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NC State Basketball

Wolfpack Cages Cardinals 74-65

Published

9 years ago

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The  Pack finally managed to hold on in the second half as they used Louisville’s aggression to their advantage. Cat Barber was outstanding as he finished with a game high 21 points, 4 assists, and only 2 TO’s. By attacking the press Cat was able to draw the Cardinals out of position, this led to him to be able to dish to Anya who had some thunderous dunks in traffic. I am extremely pleased with the heart and guts that Cat has shown over the past 5 games. He has been using his strengths and playing within himself by using his outstanding quickness and speed to beat defenders to the basket. The most improved part of Cat’s game in this 5 game stretch has been his ability to finish among the trees. His focus and use of the hesitation has allowed him the daylight to convert inside. Today Cat was 10-13 at the charity stripe. If he keeps attacking the paint there is no reason why this outstanding play cannot continue.

Cat was a catalyst but he was not alone. Trevor Lacey provided the usual fireworks off of the dribble hitting some tough shots in crucial times to help keep Louisville from evening the contest in the second half. Lacey finished with 14 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. Not only did Trevor push the pace off of the press but he did an excellent job at slowing the tempo to settle the Pack as the Cardinals mounted their comeback. This was the first game that I have had a confidence in our guys that they would walk away with a win. Contributions came from each player that stepped foot on the floor. Caleb Martin came away with a beautiful lob pass that he converted from Lacey, and then on the next possession hit a big three in the corner.

At times it was a struggle for either team to come away with points, but make no mistake about it the Wolfpack was the better defensive team today. We battled the Cardinals on every possession and even beat them on the glass posting a plus 10 advantage. The reason NC State came away with the win is because they decided that they were going to stifle the Cardinals by not allowing them any easy buckets. Every drive by their star Harrell was contested and played straight up. Harrell only manged 7 points on the day, well below his average of 15. The Pack was not simply satisfied with taking Harrell away but made life difficult for the leading scorer in the ACC; Terry Rozier. Rozier had to watch the last 4 minutes from the bench as he fouled out. On the day Rozier was 3-11 from the field and only registered 7 points. Yes, the leading scorer in the ACC at 18.5 points per didn’t even make it into double figures. This intensity and desire must be matched each and every game from this point on if the Pack wants a chance at the NCAA.

Today’s performance is exactly what makes this season so dumbfounding. How can we go into a hostile environment and beat a top 10 team at their own game? How can we out rebound a team that has bullied so many teams thus far and then have  so many games slip away just as it looks like we are building some momentum? Let’s look forward though, 5 games  remain and nothing is set in stone in the ultra competitive ACC. State must use today as a confidence builder and come out next Saturday and demoralize the Hokies. There cannot be anymore playing down to the competition. There cannot be anymore slow starts. This is the time of the season where we must have that killer instinct and prove that we deserve to be in the NCAA Tournament.

NC State has to forget about this win and have a great week in practice and be ready to win in the PNC this coming Saturday versus Virginia Tech. Game is slated for a 6PM tip.

Side Note: How sweet were the black jersey’s? Personally I loved them and I know the guys were amped to be wearing the black threads and gold shoes.

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deedogtx
deedogtx
9 years ago

cooperpack I am not big on alternate jersey’s but as alternate jerseys go, these were very nice! Red and white are the primary colors, trim has been blue or black. http://brand.ncsu.edu/color/

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smfrank42
smfrank42
9 years ago

You gotta also give a lot of credit to Freeman. Freeman’s defense was real tough. He was agressive, moved his feet and physical. He was tasked from tipoff to stick to Harrel, and he did. And to compliment this, he also finished well inside. While Cat and Lacey were excellent, I thought Freeman was the key to that game. His presence downlow set the tone for our team. Over the last few games, we’ve given up too many easy buckets off simple cuts/post-ups and the bigs cut those out this game. Great game!

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cooperpack
cooperpack
9 years ago

sorry.  don’t like the black unis.  basketball, football, bass fishing or checkers.  Colors are red and white.

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Wolfer96
Wolfer96
9 years ago

wormncsu He’s deserved the criticism most of the season and he earned the praise today. He put a complete game together against Louisville. He handled the pressure, drove hard to the basket, made some sweet interior passes, and played really good defense.
I was just really happy to see this team handle the pressure. Attacking the press. It only took them most of the season to figure that out.

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wtaylor082671
wtaylor082671
9 years ago

wormncsu I’m with you…  All year I have been saying with his skill set, “Does he know how good he is?”…  Sometimes it takes a while, but I think we have seen enough over the last several weeks to validate the excitement we had when he committed to us.  I am real happy for him.  With his speed…  once he believes, the sky is the limit.

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wormncsu
wormncsu
9 years ago

I think we all need to give cat some credit for the job he has done the last few games. He has taken a lot of heat this year but I hope he continues to improve and show the dominant player he can be. Lets hope this is a turning point for the rest of the season.

