GAMEDAY: #23 NC State vs. Texas | Preview, Keys to the Game, How to Watch

#23 NC State Wolfpack vs Texas Longhorns
Time: 9:30PM
Location: Maui, HI (Maui Invitational)
TV: ESPN2

NC State gets the matchup they were anticipating against Texas, but instead of it being for the Maui Invitational Championship, it’s for 5th place.

The Pack is coming off a bounce-back win over Boise State after a jarring loss to Seton Hall, while Texas just slaughtered Chaminade after a one-point loss to Arizona State in round 1.

Let’s take a closer look at Texas:
The Longhorns are 5-2. They’ve only lost to Duke and Arizona State, so I don’t really think anyone knows how good they really are. They’ve only beaten low end teams to this point, so they’ll be laser-focused on taking down a ranked opponent in NC State.

The good news for the Pack is that they match up well with Texas, and the way Wade has been sending weakside help on every drop down to the post, it should play to State’s advantage.

Texas is not a very good 3-point shooting team. They rely heavily on Dailyn Swain (6’8 versatile wing) and Matas Vokietaitis (7’0 center). Together, those guys score 1/3 of their points but do so almost totally in the paint. Swain shoots about 29% from 3 and Vokietaitis doesn’t really wander out that far. As a team Texas is shooting just 33% from long range.

Now, you might say, that’s not great news for the Pack. With Lubin at 6’8 and Darrion Williams and 6’6, they really don’t have the size to match the Texas front line. But if you’ve watched Wade’s strategy, it’s to not let teams punish us on the blocks. He’s going to send a double team almost every time these guys get the ball, and he’s going to live with open 3s. That has the opportunity to kill you, but you have to weigh the alternative.

If State tries to go one-on-one with the Texas bigs, it won’t end well. But if they force them to kick out and take contested 3s, State will likly have the advantage in this one.

One area of concern is going to be rebounding where Texas averages 46 per game while the Pack only hauls in 39. The Longhorns are also good on the offensive glass, so making sure NC State is in position and holding their box outs will be key.

Key Stat: 3 pointers made.

I think this is a stat to keep an eye on. NC State is going to need to knock down outside shots in this game. Texas has one of the nation’s best interior defenses, so points in the paint aren’t going to be easy to come by. Can the Pack stack up 3s like they did earlier this season? If so, I like their chances.