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NC State Basketball

Wolfpack, Yurtseven fight off Nittany Lions 85-78 (w/ Box Score)

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Omer Yurtseven had a career day and the Wolfpack broke out of their shooting funk as they downed Penn State 85-78 in the ACC/Big Ten challenge.

NC State shot 44% from the floor and 63% from beyond the arc in this one. That is a far cry from the ice-cold shooting we saw in the last two games. The state lines might lend a little credence to the theory that the Wolfpack’s shooting woes are a product of their rigorous early-season schedule.

Omer Yurtseven finished with a team-high 19 points (6-7 from the floor, 3-3 from beyond the arc), Al Freeman went for 17, Sam Hunt went for 14 (4-5 from 3pt range), and Lennard Freeman pitched in 10 ,

The story of this game was the play of sophomore big man Omer Yurtseven. He coupled his 19 points with 11 boards and really was the deciding factor.

After a lost year last season, and a slow start this year, Yurt has finally started to show the reason he was billed a sure-fire NBA prospect when he came over from Turkey. Part of it is his increased confidence, but the other part of it is that NC State has finally started to learn how to use him.

As an agile 7 footer with good hands and good footwork, you’d think he’d be a monster with his back to the basket. At this point, that’s not the case. But put him in a pick and pop situation, or let him face you up and all of the sudden Yurtseven is nearly unstoppable. The Penn State bigs were forced to choose. Sink down to stop the drive, or follow Yurt to the top of the key. They chose to sink and they paid.

It wasn’t just Yurtseven draining shots in this one, Sam Hunt sparked the Pack early on after they came out flat and went down 11-0 and freshman Lavar Batts also unexpectedly knocked down two 3s.

The Pack did lose the battle of the boards 43-35, but they won the turnover battle, forcing 18 and only committing 14.

At the end of the day, this was a quality win for Keatts and company. Penn State will be a middle of the pack Big Ten team this year and could make a run at the tournament.

Next up is South Carolina State on Saturday.

 

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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