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NC State takes on Montana in their Paradise Jam opener tonight at 6pm in St. Thomas.

The Pack opens as a 9 point favorite, however, this is not going to be an easy win by any means. State will be without freshman big man Ted Kapita due to student visa problems. They also could be without Mav Rowan whose status is uncertain after suffering a concussion in the season opener.

Keys the Game:

– Wyoming is 0-2 with losses to USC and Wyoming, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have weapons. Ahmad Rorie is a sophomore guard who is putting up over 15ppg. Rorie is an Oregon transfer who has a nice stroke. He’s not super quick, but he can at times create off the bounce. At 6’1 he’s not a big guard, but he can put up points quickly. Luckily, NC State is not short on big guards who can defend. They could use their size to bother Rorie, but they need to know where he is and not let him get many clean looks. Stop Rorie and you pretty much can stop Montana.

– Play physical. Montana is not huge, but they aren’t an awful rebounding team. They were outrebounded by USC by 7 and by 1 against Wyoming. This normally wouldn’t be such an issue, however. without Kapita and Yurtseven, State will be lean in the front court. Abu, Anya and Hicks will need to really work hard to win the battle of the boards in this one.

– Play smart. Offensively, NC State should be able to have their way with Montana, but over the first two games, the Pack has had stretches where they took quick shots, and settled for contested jumpers. As the competition gets tougher, the Wolfpack needs to start valuing possessions a little more. Getting to the basket is going to be paramount. That means Dorn, Henderson and Smith are going to need to force the issues every now and then.

– Get Dennis Smith Jr. going. Smith missed over a year of basketball as he recovered from a knee injury, and over the first two games you’ve seen him shaking off the rust. As he gets more accustomed to the physicality of college basketball I think we’ll start to see the player that scouts were drooling over. Our bet is that we start to see the real Dennis Smith emerge during the Paradise Jam.

The game tips at 6pm eastern and can be seen in CBS Sports Network.

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Wolfer96
Wolfer96
7 years ago

Love Markell’s game. 6 assists and zero turnovers. Exactly the type of guard to lead the Pack for years.

Dennis is not looking like himself. I have a feeling that a lot of that has to do with the sky-high expectations and the pressure that comes with all that. He needs to block that out and let the game come to him. He has the physical tools but he doesn’t look like he’s there mentally yet.

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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