NC State Basketball
The Who, What, Where and When of NC State’s TBT Team Wolf Blood
I don’t remember a State sports season that just never ended, but it feels SO good. This July, for the first time ever, NC State has a team heading to the TBT (The Basketball Tournament). Here is your complete breakdown of everything Team Wolf Blood.
Wolf Blood’s opening game is July 24th at 1pm on ESPN3. If they win, they’ll play the very next day at 2pm on ESPN.
WHAT
TBT is a yearly, single elimination basketball tournament, broadcast on the ESPN family of networks. The winner takes home a cool $1 million. All teams are predominately made up of former college stars, with a few ex-NBAers thrown in. Furthermore, no current NBA players are allowed to play (although I believe that’s more an unwritten, “don’t be that team” rule).
Rosters split up the cash how they please and we get to reminisce about the years we were actually playing in March. *Sad laugh
WHERE
Team Wolf Blood opens up TBT as a 7th seed in the Columbus region. In their opening game, they’ll play Category 5, a Miami alumni team with Davon Reed, Dejan Vasiljevic and Anthony Lawrence. If they win? Most likely to face long-time entrant and region favorite, Red Scare, a Dayton alumni team. Similar to State, lots of 2013 faces from the Flyers team that made it to the Elite Eight.
WHEN
Team Wolf Blood tips-off on July 24th, if they win, again on the 25th. The TBT Final Four and Championship are in Dayton July 31st – August 3rd. If you’re ready to head to Ohio, tickets are on sale now.
WHO
Here’s the fun part. Lots of familiar faces and fan favorites on this squad. Thus, I’m already emotionally attached to their success. Let’s run through the roster.
COACHES:
Jordan Collins: Played at State from 2001-05, but wasn’t until his senior season that he saw decent minutes. Highlight of that senior year was finishing 13th in the ACC in blocks at 33.
Ralston Turner: An LSU transfer, Turner played for State for two seasons, average 11 points and 3 boards a game. His second season saw him finish 2nd in ACC for 3-point FG percentage.
PLAYERS:
Trevor Lacey: Played one season for the Wolfpack, but damn was it fun. Averaged nearly 18 points, 5 boards and 4 assists in route to a 2nd-Team ACC honor
Scott Wood: Howell and Wood are in a battle for “WPN Favorite” on this roster. Scotty “Shooter” Wood was a three-point machine for State. State’s all-time leader in threes (7th most in ACC history) and top-15 in State for overall points, Wood will bring that beautiful shot to Ohio. Playing a 138 games for the Wolfpack, he was still able to average 13.4 points a game.
Richard Howell: If you didn’t have that beard shirt back in the day, you were a loser. In his senior season with State, he averaged a double-double (12.7 points and 10.9 boards) on his was to All-ACC first team honors. Lead the nation in rebounds his senior season and ranks fifth all-time in ACC history.
Terry Henderson: On campus for two seasons, played really just one in the 2016-2017 season. Averaged nearly 14 points per game that year, finishing top-20 in the ACC in Offensive Rating, Free Throw Percentage and 3-Point Field Goals.
Torin Dorn: Played one season at UNC-Charlotte before becoming a huge part of the State program his junior and senior seasons. Those last two seasons, he averaged 14 points and nearly 7 boards a game. Senior season saw him finish top-8 in the ACC in Rebounds, and Field Goals Made.
Abdul-Malik Abu: Strong sophomore and junior seasons, bookended by less than ideal years. Abu average 12.5 points and 8 rebounds those middle years. For his career, he ranks as the 15th most offensive rebounds in ACC history.
C.J.Williams: Williams had a steady career at State. Playing all four years, it culminated in a 11 point, 4 rebound 2 assist senior season. That year he finished top-15 in the ACC in Steals, 2-Point Field Goals and minutes played.
Wyatt Walker: Walker known more for his gorgeous flow, played one season with the Wolfpack. Played in every game of the 2018-19 season, averaging 5 points and 4.5 boards.
Dez Lee: Played two seasons in Raleigh, his first year being his best. Averaged 8.4 points and 3 boards before Lacey took most of his minutes the following season.
Pack Insider will send along good ol’ updates throughout TBT. Also, give them a follow on all social media platforms. #GoPack
According to reports, NC State is adding UMASS’ Brett Nelson as an Assistant Coach.
Sources: Brett Nelson is leaving UMass to join Kevin Keatts’ staff at NC State as an assistant.
Matt Figger — who worked for Frank Martin at both South Carolina and Kansas State — will replace Nelson in Amherst.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) May 15, 2024
Nelson was only at UMASS for 1 season under Frank Martin. Prior to that, Nelson was the Head Coach at Holy Cross for 4 seasons, posting a 27-84 record.
Prior to taking the Head Coaching mantle at Holy Cross, Nelson was at Marquette for 5 seasons, spending the first 3 as an Assistant Coach, and the final two as an Associate Head Coach. Prior to Marquette, Nelson also served as an Assistant Coach at Ball St., Drake, Arkansas and Marshall.
Before coaching basketball, Nelson played for the University of Florida from 1999-2003. He was All-SEC twice, and earned Third Team All-American honors. When he left Gainesville, he was the Gators’ all-time leader in three pointers made, and ranked 2nd in steals.
As a Senior in High School, Nelson was a McDonald’s All-American.
Power Forward Ernest Ross announced this morning that he is returning to NC State for his final year of eligibility.
View this post on Instagram
Last Friday, Ross committed to UTSA after entering the Transfer Portal on April 17th, but it looks like he had a change of heart over the past couple of days.
NC State has been in desperate need to add a Big out of the Portal. They have hosted ECU’s Ezra Ausar and Georgia’s Frank Anselem-Ibe, but neither of them have found a home yet. With the addition of Ross, NC State has added depth in the Frontcourt, and unless something changes, their roster is full with 13 scholarship players.
Ross played in 14 games this past season, averaging 3.4 minutes per contest. After playing in 34 games last season, averaging 11.4 minutes per contest, Ross saw his participation dip to a career low this season, but that didn’t for a second break his infectious personality. On the sideline, you could count on Ross every single game to be the heart and soul of the Wolfpack on the bench. To watch a player who played as little as he did, care as much as he did, makes me super proud that this young man represented NC State so well.
Ross was a consensus 4-star player in NC State’s 2021 recruiting class, with 247Sports ranking him as the #60 overall player nationally. ESPN ranked him as the #5 overall player in the state of Florida.
