small 4 position. With all that being said, I fully expect NC State to try to find another post player in the Transfer Portal with Diarra’s exodus now official.
With Diarra not returning in 2024, NC State now has 2 scholarships available for next season.
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.
Good job Freeman. Please leave early. Fouling Ingram changed the game turning into a five point play and ending any chance for State. Please leave.
I hate this Allen kid. He is the best in the ACC and he knows it. No way for State to stop him or the other Dukies. 2-9 and put Gott on the hot seat for next year.