WOLFERETTI: NC State escapes a noon snoozefest at Pitt, but a win is a win

Let’s not let this get lost in the shuffle. With this 81-72 win over Pitt, NC State has won their first 4 conference road games.

When is the last time they did that?

If my research is right, then it was 1973-74. Which also happened to be the year NC State won its first National Championship.

Crazy, right?

I’m an emotional guy. My highs are high, and my lows are low. I usually don’t need time to process stuff. I see something, I build an opinion, and I move on.

But this NC State team is challenging me. I watch them grind out a game like this and, honestly, it’s just hard for me to watch at times. But then you step back and remember that you’re not getting trophies for pretty play, you’re getting trophies for winning. And this NC State team continues to win.

Aside from the Georgia Tech game, they don’t have a single loss below Quad 2. They are just taking care of business, and at the end of the day, they are 14-6. They are 5-2 in the ACC, tied for 3rd place with #14Virginia, and only behind #18 Clemson and #5 Duke.

Will Wade didn’t promise pretty basketball; he promised winning basketball.

But before we go crowning anyone, let’s chat about his game vs. Pitt.

This was another noon-snoozer. NC State’s offense looked lost for most of the day. They did, however, shoot a good 47% from the floor and a decent 35% from 3pt range.

Defensively, they seemed pretty locked in. Good rotation, good physicality, they were focused. They held Pitt to just 37% from the floor.

But man, the rebounding was bad. Pitt finished with 52 rebounds to NC State’s 31. I mean, Pitt had 26 offensive rebounds…NC State had just 5 more TOTAL rebounds.

This is really the reason the game felt so frustrating and disjointed. The NC State defense would get a stop, but wouldn’t be able to get the rebound. Those offensive boards kill you. They wreck momentum, they tire your team, and they lower morale.

But it wasn’t just the offensive boards.

This was State’s worst defensive rebounding performance since February 8th, 2018 when they gave up rebounds on 55.3% of misses to FSU.

53.1% today, previous high this season was 40%.

— Wolfpack Stats (@ncstatestats) January 24, 2026

So how in the world did NC State win this game with that rebound differential?

Well, they created 14 turnovers while only turning it over 8 times, and they shot it decently overall…but really, Pitt just bailed them out by going 11-25 from the line (44%).

But look, a win is a win.

Here are some thoughts on who I thought played well and who didn’t in this one…

– Quadir Copeland did it again! Q had 20 points, 9 assists, and 3 turnovers. This guy continues to be the most consistent threat on the offensive end for the Pack. He’s saved this season, and while I know he can get a little emotional out there, he’s an elite weapon. When you need a bucket, he can get to the rim and make something happen. He’s got amazing vision, top 5 in the conference with 6.1 assists per game.
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State was down 56-51 and Copeland scored or assisted on 16 of the next 18 points that made it 69-61.

Relentless attacker. Took over possessions when State was sinking. Scored or assisted on 15 of 26 made field goals.

— Alec Lower (@AlecLower) January 24, 2026

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Q is such a factor. Two simple no-look point-to-point passes got you two of your best looks from 3 all game.

You can run all the sets you want, but nothing gets you more clean looks than a playmaking point guard with elite vision.

State leads 25-20 with 3:55 left in the 1st

— PackInsider.com (@PackInsider) January 24, 2026

NC State hasn’t had a passer like this since Markell Johnson.

– Where would NC State be without Ven-Allen Lubin? He doesn’t demand the ball much. He doesn’t ever complain, and he just goes out there and gets the job done. After a massive 22-point game against Clemson, he follows it up with this 17-point, 12-rebound performance. When no one else is willing to mix it up in the middle, VAL is. When NC State goes cold from outside, it’s usually VAL who cleans up a miss or gives you a bucket from the block.

Sometimes I feel bad that I don’t write a ton of articles about Lubin. He deserves more coverage. He is averaging 13 points and 7 rebounds on the season and scoring 17.5 per game over the last 4.

– Darrion Williams is still struggling. I don’t want to harp on the kid, because we’ve been over this many times before, but everyone on the team was in the positives in +/- for the game. Everyone except Darrion Williams, who finished -1.

Another poor shooting game 2-8 from the floor. 7 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 4 fouls.

But if you’re Wade, what do you do? Williams is the best thing you got at the 4 spot, and he does a good job of moving the basketball. But like I said after Georgia Tech, Williams can keep heavy usage, but he’s giving you too many empty possessions. He is shooting 33% from the floor. He’s missed 60 shots in just 5 ACC games.

But then again, he has stretches where he makes winning plays…

Darrion had this 35 second stretch towards the end of the game:

Offensive board
Defensive board
Drew two fouls
Scored 4 points

Definitely would like to have higher offensive production but he has winning stretches. Did the same against Clemson to close out the game.

— Ryan Williams (@RWilliams_IPS) January 24, 2026

The one thing about Williams is that he’s a post guy who can pass, and I don’t think people are really understanding how valuable that is. He can back down and pass from the block where every other defender’s back is turned. This by itself, puts pressure on the defense and why the staff like him touching the ball a lot. Just him touching it in the places he touches it creates stress on the defense.

I’m not sure what else to say about Williams. We need him; he’s the difference between us being a bubble team and us being a threat to take it deep into the tournament. But at the same time, we need to manage him until he can get things rolling (if he can get things going).

– Paul McNeil Jr is such a difference maker. 5-9 from 3pt range. 15 points. He’s another key for the Wolfpack. He’s becoming more consistent, and it’s creating problems for opposing defenses. His moving without the basketball has been enough to move the defense and open things up for guys like Copeland and Lubin.

–I want to see more of Terrance Arceneaux. He logged just 17 minutes, but once again was one of the top guys on the team in +/- with a +9 (3rd best on the team). Just 2 points, 3 boards and a steal, but he’s just playing winning basketball, especially on the defensive end.

– Matt Able is showing some more consistency. Able led the team at +11 and had 8 points on 4-9 shooting. He’s still playing a little rigid on offense, but he’s just a freshman, and it’s good to see him starting to earn a little more trust.

Overall, it was ugly, but a win is a win, and NC State finds itself in a great spot with some more winnable games on the horizon.