GAMEDAY vs. Pitt | Keys to the Game, Team Trends and How to Watch (ACCT Round 2 Preview)

#7 NC State Wolfpack vs. #15 Pitt Panthers (ACC Tournament Second Round)
Time: 12:00 PM ET
Location: Spectrum Center, Charlotte, NC
TV: ESPN2

The NC State Wolfpack open their 2026 ACC Tournament run as the No. 7 seed, facing off against No. 15 seed Pittsburgh in the second round tomorrow at noon in Charlotte. NC State enters at 19-12 overall and 10-8 in ACC play, coming off a heartbreaking 85-84 home loss to Stanford in the regular-season finale that extended their skid to four games. The Wolfpack have shown flashes of strong offense throughout the year, but have struggled defensively and with consistency late, putting them in a must-win spot to bolster their NCAA Tournament résumé and avoid any last-minute bubble drama.

Pitt advanced with a dramatic 64-63 upset win over No. 10 Stanford in the first round on Tuesday, where Damarco Minor’s last-second putback sealed it after a back-and-forth battle. The Panthers sit at 13-19 overall and 5-13 in conference, scraping into the tournament with a late-season win over Syracuse but owning one of the league’s weaker profiles. NC State handled Pitt earlier this season with an 81-72 road victory on January 24 in Pittsburgh, dominating in the paint and limiting transition. Tomorrow’s neutral-site matchup offers the Pack a prime chance to snap their slump, secure a 20-win season, and set up a potential quarterfinal clash with No. 2 Virginia.

Wade’s Thoughts on Pitt from first meeting:
“Yeah, it was huge only to turn it over eight times. I mean, you can’t turn over when you give up 26 offensive rebounds. We were fortunate in that regard, and we made some timely shots. I thought Paul McNeil was huge for us, making some timely shots, making some big shots when we needed them, when we got down six and Q did a great job finding a minute transition for that one three in front of our bench. It was a total team effort, and very, very proud of the guys that we were able to dig it out. We had some foul trouble. We couldn’t play through Darrion as much as we had been, and we still found a way.”

“Roman Siulepa killed us. He’s a freshman. I mean, he absolutely killed us. Corhen did a great job. Those guys just annihilated us. It started from the beginning of the game. We didn’t set the tone very well at the beginning of the game, so it started there, and we just did a poor job, and they got us on some cross matches. We were supposed to rebound down. Our guards didn’t rebound down. We didn’t have nearly enough guard, defensive rebounds, and so I thought we were a little bit better in the second half with some of the guards rebounding.”

Keys To the Game

• Dominate the paint and rebounding — Pitt grabbed boards aggressively in their upset win vs Stanford and they murdered the Pack on the glass 52-31 in their first meeting. If NC State doesn’t get serious on the glass, they could be upset by this physical Pitt front court.
• Get Copeland going — In the first meeting Q put up 20 points and dished out 9 assists. You can bet Pitt is going to let him shoot and drop his defender deep into the paint. That’s been the blueprint vs the Wolfpack during this late season skid. Copeland, like it or not, has got to hit a few 3s to keep them honest. He’s lost his touch lately and it’s allowed teams to jam up the paint on us.
• Paul McNeil Jr Volume — He’s GOT to shoot it and shoot it a lot. NC State is good when Paul McNeil is filling it up. Lately, with teams jamming up the paint, Copeland hasn’t been able to create as much havoc, meaning shooters aren’t getting open. This dominoe effect is hurting McNeil who needs to get shots up if NC State wants to make a run.
• Defensive intensity + Turn them over — State turned Pitt over a lot in game 1. They had 10 steals in that game. Pitt is sloppy with the basketball, and NC State needs to capitalize on that.

Players to Watch

• NC State: Quadir Copeland (G) — We’ve spent all year talking about balance, talking about Darrion Williams usage. It’s time to admit what makes this team go. Quadir Copeland. As he goes, we go. Q, bring us to the promised land.
• Pitt: Barry Dunning Jr. (G) or Damarco Minor (G) — Dunning led the upset with 16 points and full-minute effort; Minor’s game-winner shows clutch ability. Containing their perimeter creation and drives will limit Pitt’s upset potential.

How to Watch

• TV: ESPN2
• Streaming: Available via ESPN app, WatchESPN, or services carrying ESPN2 (fuboTV, YouTube TV, etc.)
• Radio: Wolfpack Sports Network (Matt Chazanow and Chucky Brown on the call) or SiriusXM College Basketball channels
• Tip-Off: 12:00 PM ET from Spectrum Center in Charlotte