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NC State Basketball

Tony Bennett’s Press Conference After #3 UVA Squeaked by #23 NC State 66-65 in OT

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5 years ago

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Cavaliers head coach Tony Bennett spoke with the media after #3 Virginia held on to beat #23 NC State in OT in his postgame press conference. The video is ABOVE, and a bulleted breakdown is below.

  • I thought we played well enough to win, but a couple of those key stats stick out: the 16 offensive rebounds (NC State’s) and the 16 turnovers.
  • NC State plays good defense. They’re good with their hands. They’re athletic. They’re aggressive. They did rattle us and take us out of our rhythm.
  • Some of our offensive fouls and decision-making or defensive fouls at inopportune times almost cost us the game.
  • Of course, I thought (Wyatt) Walker was just a man on the glass. I thought he was hard to handle. We didn’t do a great job in those areas. Usually when you give up that many offensive rebounds and that many turnovers, you’re not going to be successful.
  • We made enough good plays and hung in there and got some good lifts from guys. I thought we had some chances to separate a little bit, but they made some big plays.
  • We’re thankful for the win, but we need to grow from this and learn from it. We brought losing into the equation when I didn’t know we had to in certain situations with fouls and turnovers and unsound decisions.
  • It was just one of those games. You could feel it with the crowd. You could feel it with the intensity. I thought we had it, and then we fouled the three-point shooter.
    • A lot of people say, ‘Should you foul to put them on the line?’ We decided to foul the three-point shooter. That was our theory on that, which wasn’t sound.
  • We’ll live and learn. We’re fortunate to get out of here. NC State’s a good team, especially when they’re at full strength, which they’re now getting back to.
  • You have to earn it in here (PNC).
  • I want to watch the film, but he’s (Wyatt Walker) very physical.
    • He was first to get position. He’s strong.
    • I saw him move Jack (Salt) a couple times, which guys don’t do.
    • We were just a little sluggish to the block out on the ball. There were a lot of bobbles in there, and he carved out space.
    • I had flashbacks to getting owned on the glass by Richard Howell. I mean we couldn’t handle him. I remember that feeling. They’re different players, but he’s physical and does a good job on the glass. He knows his role, and he’s very effective. 

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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

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

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4 days 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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5 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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5 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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NC State Basketball

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

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5 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.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

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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