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NC State Basketball

NC State 64 Pitt 67: BY THE NUMBERS

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It’s next to impossible to win a basketball game shooting 40% from the free throw line. NC State shot 6 of 15 from the charity stripe this evening, while Pitt shot 90%, making 18 of 20.

Rarely is it ever that simple, but this evening, it was.

I’m not saying there weren’t other factors that led to the Wolfpack’s loss. Obviously there were, but NC State managed to shoot better than Pitt from the field (46.4%/42.3%) and from three (33.3%/23.8%), and still lost the ball game.

The Panthers had 3 more second chance points, but the Wolfpack had 10 more points off of Turnovers. NC State took care of the ball, turning it over only 6 times.

It’s hard to look at this game on paper, and realize you let one get away.

To give the Pack credit, they were down 13 points at one point in the 2nd half. They were also down by double-digits at one point in the 1st half, and came back to even it up as well.

This game would have been in the bag if Casey Morsell and Jayden Taylor could have managed to score more than 5 points combined, with the former scoring all of the 5. Morsell was 2 of 7 from the field and Taylor was 0-3.

As good as DJ Horne and DJ Burns were, they really needed either Morsell or Taylor to factor into the game offensively in some way.

Horne continues to be one of the best scorers and shooters in the ACC, scoring 20+ for the 3rd straight game. He finished the evening with 25 points on 8 of 14 shooting from the field, and 5 of 10 from three.

Burns had a season high 19 points, shooting 9 of 16.

With the Pack currently on the outside looking in when it comes to NCAA Tournament projections, this one hurts badly.

The season isn’t over, with 5 Quad 1 games coming up. With a loss tonight, it becomes imperative that NC State beats a couple of teams they shouldn’t beat on paper.

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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Inhoc...
Inhoc...
3 months ago

“Road wins are hard!” They said….

“But we’re 4th in the ACC!” They said…

And there’s those of us who knew better after watching the first few games…

I’ll be an optimist when this program is playing for seeding, and not a “last 4 in” spot.

wolfpack74
wolfpack74
3 months ago
Reply to  Inhoc...

We are in the “last 20 out” maybe. These last games are the hardest. I think we will win two more games, maybe 3. At that rate we will not be invited to the NIT.

Last edited 3 months ago by wolfpack74
wolfpack74
wolfpack74
3 months ago

Packpainforlife says: We don’t have a guard who can get by a defender and we don’t have a guard who can stop someone from driving by them especially if they are an opposing team freshman. They just light us up. Embarrassing, but we do have a whole team of guards. We need some real bigs for a change, and of course a new coach.

Last edited 3 months ago by wolfpack74

NC State Basketball

NC State is Adding UMASS’ Brett Nelson as an Assistant Coach

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According to reports, NC State is adding UMASS’ Brett Nelson as an Assistant Coach.

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.

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NC State Basketball

Ernest Ross Announces He is Returning to NC State

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Power Forward Ernest Ross announced this morning that he is returning to NC State for his final year of eligibility.

 

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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.

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NC State Basketball

A Matchup Between NC State & Marquette Next Season Might be in the Works

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According to NCAA.com’s Andy Katz, a matchup between NC State and Marquette next season might be in the works.

This past year, the Wolfpack defeated the Golden Eagles 67-58 in the Sweet 16 of the 2024 NCAA Tournament.

NC State and Marquette have played one another 6 times overall, with the Wolfpack holding a 4-2 lead in the series, winning the past two matchups.

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NC State Basketball

NC State Men’s Basketball Will Play in the 2025 Maui Invitational

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The NC State Men’s Basketball Team will be playing in the 2025 Maui Invitational, on November 24-26 in Hawaii. This will mark the first time that NC State has ever played in the Maui Invitational.

NC State will be joined by Baylor, Oregon, Seton Hall, Texas, UNLV, USC and Chaminade.

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