Final Thoughts: On NC State’s takedown of Carolina in Chapel Hill

Rare and sort of historic road win in Chapel Hill
This win is kind of crazy when you think about the fact that it’s only the second time NC State has won in Chapel Hill in the past 14 years. Roy Williams was 27-3 against the Pack coming into this game, and only one of those losses was in Chapel Hill. For Keatts to pull off a win in his first meeting, on the road, against UNC is actually kind of historic. The last NC State coach to win their first game against UNC, at UNC, was actually Press Maravich in 1965. The only other time it was done was by Everett Case in 1947. (stats from @jwgiglio).

Markell Johnson was ABSOLUTELY amazing
Remember when Markell was slumping a bit prior to his suspension? Remember when we still made a big deal about Markell Johnson’s absence, saying that the outcome of his court case will make or break NC State’s season? This game is ‘exhibit A’ as to why. Not only did he pour in 20 points and dish out 11 assists, but was so big in areas that don’t show up on the final stat line.For instance, he held UNC’s top scorer, Joel Berry, to 6 points on 3-12 shooting. This fact isn’t getting enough burn in the media right now. Berry is a pre-season All-American and he looked like a role player yesterday. He barely got an open look and wasn’t able to get to the basket on drives against Markell. In fact, Johnson’s on-ball defense was so good that Berry was often quick to get it out of his hands when he got the ball in a position he usually creates from.

Johnson played as close to perfect as a PG can play. He spent a majority of the game creating for his team, racking up assists and locking down UNC’s best scorer. A PG that can score shouldn’t necessarily look to score. This is where Gottfried’s team constantly came up short. They had some of the best scoring PGs NC State had ever seen, but didn’t understand the position. They were score first, distribute second. Markell can score it, but only when his team needs him to. He understands that his role is to maximize the talent of everyone around him, but also to understand when to take matters into his own hands.

Johnson scored 7 of NC State’s final 10 points over the final 3 minutes of regulation, then turned around and scored 5 more in the first minute of overtime to set the tone. That’s 12 points in 4 minutes, during crunch-time against your most hated rival, on their home court. Do you understand the guts, the focus and the talent it takes to do that? This was Markell Johnson’s graduation into the next phase of his college career in which he goes from being a good PG to an elite, game-altering talent.

Al Freeman was lights-out
When I woke up on Saturday morning and started pouring over the stats for our ‘advanced numbers’ piece. I texted Matthew and told him I felt like Al Freeman might have a big game (I also sent that out in tweet form). Why did I believe that? Well, two things stuck out to me.

One, Al Freeman was absolutely dominant against #2 Arizona at the beginning of the season, going for 24 points, in a nationally televised game that absolutely nobody thought the Pack was going to win. I felt the feeling going into that game was similar to the feeling coming into this game. No one was giving NC State a shot, but everyone was watching (again nationally televised).

Two, looking at the matchups, it was apparent that NC State would be going down to Yurtseven early and often, and it was also apparent that UNC didn’t have anyone who could guard him, meaning they would be sending doubles. This also meant clean looks for NC State shooters if they move the ball.

Three,  Freeman had been showing signs of life as of late, especially from 3pt range. After hitting a low point and putting up 0 vs Virginia and 5 vs Wake, he scored 13 vs. both Miami and Pitt, shooting 5-12 from 3 (42%, which is more in line with his Baylor numbers).

Now, I don’t think anyone expected Freeman to do what he did. 7-7 from 3pt range. 29 points. 8-11 from the field. 5 rebounds. The guy just brought it against UNC, and he did it in a team fashion. Not too much pounding the basketball and only taking one bad shot all game. Al Freeman is a gifted scorer and showed that for 3 years at Baylor. There is no way he just forgot how to get buckets. He’s struggled with his shot, which led to a struggle with his confidence. This game likely brought back some, if not all of, that confidence.

Yurtseven got it done on the boards and on the defensive end
Coming in, I think most people were focused on the mismatched the Pack had in the post. Yurt has become this team’s go-to guy and they were definitely wanting to take advantage of UNC’s lack of size. The problem is when things are that obvious, a good opposing coach zeroes in on taking that mismatch away. The Heels did what they could, but Yurt still ended up with 16 points on 8-16 shooting, which is good and was important in State getting the win. However, I think Yurt’s impact was felt more on the defensive end in this game. He was the one guy doing anything on the boards (he had 13 boards,  7 of which were offensive), and his ability to alter shots was paramount. Any time the UNC guards got to the middle they were forced to kick it out. While he only finished with one block, he altered a ton of big shots down the stretch that ended up winning this game for the Pack.

Torin Dorn with another big shot
First off, Torin Dorn has become such a huge factor for this team. Despite having two senior bigs with talent and experience (Lennard Freeman and Malik Abu) Dorn has become NC State’s go-to guy at the 4 spot. His play has allowed Keatts to transition to his up-tempo style of play a lot faster than many thought. Dorn is averaging 13 points and 7 boards, shooting a career-high 53% from the floor. And while he’s only shooting 33% from 3 on the season, he was 4-7 against UNC. He filled the stat sheet vs UNC, finishing with 20 points, 4 boards, 3 assists, 2 steals and a block.Dorn came up big again for the Wolfpack in ACC play. This time he stepped up and hit a game-tying 3 with 1:34 left on the clock.Remember, he came up huge against Pitt with 6 points in the final minutes, came up huge vs. Duke with 2 late 3s to clinch the win, and hit some big shots down the stretch vs. Wake. It’s becoming a thing, now. Dorn is johnny on the spot for NC State.

State executed their gameplan
NC State needed to do a lot right in this one, and they did. First off, they wanted to win the turnover battle. They finished with 9 turnovers and forced UNC into 14 (scoring 22 points off of TOs) Taking care of the basketball was big because the last thing you need is UNC getting out on the break where they are very dangerous. The Pack executed well and cherished their possessions. They only allowed Carolina 8 fast break points. That forced UNC to play in the 1/2 court where they really didn’t have any real advantages. Luke Maye was amazing and Theo Pinson somehow turned into some sort of scoring machine, but they were making tough shots and settling for a lot of contested 3s (UNC shot 4-19 from 3).

State also wanted to win the battle of the boards, but unfortunately, Carolina didn’t let that happen. They finished with 48 to NC State’s 34, however, State did have 13 offensive boards, good for 22 second-chance points.

Lastly, State wanted to get it into Yurtseven and get him going. They did that early and it made UNC well aware that the Pack was going to try to jam it down their throats with big Yurt. This caused their defense to pinch-in on drives and double down on post feeds. This opened up clean looks from beyond the arc and the Pack made them pay (going 15-30 for 50%).

Keatts gives State the intangibles
This is a different NC State team. Prior teams would have lost to Wake and wouldn’t have been able to rally for the win at Pitt. And they surely wouldn’t have been able to withstand the multiple pushes the Tar Heels made against the Pack in this one. This Keatts led squad however, they aren’t your typically State team. This group has toughness, and they don’t fear anyone. They put in the preparation to win, so they expect to win. Just take a look at what the players had to say after the game. They credited everything to Keatts and how he’s prepared them for this success.Right now Keatts has 3 wins over Top-10 teams, he’s got 5 wins in the ACC with 9 left to play, and he’s 2-0 vs Duke and UNC. It’s only his first year, but the product he’s putting on the floor and the outcomes they are achieving is impressive and exciting.