NC State vs. Pitt | Gameday Preview and How to Watch

NC State Wolfpack vs. Pittsburgh Panthers
Time: 4:30pm
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
TV: ACCN
Line: Pitt -3.5

Preview of Pitt:
Pitt comes in at 9-7 and 6-6 in the ACC.  The Panthers are a mixed bag with some quality wins. Twice they took out Syracuse and then they notched a huge W against Virginia Tech (which looks even more surprising when you look at their schedule).

Pitt won the VT game coming off 3 straight losses against Wake, UNC, and Notre Dame.  They then followed the big win against GT, but then took back-to-back losses against Virginia and Georgia Tech.

A bulk of the Panther’s scoring and output comes mainly from 3 players.  First is Justin Champagnie, who leads the team in both scoring and rebounding.  After that, you have two well-sized guards in Xavier Johnson and Audiese Toney that can also fill up the stat sheets.

Champagnie is a front-runner for ACC player of the year and when you look at his stats, you can see why. The sophomore big is putting up almost 19 points per game and 12 rebounds. He’s shooting a strong 56.6% from the floor and is the heart and soul of this Pitt team.

What’s on the line for NC State?

At this point, the Pack, with a tough remainder of the schedule, is now just looking for a respectable finish to the season.  Expect to see an array of different lineups from Keatts, both to get some valuable time for the young guys and see if State can get things to click down the stretch.

The main goal now would be more to build some momentum going into the ACC tournament or for next year.  Either way, a few wins late in the season could do nothing but good for Keatts and the Pack. A win over Pitt would be a good starting point.