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VIDEO: Kevin Keatts’ Press Conference after NC State’s 105-55 Victory over Mount St. Mary’s

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5 years ago

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NC State head coach Kevin Keatts met with the media for his postgame press conference after the Wolfpack beat Mount Saint Mary’s 105-55 in their 2018 season opener. The VIDEO is below, with a BULLETED breakdown underneath.

  • It was a good game because we were able to see two different teams. We have a couple of guys who haven’t played a meaningful game in a year-and-a-half. Thought guys came out with jitters to start the game. Once we settled in, I thought we played great.
  • I think we finished the game on a 51-14 run, which was good for us. Our press got involved.
  • DJ Funderburk was one point from being in double-digits.
  • Thought we shared the basketball and didn’t turn it over. We were able to force some turnovers. That’s my vision for how I want us to play.
  • I knew we were going to start off slow, but was glad we were able to finish the game.
  • We’ll take this tape and learn from it. Early on, we had some defensive breakdowns that I want to clean up. You’ll look at it and say that they shot 32%, and we held them to 55 points. I’m always looking for perfection on the defensive end.
  • When we get out in transition, and we start playing, we can be a very good basketball team.
  • When we were struggling, I thought Markell Johnson and Torin Dorn stepped up and made a couple of big plays. They played like guys that were in the program last year. Also, I could say the same thing about CJ Bryce. He had a few great rebounds and everything else. It’s important for the guys who have played for me before to lead by example, and those three guys did.
  • I took Torin Dorn out at the end, because I told him if I don’t take him out, I was going to mess his average up from three. It’s good for some of those guys seeing the ball going in. With Braxton Beverly, we are a really good three-point shooting team. Without him, we are average.
  • Still trying to figure out which combinations play well together. If we need to play a traditional lineup, I can play DJ Funderburk at the 4.
  • Markell Johnson is one of the best point guards in the ACC when he plays. He’s not a guy who is hunting shots. An ideal game for Markell, would be to have 10 assists and 8 points.  That’s ok, but with this team , as a veteran, he has to be able to score the basketball. We needed him to, and he did tonight.
  • I thought that CJ Bryce got in a groove, but I never thought that Devon Daniels did. He never hit his stride, which is probably a good thing for him and us. We’ll be able to look at the film, and see some of the things to work on. Thought he forced a couple of shots. That’s ok. We went through some of the same stuff early in the year last year with Al Freeman. Once we told him what a good shot was, and he started sharing the basketball, he became a good player for us.
  • I think we’re going to see a lot of zone this year. Coaches around the country are going with a little bit of man and a little bit of zone. It was good because our guys did a good job sharing the ball throwing over the top.
  • We were playing man-to-man press, but when we went to our “diamond” press, I think it changed the game around.
  • We take pride in stopping guys, so I’m not happy with anyone scoring 24 points. If they do, I want them to shoot a bad average. I thought he (Gibbs) got too many open shots. He played a good game.
  • I’ll give you a secret. Most guys that come out of the game are the ones that broke down on defense. If they breakdown on a defensive assignment, they are coming out of the game.

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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.

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NC State Basketball

Boston Transfer Center Caitlin Weimar Commits to NC State

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4 hours 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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NC State Basketball

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 Basketball

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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