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NC State vs. #14 Virginia | Gameday Preview and How to Watch

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3 years ago

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NC State Wolfpack @ #14 Virginia Cavaliers
Time: 6:30pm
Location: John Paul Jones Arena, Charlottesville, VA
TV: ACCN 
Line: UVA -12

 

Preview of The Virginia Cavaliers

Virginia (11-3) comes into today’s game with their first 2-game losing streak of the season. They lost their last game to a hot Duke team and were trounced by a #16 ranked FSU team. Before those two losses, Virginia had been dominating the ACC, going 11-1 overall.

Virginia leans heavily off their big man Jay Huff and sharpshooting 6’8 Forward Sam Hauser who averages over 15 points a game on 44% shooting from behind the arc. Then you have Trey Murphy who can also light it up behind the arc, hitting almost half of every three he takes.  After that is Kihei Clark, a 5’9  crafty senior guard who protects the ball and is constantly looking to find one of his shooters for an open look (he can also score, putting up over 10 points a game in 5 of the last 6).

As we all know, the bread and butter of this team is their defense.  Though they won’t turn you over a ton, the Cavalier’s pack-line defense will wear you down and force you to take tough shots.  At home, Virginia is holding teams to only 57 points per game

 

Keys For NC State

In their first meeting, State was able to keep the game close, and at times even take the lead. They did this by winning the rebounding battle and playing stout defense. They forced an unusually high number of turnovers for a normally mistake-free Virginia offense.  But, in the end, UVA was just too big for the Pack and was able to get to the basket and free-throw line, finishing 20-22 from the line.

State will need to bring that same energy on the defensive end of the floor in this game, but you can’t expect Virginia to commit mistakes as they did in the first matchup.  One of the things to note from game 1 is the lineups Keatts used for the second half. We noted that he virtually removed Seabron from the game and gave a majority of the minutes to the upperclassmen (Allen and Beverly). Now, there was likely reasons why Keatts felt good about going small. Maybe he wanted to have his vets in the game and limit turnovers. However, in our eyes, this was a mistake. To beat Virginia you have to stop Virginia, and when you allow them to isolate smaller guards and get easy buckets, they’re going to do that.

Hopefully, with the emergence and gained experience from the freshman, Keatts can really mix up his lineup for a full 40-minutes.  At the end of the game in the last matchup, you really saw UVA take advantage of their size.  This time around, you should see more of the freshman in the lineup as length and athleticism have really been the Achilles heel of this Cavalier team.

With that said, this is still a tall task for the freshman as they will be asked to play defense for a full 30 seconds per possession against a patient UVA offense, along with playing patient themselves on the offensive end, avoiding turnovers and bad shots. The driving lanes will be cut off, and the play will be physical. Will the freshman be ready?

If the State freshman can handle the UVA defense, and someone else besides Hellems is able to knock down shots from beyond the arc, look for State to be in a position to pull off the upset and take home their 3rd straight win.

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NC State Basketball

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

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14 hours 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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NC State Basketball

What did an ACC Title & Final Four Mean to NC State Legend Dennis Smith Jr.?

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24 hours ago

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April 22, 2024

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What did an ACC Title & Final Four mean to NC State Legend Dennis Smith Jr.? The man who won the ACC Rookie of the Year Award in 2017 gave me a statement.

It means a lot. It means a lot to the university, the state of North Carolina and a lot more to my dad, grandma, and myself. They have been NC State fans since forever, so their excitement level was though the roof when they saw BOTH of our basketball teams shining like that. It was a great feeling!

2017 was Smith Jr.’s only year of College ball, averaging 18.1 points, 6.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.9 steals. He earned 2nd Team All-ACC honors, and obviously, he earned a spot on the ACC All-Freshman Team.

DSJ was drafted by the Dallas Mavericks with the 9th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.

Smith Jr. just wrapped up his 7th season in the NBA. This was his 1st season with Brooklyn, playing in 56 games for the Nets. He averaged 6.6 points, 3.6 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game, averaging 18.9 minutes per contest.

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NC State Basketball

NC State’s DJ Horne Named to Portsmouth Invitational All-Tournament Team

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2 days ago

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April 21, 2024

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NC State’s DJ Horne played in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament this weekend, and he was named to the All-Tournament Team.

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In 3 games, Horne averaged 14.3 points, shooting 41.5% from the field, and 30% from three.

Horne’s Portsmouth Partnership team made it to the finals, but lost to Jani-King 68-75.

The Portsmouth Invitational is an annual pre-draft camp that has been showcasing College Seniors to professional scouts since 1953.

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NC State Basketball

NC State Has Shown Interest in Utah Guard Transfer Deivon Smith

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3 days ago

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April 20, 2024

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NC State has reached out to Utah Transfer Guard Deivon Smith (6’0″/173).

Smith filled up the stat sheet every game this year, averaging 13.3 points, 7.1 assists and 6.3 rebounds, shooting 46.7% from the field and 40.8% from three for Utah. He earned All-Pac 12 Honorable Mention this season. Smith had 8 double-doubles and 1 triple-double this year.

Wherever Smith lands, this will be his 4th college. He started at Mississippi St., starting in 8 of the 33 games he played in, averaging 22.5 minutes per game. Smith went on to spend his next two seasons at Georgia Tech. Year 1 in Atlanta, Smith started in 5 of the 24 games he played in, averaging 19.7 minutes per game. In Year 2, he carved out more of a role, starting in 13 of the 24 games he played in for the Yellow Jackets, averaging a career high 24.8 minutes per game.

At Utah this year, Smith broke out and had a career year in every possible way.

NC State is familiar with Smith, offering him back when he was a 4-Star prospect out of Grayson High School in Loganville, Georgia. Rivals ranked Smith as the #53 overall player nationally in the 2020 recruiting class. ESPN ranked him as the #5 player in the state of Georgia. 247Sports ranked him as the #11 Point Guard in his class.

 

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