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Final Thoughts: On NC State’s 72-63 win over Wake Forest

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6 years ago

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  • NC State played pretty bad basketball all around in the first half. Offensively, they were shooting a ton 3s for no good reason. When those aren’t falling, you really need to settle down and start looking for more high percentage shots. Wake has a pretty good 7 footer in there (Doral Moore), but after him, they have nothing. Also, Moore has had trouble staying out of foul trouble as of late, so why didn’t the Pack try to pound it inside early and see if they could get him off the floor?
  • Markell Johnson set the tone. When he entered in the first half, the Pack quickly went up 9. When he came out, they lost the lead again. What Johnson brings to this team isn’t always going to show up in the box scores. Yes he does rack up assists and he did have 13 points, but he uses his quickness and athleticism to create for others. We’ve said this over and over, but this is probably the one guy that can hide a lot of the Pack’s offensive flaws. He forces the defense to move and shift, giving his teammates open looks and easy buckets. Johnson was the difference maker in this one.
  • Yurtseven is a pro. To anyone who thought he might come back next year, sorry. The kid is showing why everyone thought he’d be one and done in the first place. He was NC State’s entire offense for a good portion of the 2nd half. His ability to pick and pop turns NC State’s high-screen and roll into imminent danger for defenses whenever they run it. He finished with 22 points and 8 boards.
  • Defensively, State looked bad in the first half. But this is kind of who they are. Beverly brings so many positives to this team, but his size and quickness, coupled with State having slower bigs, allows teams to really ravage the Pack with the pick and roll. Yurtseven, Abu, and Freeman all have problems hedging and recovering on that high screen, and Beverly doesn’t have the quickness or size to make up for that. With Yurtseven, it’s usually not as big a problem because of his size and the fact that the guys he’s guarding are usually immobile as well. But for Freeman and Abu, guarding a versatile 4 has been a struggle, and with most teams going with the versatile 4, it’s made Keatts limit their minutes.
  • Enter Torin Dorn. Dorn played a great game once again. Sure, you have to look past his out-of-control drives, and you’ll have to just deal with the possessions when he goes ‘coast-to-coast’ and in your head, you’re screaming “Give it to a guard, give it to a guard!” only to watch him turn it over. But all joking aside, what Dorn brings to the table, makes you able to stomach those things. He is bringing to this team what many thought Abu would. An athletic slasher who is fearless around the rim and rebounds like an animal. Dorn’s 11 points and 6 boards were big, and again, he hit a huge shot down the stretch for the Pack.
  • Al Freeman is starting to get his minutes eaten into. I don’t know what to say here. Freeman seems to have lost all confidence in his game. He’s turning it over more on the dribble, his shot is off and he’s tentative with everything he does. I don’t believe that is the real Al Freeman, however. This guy has the size, the handle and has proven over his 3 years at Baylor that he has the shot to really be a dangerous scorer. But for some reason, things are a struggle right now. With Johnson back and Batts starting to come along,  Freeman is losing minutes. He’s going to have to build himself back up and re-work his approach if he wants to earn those back. That said, they need Freeman if they want to make a real run at this thing. He has a high ceiling and right now he’s playing nowhere near it.
  • Keatts mentioned Beverly benefitting a lot from Johnson’s return and I really agree with that. Braxton brings a lot of poise and headiness to the floor for this team, but he does lack size and quickness. That makes bringing the ball up against elite defenders quite the task. It takes him a lot of effort to get to where he wants to go on the floor. He eventually gets there, but with a lot of overall consumption. Johnson, on the other hand, gets where he wants to go fast. These two guys are really complimenting each other right now, and I think you’ll see a lot more of them on the court together in the future.
  • This win was huge. NC State is now 3-3 with a home game against #25 Miami on the horizon. That too is a winnable game. They need a big performance there, because after that is @ Pitt (who is 0-6 in the ACC and just lost their leading scorer.) If State can come out of this stretch 3-0, then they put themselves in a very good spot for an NCAA tournament berth.
  • Lastly, just a note. That game last night is one NC State loses over the past 10 years. That game needed the right mix of coaching, defense, and mental toughness. Those are 3 things that this program has really lacked. Sure, they’ve had high-end talent, but they didn’t have grit or true ‘want-to.’ Keatts has made these guys work hard in practice and that has given them confidence in their approach. When the minutes wind down, knowing you’ve worked harder for this than your opponent gives you the mental edge. It gives you the feeling that you deserve it, and when you deserve it, it’s easier to go and take it. NC State did it all right down the stretch. The coaches, the players and the fans were all in on it. This is what ‘building a program’ really looks like.

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Boston Transfer Center Caitlin Weimar Commits to NC State

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20 mins ago

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April 26, 2024

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Boston Transfer Center Caitlin Weimar (6’4″) has verbally committed to NC State for her final year.

Weimar took an Official Visit to NC State a little over a week ago.

She is the reigning Patriot League Player of the Year, and has been named Defensive Player of the Year the past two years. She has earned 1st Team Patriot League Honors the past two seasons.

This year, Weimar averaged 18.7 points, 10.6 rebounds and 2.8 blocks. As a Junior, she averaged 15.5 points and 10.0 rebounds. She shot 55.5% this year, and 59.7% last year.

With the exodus of River Baldwin, picking up a commitment from Weimar is massive.

With the addition of Weimar, NC State now has 2 scholarships available heading into the 2024-25 season.

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Bowling Green Transfer Guard Marcus Hill Commits to NC State!

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1 day ago

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April 25, 2024

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Bowling Green Transfer Guard Marcus Hill (6’4″/185) has committed to NC State!

Hill took an Official Visit to NC State this past weekend.

This past season, Hill averaged 20.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game for the Falcons. 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 #81 overall player in the Transfer Portal, and the #11 Shooting Guard.

Even though 247Sports and ON3 consider Hill a Shooting Guard, NC State is recruiting him as a Point Guard.

Hill is the 4th player to transfer to NC State this offseason, joining Louisville’s Brandon Huntley-Hatfield & Mike James, and Georgetown’s Dontrez Styles.

With the addition of Hill, NC State now has 1 scholarship remaining for next season.

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NC State’s Mohamed Diarra Will Not Return to NC State for Final Season

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2 days ago

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April 24, 2024

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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.

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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.

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Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James Commits to NC State!

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3 days ago

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April 23, 2024

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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.

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