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NC State Miraculously Beats Clemson 69-67 on Buzzer Beating Three by Braxton Beverly

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5 years ago

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I’m not sure what the odds are of winning a game when you are down by 6 points with 24 seconds left, but it can’t be good.

Whoever cared about the odds anyway.

Redshirt Sophomore Braxton Beverly hit a buzzer beating three-pointer from what seemed like a mile away.

Despite getting behind early in the 1st half, NC State led for over half of the first period (11:27), and went into halftime up 30-24.

Redshirt Junior CJ Bryce was the player of the first half, posting 10 points (4-6 FG/2-2 3PT) and 6 rebounds. He finished the game with 15.

Despite building a 9-point lead 4 minutes into the 2nd half, the Wolfpack allowed Clemson to go on a massive run, which included a 12-0 run, resulted in them tying the game with 8:14 left, and taking the lead with 6:59 left.

Honestly, a lot of that run was painful to watch. The shot selection by the Pack was poor, and they had no offer for Tigers big man Elijah Thomas, who finished with 18 points, 6 rebounds and 3 blocks.

The Wolfpack fanbase has been eagerly awaiting the return of Junior Markell Johnson, and their favorite version of him showed up…”2nd half Markell.” Johnson finished with a team high 16 points, and 14 of them came in the 2nd half. He by no means was lacking in confidence, hitting 3 of his 6 three-point attempts. He hit two of them with under 4 minutes to play, each time bringing his team back within 1-point.

Senior Torin Dorn hit a three of his own to make it a 1-point game with 2:25 left.

When Marquise Reed missed a three-point attempt with 1:55 left, NC State had a chance to grab the rebound and go down and take the lead for the first time since the 8:14 mark. Unfortunately, no one thought about boxing out Clyde Trapp, who proceeded to grab the offensive board, miss a layup, rebound his own shot, miss another layup, grab another one of his shots, and finally making his 3rd layup attempt.

Markell Johnson forced a three-pointer from the corner at the end of the shot clock, trying to draw contact with 1:16 left.

Reed hit a jumper with 51 seconds left to put the Tigers up by 5.

Dorn missed a 3-point attempt with 40 seconds left.

That’s when things began to get interesting.

Clemson utterly choked, hitting 2 of 8 free throw attempts in the final 35 seconds.

That includes Marcquise Reed, who led the Tigers with 19 points, missing 4 consecutive free throws in the final 13 seconds.

Which led to this…

That three-pointer was Beverly’s only one of the day. He missed his first 4 attempts.

This was the type of win, as ugly as it was, that can propel a team forward with an elevated since of confidence and unity. With this always in the back of their minds, they will always know that the game is never over.

As someone named Valvano from NC State famously said.

“Don’t give up…don’t ever give up.”

The Wolfpack is now 16-4, and 4-3 in conference play.

They will host #3 Virginia on Tuesday night at 7pm.

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Matthew is Publisher and Co-Owner of Pack Insider. He is also the Lead Pastor of The Point Church in Cary, NC.

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NC State Basketball

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

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5 hours 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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NC State Basketball

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

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18 hours 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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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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NC State Basketball

ECU Transfer Forward Ezra Ausar to NC State is Trending Up

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1 day ago

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May 1, 2024

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ECU Transfer Power Forward Ezra Ausar (6’9″/240) was on an Official Visit to NC State yesterday, and according to analysts at ON3 and 247Sports, things are trending in the right direction for the Wolfpack.

Jamie Shaw of ON3 submitted a prediction for Ausar to eventually commit to NC State yesterday morning.

Cory Smith of 247Sports submitted a crystal ball projection for Ausar to run with the Wolfpack this morning.

Ausar just wrapped up his Sophomore season in Greenville, averaging 11.4 points and 4.7 rebounds, shooting 51.4% from the field. As a Freshman, he was named to the AAC All-Freshman Team, averaging 9.8 points and 5.3 rebounds.

Ausar is a consensus 4-Star prospect in the Transfer Portal, and ON3 ranks him as the #60 overall player in the Portal and the #10 Power Forward.

Originally from Atlanta, Ausar played his Senior Season of High School at Liberty Heights Athletic Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina. ON3 ranked Ausar as a 4-Star prospect coming out of high school, the #94 overall player nationally, and the #2 player in the state of North Carolina.

Ausar has visited Seton Hall, Georgia Tech, met over Zoom with Georgetown, and had an in-home visit with Utah. John Calipari and his staff at Arkansas have been in touch with Ausar, as well as Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Virginia Tech, Arizona State, West Virginia, Iowa State and St. John’s. (Link)

At this point, it’s good news that Ausar has no visits scheduled after the visit to NC State.

Ausar has 2 years of eligibility remaining, and NC State currently has 1 scholarship remaining.

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NC State Basketball

NC State Signee Zamareya Jones Showed Out in the McDonald’s & Jordan All-American Games

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1 day ago

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May 1, 2024

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NC State 2024 signee Zamareya Jones has played in the McDonald’s All-American game and the Jordan Brand Classic over the past month.

In the McDonald’s game on April 2nd, Jones had 13 points, helping her East squad defeat the West.

 

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In the Jordan Brand Classic on April 21st, Jones had 15 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds. She also hit the game winner for Team Flight.

Jones is a 5-star prospect in the Wolfpack’s 2024 recruiting class, ranked 21st overall nationally by ESPN.

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