Johnson, Dorn lead NC State to 2nd half surge in 105-55 win over Mt St. Mary’s

NC State’s season opener showcased a team full of new faces, but it was the only two returners on the floor that were the true difference makers for the Wolfpack.

Senior forward Torin Dorn led the way with a career-high 28 points and 9 rebounds, while junior Markell Johnson added 17 points and 5 assists as the Pack moved to 1-0 on the season, defeating Mt. St. Mary’s 105-55.

NC State came out of the gate a little slow and a little sloppy. They allowed Mt St Mary’s to hang around for the entire first half (State went into the break up only 10) and didn’t really pull away until midway through the 2nd half when Markell Johnson connected on his first of the three 3s he’d hit in the coming minutes.

Keatts spent most of the night tinkering with the rotation and trying to find out which combination would finally pull away from the Mountaineers. With only 3 returners on the roster, the new guys got their first minutes in red and white.

CJ Bryce, the junior transfer from Wilmington looked good, finishing with 16 points and 7 rebounds. His ability to defend and score it in transition was a welcomed site for NC State. Devon Daniels finished with 10 points, but never really seemed to get into a good rhythm in this one. Meanwhile, DJ Funderburk went a perfect 4-4 from the floor and finished with 9.

The story of the night, however, was the play of senior Torin Dorn. He was as you’d expect a senior leader to be; the most physical, the most controlled and the most focused player on the court. Dorn led the way throughout, but really stepped it up in the 2nd half, dropping 16 points and went 3-4 from 3pt range.

Overall, State shot 55% from the floor and held MT ST Mary’s to just 33%. They dominated the battle of the boards 52-30 and 12 steals

The Mountaineers bright spot came in the form of sophomore transfer Jalen Giggs who dropped an impressive 24 points on the Pack, scoring both around the hoop and beyond the arc.

Keatts will certainly have a lot to work on. His team was a little too eager and antsy on offense and they overplayed and gambled a little too much on defense. But hey, this was the first game of the season and we think he’ll be happy that his team opened things up with a 5o point victory.

Stay tuned as we’ll have the full stats and OUR TAKE, coming up soon.