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VIDEO: Kevin Keatts’ Press Conference After NC State Beat Mercer 78-74

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5 years ago

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Head Coach Kevin Keatts talked to the media in his postgame press conference after NC State squeaked by Mercer 78-74. The video is ABOVE, and a bulleted breakdown is BELOW.

  • First thing I want to do is congratulate our football team. Earned a heck of a road win and have done a good job with that program.
  • Braxton Beverly is probably going to have to shave his beard now. I told him if he ever went 0-4 he would have to shave his beard, so we will probably have a conversation tomorrow.
  • We needed a game where we had to really finish the game.
  • The first five games we played, they were a little lopsided. We did have the opportunity to try and execute at the end of the game. I thought we did some good things and I thought we had some things we need to work on. I look forward to getting back in the gym and getting after it.
  • It’s tough to win by a larger margin when you shoot 16-for-29 from the free throw line.
  • I wanted to bring Devon Daniels off the bench to kind of look at the game and to see the flow of the game (when asked about starting Braxton Beverly). He was a little more comfortable today. He had been pressing the first couple of games. It was more about Devon, than it was about Braxton. I just wanted him to settle in and see the game.
    • Had to do the same thing last year with Allerik Freeman. Al struggled for a while and then we brought him out for a stretch. He saw the game and worked his way back in.
  • I don’t know that it makes me happy (close game), but it gives me the opportunity to take the tape with those guys and talk about end-of-game situations. As a coach we practice it and we talk about it, but if you don’t experience it during the game, it’s tough.
  • We did some great things at the end, but we fouled too much. Torin Dorn took a shot too early in the shot clock when we could have burned some clock. These are all teaching moments for us.
  • I don’t know if they’re (Mercer) a tournament team. I don’t know if we’re a tournament team. I hope we both are. He’s done a great job. You can’t ignore what he’s done in his career there. They’re a tremendous team. They make you work for everything.
  • I thought we made a couple of big shots when we needed it at the end. Torin Dorn made some shots. Even though we missed a few free throws, Eric Lockett stepped up and made a couple of really big shots. We switched out and guarded the three-point line well, even though we got driven by and gave up layups. With a team like Mercer, we wanted to guard the three-point line first.
  • I haven’t had a chance to watch Wisconsin yet. I’m one of those guys that is very superstitious. I won’t watch a team we’re playing until we’re about to play those guys to prepare. We’ll watch a little film tonight. It’s a different team, a different year, and a different situation.

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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

Bowling Green Transfer Guard Marcus Hill Commits to NC State!

Published

15 hours 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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NC State Basketball

Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James Commits to NC State!

Published

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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A post shared by Tipton Edits (@tiptonedits)

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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NC State Basketball

Bowling Green Transfer Guard Marcus Hill is on a Visit to NC State

Published

4 days ago

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April 22, 2024

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Bowling Green Transfer Guard Marcus Hill (6’4″/185) confirmed with me that he is currently on a visit at NC State.

Hill averaged 20.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game for the Falcons this season. 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 #78 overall player in the Transfer Portal, and the #11 Shooting Guard.

According to a source, the NC State Coaching Staff is extremely high on Hill, and they are recruiting him as a Point Guard.

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