Connect with us

NC State Basketball

Stop with the Clemson Should be in Instead of NC State Narrative

Published

1 year ago

on

So apparently Dick Vitale and Jay Bilas think Clemson should have made the NCAA Tournament instead of NC State.

Vitale’s thoughts:

“What do you think the feeling must be at Clemson when they see NC State there, who they beat not once, not twice, but three times?” Vitale said. “And you see the margin of victories.” (Link)

“… I don’t know how you can really justify that. That really troubles me.”

Bilas’ thoughts:

“… I’m sensitive to the whole, ‘We beat NC State!’ three times thing, because that’s fair. I think head-to-head is a big factor.” (Link)

Look, I get it. Clemson beat NC State three times this year. They owned the Wolfpack. In fact, they have won 6 straight. No offense to the Tigers, but in my opinion, that’s unacceptable.

But just because you beat a team three times doesn’t mean you deserve to get in over that team. What you did in the rest of your body of work matters as well.

Clemson also finished 14-6 in the ACC compared to NC State’s 12-8 conference record.

They even had 4 Quad 1 wins, going 4-4 against Quad 1 opponents. NC State was 1-6 against Quad 1 opponents.

So Clemson has the same amount of overall wins as NC State, more conference wins, and more Quad 1 wins.

What about wins against teams that were ranked in the Top-25 when the game was played? NC State has 2 and Clemson has 1.

When it comes down to it, the problem wasn’t Clemson’s wins, it was their losses. The Tigers had 2 Quad 3 losses and 2 Quad 4 losses. They lost to South Carolina, Loyola Chicago, Boston College and Louisville.

Do I think this makes NC State a better team with a better resume than Clemson? No, not necessarily.

In fact, I think that Clemson should be an NCAA Tournament team.

With that being said, just because I believe that Clemson should be in the Dance, doesn’t mean that I think NC State shouldn’t.

Why not make the argument that Clemson should have made it over Arizona State or Pitt, who ranked 66th and 67th in the NET Rankings. Clemson finished 60th in the NET Rankings. For perspective, NC State finished ranked 44th in the NET.

Just because Clemson is deserving to be in the Dance, doesn’t mean that NC State isn’t deserving.

They both are.

Don’t discount NC State simply because Clemson was snubbed.

Related Topics:

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

8 Comments
Subscribe
Notify of
8 Comments
newest
oldest most Upvoted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Papajohn
Papajohn
1 year ago

Giglio got it right. He said, “Clemson is mad at the wrong Wolfpack. Nevada’s Wolf Pack got into the play-in games because the committee always saves one of those four spots for a non P5 team.”
However, I do agree Clemson was tournament worthy. And if we went into the ACCT thinking “it’s us or them” for a spot and then beat that team as badly as they beat us, we’d be out of our minds just like they are. The fallacy was, it wasn’t ‘us or them.’

2
Dof87
Dof87
1 year ago

On another topic, did anyone see GT’s new coach press conference. I’ve seen low key coaches before, but Stoudamire sounded like he just woke up from a coma. Not very confidence inspiring. But you never know.

1
Papajohn
Papajohn
1 year ago
Reply to  Dof87

To me, that’s an odd hire, especially compared to who he replaces.
Pastner had a great track record, he was the CUSA COY one year, won their tournament a couple of times, and won the league a couple of times. He was a hot property in the college coaching world. Stoudamire only has 5 years experience as HC, and only had one winning season. A career losing record both in the WCC league and overall.
It’s a weird coincidence that both Pastner and Stoudamire played at Arizona.

1
Rev
Rev
1 year ago

The NET is seriously flawed. My best example…. If you beat a team, no matter if they are ranked higher or lower than you, the loss hurts the other team’s NET and can result in hurting your own NET ranking. I personally think the Duke and UNC not living up to expectations hurts the reputation of the entire ACC unfairly. And like it or not, there really is not enough OOC play in the mega conferences to justify comparing the power 5 teams..agreeing with Dof87.

2
Rev
Rev
1 year ago

On a totally different note, Shakeel Moore missed a wide open 3 that would have beat Pitt. Pitt even missed a gimme tip of the missed shot. Heartbreaker. Prolly lots more (no pun) drama to come. PS Clemson can pound sand.

2
Dof87
Dof87
1 year ago
Reply to  Rev

I was torn between pulling for Shakeel and wanting Pitt to win and help prove the ACC was slighted in selections.

I hate he had to go out missing that shot, but he was a big reason they were in position to win.

1
Rev
Rev
1 year ago
Reply to  Rev

I hate I can’t edit mistakes. Of course I meant Miss St missed a tip of Moore’s missed three. They were only down one. Crazy game. I think I read there were 21 lead changes. Hope Pitt can win another one. Not as much as I hope the Pack wins Friday!

1
Dof87
Dof87
1 year ago

I agree Clemson should have been in the tournament, along wit NC State. Yes, the argument that it should be either Clemson or NC State flies in the face of the ‘body of work’ and selection criteria they claim to use. Tell Dicky there are other teams in the field below NC State. Clemson would need to displace those teams before they would displace us. Like you said, Did Arizona State really deserve to be in over Clemson? THAT is the question they should be asking first. I think its clear that State deserved to be in over Arizona State.… Read more »

Last edited 1 year ago by Dof87
2

NC State Basketball

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

Published

2 days ago

on

May 3, 2024

By

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

Continue Reading

NC State Basketball

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

Published

3 days ago

on

May 2, 2024

By

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.

Continue Reading

NC State Basketball

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

Published

3 days ago

on

May 2, 2024

By

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:

Continue Reading

NC State Basketball

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

Published

4 days ago

on

May 1, 2024

By

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.

Continue Reading