Gameday: NC State ready for big challenge vs #12 Tennessee | Game Preview & How to Watch

NC State Wolfpack vs. #12 Tennessee
Time: 10:00 PM
Location: San Antonio, TX
TV: ESPN2

Tennessee by the Numbers:

• 7-3 Record with losses to #2 Purdue, #1 Kansas, and #17 UNC (Wins over Syracuse and #20 Illinois)
• #2 Strength of Schedule in the nation
• 3rd in defensive adjusted efficiency
• 4 starters averaging double figures scoring
• 3 starters 6’6″ or taller
• 44% FG from the floor
• 32.5% from 3 point range

About the matchup…

Tennessee, as usual, is a big and physical team and usually, this is the type of team that gives NC State fits. They start a lightning quick 5’9″ PG (Zeigler), a 6’3″ SG who isn’t all that athletic and is having a down shooting year so far (Vescovi), an athletic 6’6″ guard who can shoot (James), a 6’6″ physical shooter, who isn’t super athletic (Knect) and a big, long, athletic 6’10” center (Aidoo).  They have a couple 6’8″ and 6’9″ guys that can come off the bench if they want to go big, but none of them are really dominant offensive presences. However, all of them can defend.

NC State is going to have to be ready for a physical battle. State definitely has the horses to match up with Tennessee, but this is going to be a test of their toughness. There aren’t going to be many straight line drives against a team like this, and usually that would kill the Pack, but this year NC State isn’t relying on those as much.

Instead, they are going to have to have a big game from DJ Burns and run the offense through him on the block. The problem there is that Burns has struggled against long, tall, athletic bigs in the past and that is what Aidoo is for the Volunteers.

I really expect this to be a chess match between Barnes and Keatts. Tennessee can go small or go really big, but so can NC State. We haven’t seen a Burns, Middlebrooks and Rice front court, but if they need that type of beef against Tennessee, they can bring it. And we’ve already seen State use Parker at the 4 to exploit slower, bigger teams.

Either way, tonight will tell us a lot about NC State. If they can hang against Tennessee, then it would put those BYU and Ole Miss games in a different light. But if they get blown out by the Volunteers, then maybe this is another Wolfpack team that’s going to try to squeak into the tournament come March.