Connect with us

NC State Basketball

NC State’s Special Season was Possible Because of Al Freeman’s Special Season

Published

on

NC State’s first year under Kevin Keatts was a special one.

Allerik Freeman’s special performance yesterday in the Wolfpack’s 83-94 loss to Seton Hall in the first round of the NCAA Tournament was a glimpse of why the Wolfpack were able to exceed expectations in a major way this season.

Freeman scored 36 points against the Pirates, which is the 2nd most points ever scored by an NC State player in an NCAA Tournament game (4 points behind David Thompson’s record 40 points). He was 12 of 19 from the field and 6 of 8 from three.

This game wasn’t an anomaly for Freeman. It was fitting that it was his best game of the season, and aguably the best game of his career, but Freeman showed up in big games like this all season long.

This team didn’t know who they were or what they were capable of early in the season, but that all changed against #2 Arizona down in the Bahamas. Who led the charge? Freeman.

He had one season left to show the world what he could do, and in only his 5th game with NC State, he did just that, scoring 24 points in the Wolfpack’s signature win.

On January 27th, Freeman put together one of the most iconic performances ever by an NC State player against rival UNC, and to put a cherry on top, it came in the Dean Dome. He earned national player of the week honors for dropping 29 on the Heels, going 7-of-7 from three-point land.

In NC State’s 5 Top-25 wins, Freeman averaged 21.4 points per game.

The Wolfpack was picked to finish 12th in the ACC in Kevin Keatts first year. No one expected a big year, and the failure to do so wouldn’t have been held against Keatts. He was implementing a new system. There were a lot of new faces to the program, and the faces that were familiar hadn’t been significant contributors for the Wolfpack in the past. This team lacked depth.

There many reasons that NC State had the special season it had, but it would have been impossible without Freeman.

This team didn’t have a player that exuded confidence. It didn’t have a player who wanted the rock in their hand. It didn’t have a player that was a natural scorer. A player that could create their own shot. A player that could take over the game if need be. A player that was clutch.

That player on this team was Allerik Freeman.

For his final year of college basketball eligibility he moved back to his home state and took a chance with a new program with a first-year coach. It paid off. The 4-Star high school prospect that never really flourished at Baylor, did so at NC State, leading the team in scoring with an average of 16.1.

NC State fans should be forever grateful to Allerik Freeman. Instead of being what easily could have been a transitional rebuilding season, he helped Kevin Keatts resurrect NC State now, instead of later.

Allerik Freeman deserves to get paid to play this sport somewhere in my opinion, and he proved that at NC State. I’m glad he was a part of NC State’s story, and we were a part of his.

Thanks Allerik.

 

Matthew is Co-Owner of Pack Insider. He writes for all sports, with a focus on football and recruiting, and is in charge of business strategy. He is an NC State alum who majored in business. Matthew is also the lead pastor of The Point Church in Cary, NC.

2 Comments
Subscribe
Notify of
2 Comments
newest
oldest most Upvoted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Dof87
Dof87
6 years ago

I also agree. Lots of players made significant contributions this year, but the one guy that was a key element in every big win was AF. Not to take away from steady work of Dorn and almost steady work of Y7.

Papajohn
Papajohn
6 years ago

Agree completely. One of the questions for next year will be ‘who wants the ball at gut check time?’
And clearly, Al wasn’t just ‘dropping by’ for the season. He’s one of us and will always be, it was very important to him. He gave it his all.

NC State Basketball

An NC State Win Over Marquette in the Sweet 16 Would Be…

Published

on

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

Continue Reading

NC State Basketball

NC State has Won 5 ACC Championships this Year

Published

on

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

Continue Reading

NC State Basketball

NC State is 1 of 4 Schools to Have Both Men & Women’s Basketball Teams in Sweet 16

Published

on

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?

Continue Reading

NC State Basketball

#3 seed NC State Holds on Against #6 Seed Tennessee, Defeating the Vols 79-72 to Advance to the Sweet 16

Published

on

#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.

Continue Reading