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As you probably realized, we took a couple weeks off here at PackInsider. Of course, during that time news was flooding in. One such headline was the addition of grad-transfer Al Freeman from Baylor. Freeman will be eligible to play this coming season, so how will he fit and what with the Pack need him to provide?

Freeman is a big guard who can shoot it. He’s not overly athletic, and he’s not super quick, but he can get buckets with hands in his face. If you want to draw a comparison, think Trevor Lacey. While Lacey had more smooth of a handle and a prettier jumper, both guys play with a similar style. We’d say Lacey was much more polished and seemed to have that killer instinct as a scorer. It’s not yet known if Freeman is that guy you want shooting your final shot, or if he will rise to the occasion of go-to scorer, but if State is going to be successful he’ll likely have to do both to some extent.

Slotting in as a 2 or a 3 in Keatts system, we believe Freeman will pair well with Torin Dorn’s slashing style of play. He can create his own shot, but he can also shoot it off the catch.

Digging into his stats, Freeman was pretty consistent when he got minutes. During his sophomore campaign, he played 30 minutes per game and averaged 11.3pts on 8.7 shots per game. He shot 42% from the field (which is good) and 38% from 3 (think Terry Henderson consistency from beyond the arc).

His junior year he saw his minutes drop off a bit as more talent was added to the Baylor roster. Freeman played 23 minutes per game and averaged 9.4 points per game. He attempted 2 less shots per game and hit on 43% of them. From 3 pt range he shot 40% as a junior which would have been good for best on NC State’s team last season.

At the end of the day, Freeman is going to be a good addition to this ball club. For the first time in a while NC State isn’t going to have a point guard who dominates possession, which honestly is a good thing. They will rely on guys like Freeman, Dorn and their post guys a lot more. Will it take the Pack’s offense up a notch? Maybe, maybe not, but basketball is a heck of a lot more fun to watch when everyone is involved and the team chemistry is good. I think Keatts will be good on both of those fronts for NC State, and Freeman fits well with that type of situation.

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wolfpack74
wolfpack74
6 years ago

Henderson was denied sixth year. What has happen to Markell, staying or going?

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago
Reply to  wolfpack74

That’s too bad. Haven’t heard much about Markell lately so maybe that’s a good sign. He’s the starter this season so not sure why he wouldn’t return quite honestly.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago

Worst case scenario involving losses of Henderson and Markell means that this is our lineup:

PG – Batts
SG – A. Freeman/Newman
SF – Dorn/Kirk
PF – Abu/Hicks
C – Yurt7/Freeman

Like to know if A. Freeman or Newman have enough ball handling to play backup at PG? If Markell stays then we should be solid at PG.

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
6 years ago
Reply to  Wolfer96

Newman, really? Sounds like Southern conference basketball to me.

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
6 years ago
Reply to  wolfpack74

Sorry, Colonial Athletic Association basketball.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago
Reply to  wolfpack74

He’s a good shooter. Just need to get him to a passable level on defense and get him open looks on offense. We can sit him in the corner and have him run baseline to baseline for open looks out of the post or dribble penetration. I don’t see him playing a ton of minutes but 8-10 minutes in an up tempo offense is feasible.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago

If we look at the 1-3 postions… even if Henderson doesn’t get extra year and we lose Markell, we start a freshman at PG and we have several wings.

Leaving: Smith Jr (PG), Rowan (SG/SF), Henderson (SG)?

Returning: Dorn (SG/SF), Newman (SG), Kirk (SF), Markell (PG)?

New additions: Batts (PG), A. Freeman (SG)

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago

If you look at the roster even if Freeman is not 100% we appear to be ok in the front court.

Bigs leaving: Anya, Kapita

Bigs returning: Yurt7, Freeman, Hicks, Abu

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago

I think Yurt7 made the right move. His freshman season exposed his weaknesses. He needs to work on his strength and physicality. How does he fit into new uptempo offense? This will be a good measure of Keatt’s coaching ability. I want to see how he incorporates a 7 foot center into that offense.

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
6 years ago

Can we just no show for every game next year?

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago
Reply to  wolfpack74

We’ll just have to play small ball all season. It’s not like we haven’t had to before. Honestly, I can’t even remember the last time we had a solid true center (maybe Todd Fuller). Every decent center I can think of the last 10 seasons or more were playing out of position. CJL, Ron Kelly, Hickson, Simmons, Powell, …

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago

Looks like Kapita is signing with an agent. He didn’t even get invited to the combine. Guess he has money troubles or something.

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
6 years ago
Reply to  Wolfer96

Probably academic problems too.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago
Reply to  wolfpack74

That’s the part I can’t understand. I mean every one of these kids has access to tutors. It’s practically impossible to fail. And if they are so stupid that they can’t pass freshman classes with tutoring then they shouldn’t be in school in the 1st place.

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
6 years ago
Reply to  Wolfer96

I agree 100%. Let them go to D league or overseas. Stop the chaos in the college.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago

Now Kapita is testing the NBA waters. Coach Keatts let’s sign some bigs as insurance. There was a time when kids enjoyed college life. What’s not to like… girls, parties, fame, and playing the game you love. Crazy how so many want to leave after a year when the chances of making it in the NBA are so slim. Obviously statistics classes should be mandatory for FB and BB players.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago

We need bodies at the 2 & 3 positions so this is good. Hard to beat senior level experience. I’m really interested to see the results of the next season. Gott set the bar low at 4 ACC wins so I would assume Keatts can manage to beat that by at least a game or two.

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
6 years ago
Reply to  Wolfer96

So you are basically saying that we should not watch NC State basketball next year. I am tired of 4 to 6 wins in the ACC.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago
Reply to  wolfpack74

If you think change will happen over 1 season I don’t know what to tell you. We can sort of assume that Keatts will be an improvement based on his history with UNCW but I doubt he’s a miracle worker. I’ll judge him fully when he has his own guys. He has to implement his system, change the culture, and bring in guys that can play his style. It will take time.

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
6 years ago
Reply to  Wolfer96

I have to disagree. His players have never beaten a Power Five school. He must raise his own standard to win in the ACC. I don’t believe he is the right coach for State. I’m also hoping that I am wrong on this.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago
Reply to  wolfpack74

Well he wasn’t my 1st choice either but what’s done is done. In his defense, he wasn’t exactly recruiting ACC caliber players at UNCW. So to me his recruiting class for next season will be telling. If we can at minimum keep the recruiting at a similar level and up the coaching then that alone will equal more wins. How many more wins? Let’s wait and see.

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago
Reply to  wolfpack74

I ask myself how do I like Keatts compared to the hires of Sendek, Lowe, and Gottfried? And I think the answer for me is that I like him better than all those guys. Is he the one that will lead us to the promised land? We have at least 4 seasons to see.

Sundrop Drinker
Sundrop Drinker
6 years ago
Reply to  wolfpack74

His players, at the before-he-got-there cellar dwellers, have never beaten a p5 school, though have come close on several occasions, with little talent, means that he is a crappy coach and will do nothing at State. Gotcha. Go pull for another team please. I think a guy that went 262-17 and won 2 National Championships at Hargrave, while having to recruit a new team every year, can get the job done

Wolfer96
Wolfer96
6 years ago

Hey let’s not act like success at one level guarantees success at another. Plenty of good college coaches have flamed out in the nba and visa versa. The fact is Keatts does not have power 5 head coaching experience so to say he will do this or that is premature. We have him for at least 4 seasons so let’s give him time and pray that he does better than his predecessor.

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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