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NC State has the nation’s attention after taking #3 Kansas to the wire

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1 year ago

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NC State was left for dead after last season. Keatts was all but finished at NC State and the media picked NC State to finish 10th in the ACC.

If you’re a long-time NC State fan, then you know that this is when you can expect one of those special seasons. When you’ve all but given up, they pull you right back in.

That seems to be in the early stages of happening as we speak.

After a pretty impressive 4 game run to open the season, NC State took the #3 team in the nation to the wire, at times looking like the more talented team. This hasn’t gone unnoticed.

Seth Greenberg on his postgame on ESPN stopped the Kansas hype for a minute to talk about NC State’s guards and how good they are. The ESPN broadcast also pointed out that NC State was picked 10th in the ACC and that’s just not going to happen with the amount of talent on this roster.

You also had Bill Self call NC State’s guards the quickest they’ll see all year and said Smith and Joiner are the quickest backcourt duo in the nation.

There are eyes on NC State now. Analysts starting to see what we’ve been talking about all preseason. Now it’s up to NC State.

With a great showing vs. Dayton today at 4pm (on ESPN News), the momentum will begin to pile up. Chatter about a true contender emerging in the ACC will ramp up. It’s up to the Pack.

There is no doubt that this group will be playing on tired legs. Joiner, Smith and Morsell played 35+ minutes in this one, but if there is a time to suck it up and change the narrative about this team, to make a statement that this team is for real, it’s today vs. Dayton.

Come out flat and lifeless and the Kansas game is just an aberration. The non-believers and blue-blood jockeys can laugh and say “I told you so.” But come out and cut Dayton’s throat, and suddenly those critics will get mighty quiet because the evidence will start mounting up that NC State has arrived.

Today will say a lot about this basketball team and will likely dictate the narrative going forward. Let’s just hope they understand the magnitude of today’s game and come out, not just to beat, but to bury Dayton.

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A pasta eatin', Wolfpack lovin' loudmouth from Raleigh by way of New Jersey. Jimmy V and Chuck Amato fanboy. All opinions are my own and you're gonna hear'em.

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Papajohn
Papajohn
1 year ago

For the few realists in the Pack community, I think this was going to be the best case path all along. We were unlikely to beat Kansas. A good showing was what we wanted, and we got it. The rest of the OOC schedule looks manageable. 10 games until we host Duke to start 2023. Take two in the Bahamas, and Miami looks like the next tough one. I think we need to win at least 12 of these first 15 in 2022. That leaves 16, and if we can split them we’ll have 20 wins going into the ACCT… Read more »

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Dof87
Dof87
1 year ago

I wish we could have gone deeper than 8 vs Kansas but its not like our opponent won’t be on tired legs, and have a shorter turnaround time. Playing first game is a slight edge.

Lets grab two Vs there for the taking!

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NC State Basketball

Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James is Currently Visiting NC State

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15 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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18 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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24 hours 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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NC State Basketball

Georgetown Transfer Dontrez Styles Commits to NC State!

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1 day ago

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April 18, 2024

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Georgetown Forward Transfer Dontrez Styles (6’6″/212) has committed to NC State!

Styles was the 2nd leading scorer for Georgetown this season, averaging 12.8 points per game, while grabbing 5.8 boards. He shot 36.8% from three.

Originally, Sytles was a consensus 4-Star prospect in UNC’s 2021 recruiting class. 247Sports ranked him as the #62 overall player nationally, and the #2 player in the state of North Carolina, playing for Kinston High School.

After two seasons with the Tar Heels, Styles entered the Portal, and took an Official Visit to NC State and Georgetown, and ultimately chose the Hoyas.

ON3 ranks Styles as the #104 overall player in the Portal.

With his final year of eligibility, Styles’ made the right choice this time.

NC State now has 2 scholarships remaining after Styles’ commitment.

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