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NC State looks to stay hot vs. Campbell | Gameday Preview and How to Watch

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1 year ago

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NC State Wolfpack vs. Campbell Fighting Camels
Time: 7:00 PM
Location: Raleigh, NC
TV: ACCNX

NC State came out of the gate hot in their season opener, crushing Austin Peay in their biggest win since the 2018 season (99-50). Tonight they take on the Campbell Camels who are fresh off a 17-point win over St. Augustine.

Campbell is going to rely on senior guard Ricky Clemons who is an All-Big South second-teamer who led the Camels in scoring with nearly 10 points per game last season. Clemons is a 6’2 guard who can really do it all and many believed he’d leave in the transfer portal last season. That didn’t happen and he’s back, notching 13 points and 7 boards in game one.

The Camels are also returning Jesus Carralero, a 6’8 senior forward who averaged 9 points and 6 boards last year. And don’t sleep on Jay Pal, a 6’9 senior who led Campbell in scoring and rebounds against St. Augustine a few days ago. He scored a team-high 13 points and grabbed 8 boards and blocked 4 shots.

Overall, this Campbell team isn’t awful, but they are picked to finish 6th in the Big South. You can assume that they will be a little more talented than Austin Peay, but they still don’t have the horses to matchup man for man against the Pack.

Keys to the Game for NC State
NC State looked great in their first outing, but fans are waiting to see if they can sustain that type of play. If they can do that vs. Campbell, I think. you’ll see NC State fans start perking up and feeling a little more confident that this year’s team might actually be able to contend.  Here are our keys to the game…

– Another big game from Joiner and Smith
This is going to be the key for almost every game this season. Joiner and Smith are going to be the motor for this team. When they are purring, the Pack is going to be a tough team to beat.

– A good outing for Breon Pass
NC State has a ton of depth up front, but not so much in the backcourt. Joiner and Smith need to stay healthy because the backups here haven’t proven much yet. We love Pass and believe he’s going to be a real asset this season, but he had a pretty bad first game. He looked like he was trying too hard to make something happen and he just never could get it going. We’re looking for a bounce-back game from Pass. If he can become a quality backup PG early in the season, it will go a long way in allowing Keatts to keep Joiner and Smith rested.

– Keep up the defensive intensity
This is probably the best offensive team that Keatts has had since he was hired, but it also may end up being the best defensive team he’s had. Joiner is a hawk on the ball and Smith isn’t so bad either. Jack Clark seems to really have a knack for getting int he passing lane and his long frame will allow State to guard most 4s. We all know Morsell is a lock down guy as well. So there you have 4 really good defenders. Inside the Pack can go with a number of options, but Keatts seems to like the strength on D that Mahorcic brings to the table. If these guys can replicate their Austin Peay outing defensively, they’ll run Campbell out of the gym.

– Get Ernest Ross going
Ross is a key piece as well but struggled to stay on the floor with foul trouble in game one. He never really could get into a rhythm, but did have a few nice plays including a strong drive and a big block. We’d like to see him log some good minutes in this one since Keatts is going to need him this season, especially when they face more athletic frontcourts.

 

 

How to watch: This game is on ACCNX (like last game), which is basically the same as ACC Network. It’ll be streaming on the ESPN App which you’ll need a cable login to get access to.

 

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Dof87
Dof87
1 year ago

Hope we have another dominating performance. Campbell had a decent win in their first game so maybe they can slow us down a bit and challenge our halfcourt game.

Our offense will score, defense and rebounding are what I’ll be looking for most.

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Rev
Rev
1 year ago
Reply to  Dof87

“ This is probably the best offensive team that Keatts has had since he was hired, ”. I just can’t get over that statement, and after only one game. Not that I want to disagree, but I have been so overly optimistic and disappointed in the past that I cringe seeing it right out there for all the haters to quote later.

Ok. Go Pack. Beat the Camels!

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NC State Baseball

NC State has Dominated UNC in Athletics in 2023-24

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50 mins ago

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April 20, 2024

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After NC State clinched a series victory over UNC last night in Baseball, I thought it would be a good time to relish in how the Wolfpack has dominated the Tar Heels Athletic Program as a whole in 2023-24.

