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Lennard Freeman Interview After VMI win

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Senior forward Lennard Freeman spoke to the media after NC State’s 102-76

On what was most important to him tonight
“Most importantly, we got the win. We had to start off on the right track. It’s cool that I got my career-high and everything, but most importantly, I’m just trying to win.”

On having a balanced scoring attack tonight
“When we have multiple people in double figures, that’s like Thanksgiving on the basketball court. Everybody got a little piece of the pie, so that’s the goal every day. Coach Keatts said that there is going to be so many possessions with the way we play. We’re going to get a lot more steals. We’re going to take a lot more shots than the other team. You can get used to multiple people being in double figures because there are so many shots for everybody.”

On Coach Keatts
“You have to start out strong. You have to make a statement from the first game. Coach Keatts, he’s a great coach, so I’m just stating facts when I’m talking about Coach Keatts and the way he coaches and his attitude. I’m just speaking from the heart, and I guess he’s just that great of a person that it’s easy for me to talk about him.”

On his pregame ritual
“First, you have to pray. You have to thank God just for being here, and then you have to put some Meek Mill on, get your mind right. Just music and God, that’s all you need.”

On his first regular season game back
“The exhibition game, I’m glad we had that. That felt like a real game to me. Our fans came out. Shout out to our fans. Great fan support made it feel like a real game, so the exhibition game kind of warmed me up and settled me down a little bit, just to get the feel back. But every game feels like a championship to me. I haven’t played in so long. Every game is going to be like ‘Oh it’s my last one.’”

On what he and Omer Yurtseven bring to the game
“We have to bring toughness. The league’s a little different now. You’re not allowed to touch the people on the perimeter and everything. We have to bring toughness and we have to rebound since we’re the only traditional bigs out there. We’re like the quarterback of the whole thing, just have to keep everybody organized, rebound, and just bring toughness. Set the tone.”

On Coach Keatts limiting his minutes
“Whenever my name was called, I was out there. He didn’t say anything to me about minutes. Whenever he tells me to sub in, that’s what I do, and then whatever minutes I end up with, that’s what it is.”

On if anything is holding him back
“Knock on wood, I feel great right now. I don’t even know what leg injury you all are talking about. That’s how great I feel right now. Hopefully, it can keep feeling the same way.”

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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#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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