NC State Men’s Basketball Head Coaching Search: Patience Required

After news broke that NC State had fired Kevin Keatts this past Sunday, Wolfpack fans have been refreshing their web browsers every 3.4 seconds in hopes of catching even a nugget of intel about who the next head coach for NC State men’s basketball will be. This is completely understandable; as each day passes, potential candidates could be scooped up by other schools, and there is the looming opening of the Transfer Portal on March 24th.

The reality is, patience is required in this situation.

As things currently stand, it looks like McNeese State’s Will Wade and VCU’s Ryan Odom are at the top of NC State’s wish list. If the Wolfpack hopes to land either of them, patience is crucial because both of their teams are still competing in their respective conference tournaments.

#1 seed McNeese State (26-6) defeated #4 seed Northwestern State 83-64 in the Southland Conference Tournament, advancing to play #2 seed Lamar today at 5 PM on ESPN2. McNeese State is a 13.5-point favorite over the Cardinals tonight. The Cowboys are aiming to win back-to-back Southland Conference Championships. Wade led McNeese State to their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2002 last year, and a win tonight will send them back to the Big Dance. If the Cowboys win, their season will extend into next week in the NCAA Tournament.

#1 seed VCU (25-6) will play next in the quarterfinals of the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament on Friday at 11:30 AM on the USA Network. They will face either #8 seed St. Bonaventure or #9 seed Duquesne, who play tomorrow at 11:30 AM.

While McNeese State likely needs to win their conference tournament today to advance to the NCAA Tournament, ranking 58th in the NET, VCU could make the Big Dance without winning the Atlantic 10 Championship, currently ranked 32nd in the NET. ESPN currently has the Rams slotted as a #11 seed in their Bracketology projections after yesterday’s games, but it’s worth noting that this projection assumes they are an automatic qualifier.

For a variety of reasons, the next NC State Men’s Basketball Coach might not have the last name Wade or Odom, but if that ends up being the case, discovering what either coach plans for next season will depend on how successful both of their teams are in postseason play.