Quick Hits From NC State’s 108-72 Win Over Texas Southern…

NC State improved to 8-4 this evening, defeating Texas Southern 108-72 in the annual Heritage Game in Reynolds Coliseum. Here are my Quick Hits.

Box Score
Paul McNeil Jr. Broke the NC State Record for 3’s in a Game, & Tied the ACC Record
Paul McNeil Jr.’s 47 Points Rank 5th in NC State History
ACC Digital Network’s Highlight Reel & Condensed Game

• NC State has now scored 100+ points in 3 of the their 12 games to start the season.
  • The last time the Wolfpack scored 100+ points three times in a season was in 2018-19
• In my lifetime, apparently 20 Division-1 Men’s Basketball players have made 12+ three’s in a single game.
  • With that being said, Paul McNeil Jr.’s shooting performance tonight was the best my eyes have ever witnessed.
    • McNeil Jr. scored 47 points, hitting 11 of his 17 three-point attempts.
      • His 47 points are tied for the 5th most in school history.
      • His 11 three’s set a new school record, and tied the ACC record.
  • Before moving on to my next observation, I’d be remiss not to highlight McNeil Jr.’s 10 rebounds.
    • McNeil Jr. posted a DOUBLE-DOUBLE OF 47 POINTS AND 10 BOARDS.
    • His 10 rebounds are a new career-high.
    • This obviously means this was McNeil Jr.’s first career double-double.
  • McNeil Jr. led the Pack in points (obviously) and rebounds.
• Junior Forward Jerry Deng was the only other NC State player to score in double-figures, finishing with 14 points.
  • Deng was 4 of 12 from the field, and 4 of 10 from three.
  • Deng’s 14 points tonight are the most he’s scored since joining the Pack this year.
• As a team, NC State made 17 of their 40 three-point attempts, which is tied for the 4th most three’s made in a single game.
  • The Wolfpack tied the school record in the season opener against NC Central, sinking 19 from beyond the arc.
  • In NC State’s first 12 games, they already have put together 3 games that rank in the Top-6 in school history for three’s made in a single game.
    • 1. NC Central (11/3/25) 19
      1. Jacksonville (12/22/17) 19
      3. Florida State (2/10/92) 18
      4. UNC Asheville (11/20/95) 17
      4. Texas Southern (12/17/25)
      6. Syracuse (2/2/22) 16
      6. Maryland (1/26/91) 16
      6. Wake Forest (3/5/83) 16
      6. UNC Greensboro (11/12/25) 16
• Senior Forward Darrion Williams has been dealing with a nagging shoulder injury as of late.
  • As a result, he was held out of tonight’s contest, but is expected to ready to go for the Wolfpack’s game against Ole Miss on Sunday in Greensboro.
• NC State was extremely unselfish tonight, scoring 21 of their 34 field goals off of assists.
  • The Pack have racked up 20+ assists in 3 of its 12 games to start the year.
  • For context, NC State only had 3 games with 20+ assists all of last year.
• Give it for my dude Quadir Copeland.
  • Q had 9 assists and only 2 turnovers.
  • His 9 assists are a season-high.
  • Copeland was efficient as usual when shooting the ball, scoring 7 points on 3 of 5 shooting from the field. He made the only three-pointer he shot.
• NC State was +13 in points off of turnovers, +3 in second chance points and +12 in fast break points.
• The Wolfpack shot 50.7% from the field, 42.5% from three and 85.2% from the free-throw line.
  • NC State has shot 50% or better from the field in 7 of 12 games.
  • NC State has shot 40% or better from three in 6 of 12 games.
    • The Wolfpack attempted 40 three’s for the second time this season, which is tied for the 4th most in a single game in school history.
  • NC State has shot 80% or better from the charity stripe in 5 of 12 games.
    • This was the Wolfpack’s highest free throw percentage in a game this season.
    • The Pack attempted 27 free throws tonight, which is the 4th highest total on the year.
• NC State held the Tigers to 40% shooting from the field, and 20.8% from three.
  • The Wolfpack has held opponents to a field goal percentage of 40% or below in 5 of 12 games.
• I haven’t done a good enough job highlighting just how good NC State has been at taking care of the ball this season.
  • They turned the ball over 7 times tonight, marking the 8th time this year they’ve committed less than 10 turnovers.
  • After tonight’s performance, the Wolfpack ranks 13th nationally in turnover percentage.
• My main statistical critique on the evening was the Wolfpack allowing Texas Southern to snag 15 offensive rebounds.
  • Out of Dean Oliver’s Four Factors that lead to victory, NC State’s weakest is Offensive Rebound Percentage.
    • NC State ranks 199th nationally.