NC State is a heavy favorite vs. Elon today | Gameday Preview and How to Watch

NC State Wolfpack vs. Elon Phoenix
Time: 1:00 PM
Location: Raleigh, NC
TV: ACCNX
Line: NC State by 23.5

NC State has had just about as good a start to the season as one could have hoped.

The Pack comes into this game 3-0 on the season with huge wins against FIU and Austin-Peay, with a close 6-point win vs. Campbell sandwiched in the middle. Elon on the other hand, comes in at 1-3 with losses to ETSU, Harvard and North Dakota.

The Phoenix are led by 6’0 senior guard Sean Halloran and 6’5 senior Torrence Watson, both of whom are averaging close to 12 points per game. Meanwhile, NC State has been getting points from all over the place. Most of it comes from Jarkel Joiner and Terquavion Smith who both are averaging 20. However, Casey Morsell is now averaging 15 and big man Dusan Mahorcic is putting up 10 per game.

They are still waiting for DJ Burns to get going. The reigning Big South player of the year is only averaging 6 points per game, however we expect him to have a big game against a very soft Elon front line.

The truth is, NC State is going to outmatch Elon at every position in this game. The Phoenix don’t have any interesting gimmicks or personnel that might throw the Pack for a loop, so I expect this one to be won handily by the Pack.

What we’d like to see is for Breon Pass to have a better game. NC State needs some depth at guard and Pass is a guy who can provide that. With Joiner and Smith giving you high octane athleticism and scoring from the position, it would be nice to see Pass play at a speed more comfortable to skill set and size. For him to find a solid role with this team, I think he’s going to have to play a little more methodically and focus on not turning over the basketball. He can score, but he’s a guy who really needs to pick his spots at this point. They don’t need him to overreach and push himself to score or up the tempo, when really that’s no the heart of his game.

Then there is LJ Thomas. We didn’t think we’d see much of Thomas, but with the depth needed at guard and Pass struggling, Thomas has gotten a chance and played well. He scored 12 in limited minutes last time out. Thomas played the calm backup guard role, not turning it over and knocking down shots when he got the chance. We’d like to see him get some more looks today vs. Elon.

We mentioned that we’d like to see Burns get going and get his confidence up, but we’d also like to see more minutes for Ernest Ross and Greg Gantt. Gantt might have limited minutes because he’s working his way back, but Ross is 100% and needs minutes to get comfortable out there. This team will have games where they need athleticism up front, and Ross is going to be that guy. They need him getting comfortable with the speed of the game. Once things slow down for him we think he’ll be a big difference-maker up front, especially with his rim protection.

NC State incoming freshman power forward Mady Traore was able to take in the game. He’ll join the squad in December.

— TheWolfpackCentral (@NCStateRivals) November 12, 2022

On that same note, we are getting closer to the addition of 7-foot wing, Mady Traore. As reported above, the staff expects him to be cleared in December, giving the Pack another versatile option in the front court. We’re told that Traore is not envisioned as a guy who is going to redshirt or ride the pine. They are expecting him to log minutes right away. We assume it will be in the backup role (around 10-12 minutes per game). But more depth is always welcome.

How to watch
This game is on both ACC Network Extra and ESPN+.
For ACC Network Extra, you’ll have to have the ESPN app on a streaming device and a cable log-in to get access to the game.
For ESPN +, you’ll also have to have the ESPN app, but you can just have a subscription to ESPN+ (which you can sign up for when you get there).
* Beware, if you are a cable subscriber and you find the game on the app, make sure you choose the ACCNX version. If you choose the ESPN+ stream, then it will ask you to pay for that service. Don’t be fooled.