The Wolfpack Baseball team has won the first two games in the series against the Tar Heels, clinching a series victory over UNC for the first time since 2021. It marks the first time NC State has won a series against the Tar Heels in Raleigh since 2016.

NC State defeated UNC in Volleyball 3-1, winning in Chapel Hill for the first time in 25 years. The Tar Heels had won the last 5 matches against the Wolfpack.

The Wolfpack defeated the Tar Heels 39-20 in Football in Carter-Finley Stadium. It marked the 3rd consecutive win over UNC.

NC State lost both regular season games to UNC in Men’s Basketball, but when it mattered most, the Wolfpack defeated the Tar Heels in the ACC Championship Game 84-76, winning their first title since 1987.

The Wolfpack Women’s Basketball team lost to their rival in Chapel Hill, but defeated UNC 63-59 in Reynolds Coliseum. NC State has won 5 of the last 7 against UNC.

In Gymnastics, NC State defeated UNC 196.725-194.925 in Raleigh. This marked the 3rd straight victory for the Wolfpack over the Tar Heels.

NC State’s Men & Women’s Swimming & Diving teams both beat UNC. The Men won 258-93, and the Women won 196-157.

The Wolfpack Wrestling team defeated UNC 33-6 in Reynolds Coliseum. NC State has won 11 straight Duals against the Tar Heels.

The NC State Men’s Tennis team defeated UNC 4-0, winning against their rival in back-to-back years.

The Wolfpack Women’s Tennis team has defeated the Tar Heels 4-3 on two occasions thus far this season, and will face their rival again today.

The Cross Country teams didn’t have individual meets against UNC, but the Women obviously beat them, because they won the ACC Championship. The Men didn’t, finishing 8th in the Conference, with the Tar Heels finishing 1st.

The only other NC State athletic team that didn’t taste victory against UNC this year was the Women’s Soccer team, losing 0-4 in Raleigh.

Of course, each of these NC State athletic teams has much higher goals than just beating their rival, but there’s no denying how sweet it is to beat the Tar Heels.

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NC State Basketball

Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James is Currently Visiting NC State

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16 hours ago

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April 19, 2024

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Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James (6’5″/200) is on a visit to NC State currently, according to a source.

Indiana State Transfer Ryan Conwell was on campus last week, but he just committed to Xavier.

From what I hear, the staff preferred James over Connell anyway. A plus with James is he has 2 years of eligibility, whereas Conwell has 1.

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.

Rivals ranked James as the #71 overall player in the 2021 recruiting class, and ESPN ranked him as the #7 prospect in the state of Florida.

After redshirting his first year in Louisville due to torn achilles, James has been a starter for the Cardinals the past two years. This year, he averaged 12.6 points and 5 rebounds.

For a more extensive look at James’ game, click here.

Rivals ranks James as the #77 overall player in the Transfer Portal.

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NC State Basketball

Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James is a Priority for NC State

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20 hours ago

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April 19, 2024

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Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James (6’5″/200) is a priority for NC State, according to a source.

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.

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.

He does have the ability to knock down a three, making 34.8% for his career.

NC State already hosted Indiana State Transfer Guard Ryan Conwell last week, and while the Wolfpack coaches like both players, from what I’m hearing, James would be their preference.

NC State hasn’t had James in for a visit, but that could happen soon.

James has 2 years of eligibility remaining.

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NC State Basketball

NC State’s Casey Morsell is the 4th Player in NCAA History to Start 41 Games in a Season

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1 day ago

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April 19, 2024

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NC State Guard Casey Morsell started 41 games for the Wolfpack this season, becoming the 4th player in NCAA history to do so.

 

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Prior to this season, the record for most games started in a single season in NC State history was 37, with three Wolfpack players doing so: Lorenzo Brown, Richard Howell, CJ Williams.

Morsell now sits atop the list, and a fellow teammate, DJ Burns ranks second, with 40 games started this season.

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