NC State head coach Kevin Keatts met with the media for his postgame press conference after his Wolfpack squad pulled off a big victory at Virginia last night, winning 53-51. You can watch the presser here, or check out a bulleted breakdown below.
2nd game in a row our guys stepped up and won the game on the defensive end.
Knew coming in this is a tough place to play. Virginia is so great on the defensive end.
I thought our guys did a tremendous job.
This is as tough a game as we’re going to play, especially after playing on Saturday with a short turnaround.
To prepare for Virginia with their offense and defense, and add in the fact that we were without Manny Bates and Pat Andree, it made it look tougher.
Markell Johnson made some great decisions. He played the entire game without having a turnover.
C.J. Bryce is really good. He was tremendous at the end. What a play he made.
Give Danny Dixon a lot of credit.
Hasn’t played a lot of basketball.
Hurt for awhile
Stepped in and played well.
When we were up 3, I decided to foul because all of the momentum was going towards those guys, and I didn’t want them to come down and make a 3.
I thought if they made a 3 in this building, it would be tough for us to win in overtime.
I’ve decided this year not to look at the NET.
Everybody is saying that the ACC is down. I don’t agree with that.
I think the ACC is just balanced. I think we’re still one of the top conferences in the country.
We just don’t have the superstars.
I’ve got tremendous respect for what Tony Bennett has done here. Because I am from Virginia, I do respect the fact of what he’s done here and what he’s built here.
We’re excited because it’s a road win, not just because it’s in Virginia.
I don’t know how long Manny Bates will be out.
When I saw him get hit, I thought he had something like whiplash.
He is in the concussion protocol.
I texted him this morning and asked how he was feeling, and he said he was doing ok.
He was actually in the training room.
Pat Andree has sprained that ankle probably 20 times in his career, so hopefully he’ll be fine also.
Andy Katz is beginning to make his rounds for his Offseason Convo series, and he took the time to meet with NC State Head Coach Kevin Keatts.
In their conversation, Keatts talked about what this run has meant to Raleigh and the Wolfpack fans, how it has helped sell the program the way it deserves to be in recruiting, and even how it helped and hurt in the world of the Transfer Portal.
Today was the final day graduate players could enter the Portal.
This past season, O’Connell averaged 5.7 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists for the Wolfpack, starting 22 of the 41 games he played in.
O’Connell took over as NC State’s starting Point Guard on January 30th in a win against Miami.
He only scored in double figures in 9 of his 41 games this season, but 6 of those came in postseason play (5 in the ACC Tournament). O’Connell took things to another level in the ACC Tournament, playing aggressive on the offensive end, looking for his shot, and attacking the rim.
NC State played it’s best basketball of the season when O’Connell was running the show. He ranked 3rd in the ACC in Assist/Turnover Ratio (2.5).
Heading into next season, with a lineup filled with new faces, having the calming presence of a veteran leader like O’Connell is reassuring.
ECU Transfer Power Forward Ezra Ausar (6’9″/240) was on an Official Visit to NC State yesterday, and according to analysts at ON3 and 247Sports, things are trending in the right direction for the Wolfpack.
Jamie Shaw of ON3 submitted a prediction for Ausar to eventually commit to NC State yesterday morning.
Cory Smith of 247Sports submitted a crystal ball projection for Ausar to run with the Wolfpack this morning.
Ausar just wrapped up his Sophomore season in Greenville, averaging 11.4 points and 4.7 rebounds, shooting 51.4% from the field. As a Freshman, he was named to the AAC All-Freshman Team, averaging 9.8 points and 5.3 rebounds.
Ausar is a consensus 4-Star prospect in the Transfer Portal, and ON3 ranks him as the #60 overall player in the Portal and the #10 Power Forward.
Originally from Atlanta, Ausar played his Senior Season of High School at Liberty Heights Athletic Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina. ON3 ranked Ausar as a 4-Star prospect coming out of high school, the #94 overall player nationally, and the #2 player in the state of North Carolina.
Ausar has visited Seton Hall, Georgia Tech, met over Zoom with Georgetown, and had an in-home visit with Utah. John Calipari and his staff at Arkansas have been in touch with Ausar, as well as Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Virginia Tech, Arizona State, West Virginia, Iowa State and St. John’s. (Link)
At this point, it’s good news that Ausar has no visits scheduled after the visit to NC State.
Ausar has 2 years of eligibility remaining, and NC State currently has 1 scholarship remaining.