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NC State Basketball

Keatts, Freeman and Dorn Presser Before Arizona :: Bulleted

Published

6 years ago

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NC State head coach Kevin Keatts, Lennard Freeman and Torin Dorn met with the media before the Pack’s showdown with Arizona at “Battle 4 Atlantis”. Watch the full version above or read the cliff notes version below:

  • Going to be a tough matchup. Sean Miller has built a great program there. It’s going to be a big challenge, but team is up for the opportunity.
  • Every coach wants a great defense. The strength of the defense is turning people over and getting deflections.Turning people over 22 times per game.
  • Must be better in the halfcourt vs. Arizona.
  • Italy trip taught us a lot about ourselves. Was a good experience. Allowed guys to play on the road.
  • Battle 4 Atlantis is a great tournament in paradise. Brings together some great teams that normally wouldn’t play one another.
  • Lennard: New system gives a lot of possession and it creates a lot of turnovers. You never know whose night its going to be.
  • The new system is fun. Had to get guys in best shape possible But any time you have a new coach, guys like Torin and Lennard need to accept the coach into the program. They did that.
  • Dorn: The change to Keatts system was drastic. Going from half court offense to full court was a change. Have to get mentally and physically better than everyone else.
  • Lennard: This is a proven system. Keatts comes from a winning background. Team bought in.
  • Dorn: Didn’t know he was leading the team in rebounds. Coaching says to be relentless and go after the offensive glass.
  • Keatts doesn’t share stats with his players.
  • Dorn: 4 guard lineup creates mismatches on both ends and gives matches they like to exploit.
  • Keatts has played in this tournament before and knows the gym well. Feels like playing in a small D1 school and it’s packed.
  • When you have a smaller venue and it’s tighter, guys usually shoot it better
  • Markell has done great. Keatts wants him to score more, but he’s maturing and doing well finding guys.
  • Arizona is the toughest matchup the team could have this early in the season.
  • This is a matchup you’d usually see 3 or 4 weeks in, but playing 4 games already it feels like 3 or 4 weeks in.
  • Arizona is a great team led by Trier who has 90 points in 3 games. Playing out of his mind.
  • They can score inside and out, get out in transition. it will be a great challenge.
  • Ayton does it all. Keatts was scared when he first watched him. State will have hands full with him.
  • Very hard to prep for two 7 footers in practice. They have a pro front line. Size is as big as Keatts has seen in college basketball.

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NC State Basketball

The Roster for the NC State Men’s Basketball Team is all but Set Heading into 2024-25

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1 day ago

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May 3, 2024

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NC State does have 1 scholarship available, and could still add a player out of the Transfer Portal. With that being said, the roster for the Men’s Basketball team is pretty much set for the 2024-25 season.

Non-graduates had to enter the Transfer Portal by April 30th, and Graduates had to enter by May 1st. Jayden Taylor and Michael O’Connell both made public announcements that they were returning, but the closure of entrance to the Portal means that Breon Pass, Ben Middlebrooks, Dennis Parker Jr. and MJ Rice are all set to return next season.

In a world where the Transfer Portal has all but become free agency in College Basketball, with some players switching schools on an annual basis, it’s encouraging that Kevin Keatts not only recruited a Top-10 Transfer Class, but also recruited a majority of the eligible players to stay. Three players that could transfer entered the Portal (I’m not counting Mohamed Diarra in these numbers, who opted to go pro), while 6 opted to continue running with the Wolfpack.

As a result, below is a breakdown of the roster for the NC State Men’s Basketball team heading into 2024-25, realizing the Wolfpack could still add one player (this team is deep).

1 year of Eligibility 

Guard Michael O’Connell
Guard Marcus Hill
Guard Breon Pass
Guard/Forward Jayden Taylor
Forward/Guard Dontrez Styles
Forward Ben Middlebrooks
Center Brandon Huntley-Hatfield

2 Years of Eligibility

Guard/Forward MJ Rice
Guard Mike James
Guard Jordan Snell (Walk-On)
Guard KJ Keatts (Walk-On)

3 Years of Eligibility 

Guard/Forward Dennis Parker Jr.

4 Years of Eligibility 

Guard Paul McNeil
Guard Trey Parker

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NC State Basketball

NC State’s Men’s Basketball 2024 Transfer Class Ranks in the Top-10 Nationally

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2 days ago

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May 2, 2024

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NC State’s Men’s Basketball team has picked up 4 players from the Transfer Portal this offseason, and the class ranks 10th nationally according to ON3, and 15th nationally according to 247Sports.

ON3

247Sports

NC State’s 2024 4-Man Transfer Class

Center Brandon Huntley-Hatfield (Louisville)

Guard/Forward Dontez Styles (Georgetown)

Guard Mike James (Louisville)

Guard Marcus Hill (Bowling Green)

NC State still has a chance to move up in the rankings. East Carolina Power Forward Ezra Ausar just wrapped up an Official Visit to NC State, and things are looking good for the Wolfpack. ON3 ranks Ausar as the #67 overall player in the Portal, and the #15 Power Forward.

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NC State Basketball

WATCH: Andy Katz’s Offseason Convo with NC State’s Kevin Keatts

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2 days ago

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May 2, 2024

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Andy Katz is beginning to make his rounds for his Offseason Convo series, and he took the time to meet with NC State Head Coach Kevin Keatts.

In their conversation, Keatts talked about what this run has meant to Raleigh and the Wolfpack fans, how it has helped sell the program the way it deserves to be in recruiting, and even how it helped and hurt in the world of the Transfer Portal.

Check out the conversation below:

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Guard Mike O’Connell Announces He Will Play His Final Year of Eligibility at NC State

Published

3 days ago

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May 1, 2024

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Guard Michael O’Connell announced today that he will be playing his final year of eligibility at NC State next season.

 

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A post shared by Michael O’Connell (@michaeloc_12)

Today was the final day graduate players could enter the Portal.

This past season, O’Connell averaged 5.7 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists for the Wolfpack, starting 22 of the 41 games he played in.

O’Connell took over as NC State’s starting Point Guard on January 30th in a win against Miami.

He only scored in double figures in 9 of his 41 games this season, but 6 of those came in postseason play (5 in the ACC Tournament). O’Connell took things to another level in the ACC Tournament, playing aggressive on the offensive end, looking for his shot, and attacking the rim.

NC State played it’s best basketball of the season when O’Connell was running the show. He ranked 3rd in the ACC in Assist/Turnover Ratio (2.5).

Heading into next season, with a lineup filled with new faces, having the calming presence of a veteran leader like O’Connell is reassuring.

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