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NC State Basketball

Boston Transfer Center Caitlin Weimar Commits to NC State

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1 day ago

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April 26, 2024

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Boston Transfer Center Caitlin Weimar (6’4″) has verbally committed to NC State for her final year.

Weimar took an Official Visit to NC State a little over a week ago.

She is the reigning Patriot League Player of the Year, and has been named Defensive Player of the Year the past two years. She has earned 1st Team Patriot League Honors the past two seasons.

This year, Weimar averaged 18.7 points, 10.6 rebounds and 2.8 blocks. As a Junior, she averaged 15.5 points and 10.0 rebounds. She shot 55.5% this year, and 59.7% last year.

With the exodus of River Baldwin, picking up a commitment from Weimar is massive.

With the addition of Weimar, NC State now has 2 scholarships available heading into the 2024-25 season.

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NC State Basketball

Bowling Green Transfer Guard Marcus Hill Commits to NC State!

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2 days ago

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April 25, 2024

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Bowling Green Transfer Guard Marcus Hill (6’4″/185) has committed to NC State!

Hill took an Official Visit to NC State this past weekend.

This past season, Hill averaged 20.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game for the Falcons. He earned 1st Team All-MAC honors. Even though he was only at Bowling Green one season, he had one of the best seasons in school history, scoring 698 points, which ranks 5th all-time in program history for a single season.

For his first two years of collegiate ball, Hill played for Southern Union State College (JUCO) in Alabama. In 2022-23, Hill earned 3rd Team NJCAA All-American honors, and ranked as the #32 overall Junior College prospect.

247Sports ranks Hill as a 4-Star Transfer Prospect, and the #81 overall player in the Transfer Portal, and the #11 Shooting Guard.

Even though 247Sports and ON3 consider Hill a Shooting Guard, NC State is recruiting him as a Point Guard.

Hill is the 4th player to transfer to NC State this offseason, joining Louisville’s Brandon Huntley-Hatfield & Mike James, and Georgetown’s Dontrez Styles.

With the addition of Hill, NC State now has 1 scholarship remaining for next season.

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NC State Basketball

NC State’s Mohamed Diarra Will Not Return to NC State for Final Season

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3 days ago

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April 24, 2024

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NC State Forward Mohamed Diarra will not be returning to NC State for his final season of eligibility. Rather, he will give 100% of his focus to pursuing his professional career.

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Diarra is declaring for the NBA Draft, and will explore that possibility as far as it goes, but the likelihood of him playing professionally in his home country of France are high.

Diarra was a significant player for NC State all season long, averaging 6.3 points and 7.8 rebounds (team high), but his impact in March was tremendous, recording 10+ rebounds in 7 of the Wolfpack’s 10 postseason games, and five of those performances were double-doubles.

Wolfpack fans will always remember the grit and mental toughness that Diarra put on display in the NCAA Tournament, playing game-after-game while fasting for Ramadan.

The Wolfpack’s frontcourt just got a little bit thinner. In the past two weeks, NC State has lost Diarra and Ernest Ross.  Ben Middlebrooks is returning, and Brandon Huntley-Hatfield transferred in from Louisville. Dontrez Styles transferred in from Georgetown, and while he is more of a Small Forward, in certain lineups, he could play the Small 4 position. With all that being said, I fully expect NC State to try to find another post player in the Transfer Portal with Diarra’s exodus now official.

With Diarra not returning in 2024, NC State now has 2 scholarships available for next season.

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NC State Basketball

Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James Commits to NC State!

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4 days ago

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April 23, 2024

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Louisville Transfer Guard Mike James (6’5″/200) has announced his commitment to NC State!

 

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This past year, James averaged 12.6 points per game (3rd on the team) and 5 rebounds. He’s extremely physical and aggressive, taking 47% of his field goal attempts at the rim (making 46%). As a result, he draws a lot of fouls, ranking 10th in the ACC in Fouls Drawn, and 4th in Free Throw Rate. James made opponents pay this year when they put him on the line, making 81.8% from the charity stripe, which ranked 15th in the ACC.

James shot the ball better as a Redshirt Freshman, than he did this past season. His Effective Field Goal Percentage in 2022-23 was 55.8%, which ranked 19th in the ACC, and his True Shooting Percentage of 59.6% ranked 14th.

News broke about James entering the Transfer Portal back on March 25th, and NC State was quick to reach out. Kevin Keatts and his staff recruited the former 4-star prospect out of high school heavily, but he ultimately chose the Cardinals.

After redshirting his first year in Louisville due to torn achilles, James has been a starter for the Cardinals the past two years.

He does have the ability to knock down a three, making 34.8% for his career.

James has 2 years of eligibility remaining. With James’ commitment, NC State currently has 1 scholarship available for next season.

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