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Cat Barber had 22 points and 8 assists and Maverick Rowan added 14, but it wasn’t enough. NC State fell to Arizona State 79-76.

The Pack played hard, but again they settled for bad shots and allowed their defense to fail them as ASU’s Savon Goodman dumped 21 points and grabbed 16 boards in the victory.

To be fair, Goodman is a beast and was a severe matchup problem for the Pack. He was all over the court, scoring off the bounce and around the hoop. But, it wasn’t as if State didn’t have their chances. They tied the game up late in the second half using a full court press and some transition buckets, but overall they looked confused again on offense. Too much standing around, too many ill-advised jumpers and not enough trust in their bigs led to their demise.

The Wolfpack out-shot ASU (45-43%) and won the turnover battle (8-12), but they were killed on the glass. The Sun Devils hauled in 47 boards to the Pack’s 35. They also ruled the offensive glass 18-10, giving them easy buckets and fending off any momentum State built up.

For Gottfried’s group it was a massive let down. After surging late in the second half, they let a flurry by the Sun Devils recapture the lead and Cat Barber missed on a 3 that would have tied it. However, it’s not like all is lost for NC State. They did some good things, but they also reverted back to problems that have haunted them through the first few weeks of the season.

While this team has shooters (Caleb Martin and Rowan), they too often settle for quick 3s instead of being patient and giving touches to their bigs. Abu shot 50% from the floor and finished with 10 points, neither which is enough for him. Abu needs to be the be more of a focus for this group. His presence alone causes defenses to collapse on the entry pass. From there he is able to either score 1 on 1, or kick out for a better look at 3.

Barber played a decent game on paper, and really was one of the main reason State was in this game, but his 5-13 from the field brings back memories of Barber from early last season. Barber is a key piece to this team and he definitely needs to score, but picking and choosing his spots is the key. When he’s on, he should fire away, but when he can’t find his shot they can’t afford his quick shots from the free throw line. Offensive rhythm is an area that this team really needs to improve on, and that’s going to start with Cat.

Another area where they were worse than expected was their interior defense. As big as Anya and Abut are, State should be able to make it hard to finish at the rim. ASU had no trouble at all and was able to get the Pack bigs into foul trouble, while still finishing around the hoop.

State is back in action tonight at 5:30PM when they take on #22 LSU and NBA prospect Ben Simmons. The 6’10 freshman is a bigger, better version of Savon Goodman. He’s averaging 20 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists per game. State has a few hours to figure out how they’ll deal with this matchup problem.

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wolfpack74
wolfpack74
8 years ago

At least they played hard.  They were a couple of 50/50 balls that could have won the game.  Guess what we got those 50/50 balls against LSU and won.  This team kind da grows on you.  Keep playing hard and maybe the other things will work themselves out.

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joflo71
joflo71
8 years ago

Why do we have so many guys that transfer out of NCCSTATE, it make no sense Example: UNC 2012 (4) 4 stars ; 2013 class (1) 5 star; (3) 4 stars; 2014 (2) 5 stars, (1) 4 stars.  NO TRANSFERS
NCSTATE 2012 (2) 5 stars (1) 4 star, 2013 (3) 4 stars (2) 3 stars ; 2014 (3) 4 stars. THREE TRANSFERS

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NC State Basketball

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

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5 hours 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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18 hours 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.

 

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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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NC State Basketball

ECU Transfer Forward Ezra Ausar to NC State is Trending Up

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1 day ago

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May 1, 2024

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ECU Transfer Power Forward Ezra Ausar (6’9″/240) was on an Official Visit to NC State yesterday, and according to analysts at ON3 and 247Sports, things are trending in the right direction for the Wolfpack.

Jamie Shaw of ON3 submitted a prediction for Ausar to eventually commit to NC State yesterday morning.

Cory Smith of 247Sports submitted a crystal ball projection for Ausar to run with the Wolfpack this morning.

Ausar just wrapped up his Sophomore season in Greenville, averaging 11.4 points and 4.7 rebounds, shooting 51.4% from the field. As a Freshman, he was named to the AAC All-Freshman Team, averaging 9.8 points and 5.3 rebounds.

Ausar is a consensus 4-Star prospect in the Transfer Portal, and ON3 ranks him as the #60 overall player in the Portal and the #10 Power Forward.

Originally from Atlanta, Ausar played his Senior Season of High School at Liberty Heights Athletic Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina. ON3 ranked Ausar as a 4-Star prospect coming out of high school, the #94 overall player nationally, and the #2 player in the state of North Carolina.

Ausar has visited Seton Hall, Georgia Tech, met over Zoom with Georgetown, and had an in-home visit with Utah. John Calipari and his staff at Arkansas have been in touch with Ausar, as well as Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Virginia Tech, Arizona State, West Virginia, Iowa State and St. John’s. (Link)

At this point, it’s good news that Ausar has no visits scheduled after the visit to NC State.

Ausar has 2 years of eligibility remaining, and NC State currently has 1 scholarship remaining.

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NC State Basketball

NC State Signee Zamareya Jones Showed Out in the McDonald’s & Jordan All-American Games

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1 day ago

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May 1, 2024

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NC State 2024 signee Zamareya Jones has played in the McDonald’s All-American game and the Jordan Brand Classic over the past month.

In the McDonald’s game on April 2nd, Jones had 13 points, helping her East squad defeat the West.

 

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In the Jordan Brand Classic on April 21st, Jones had 15 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds. She also hit the game winner for Team Flight.

Jones is a 5-star prospect in the Wolfpack’s 2024 recruiting class, ranked 21st overall nationally by ESPN.

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