NC State was supposed to have a tough game after suffering several difficult defeats last month, and I found out that that advance came against Pittsburgh on Wednesday afternoon. Wolfpack had to overcome many free throws from Pittsburgh and make one last stop to do so, but the Pack did.
Four Factors
| … | NC State | Pitt |
|---|---|---|
| … | NC State | Pitt |
| e f G% | 60.8 | 56.3 |
| FOR% | 21.6 | 21.6 |
| OR% | 33.3 | 37.9 |
| FTR | 35.3 | 58.3 |
Both teams kicked well inside the arc, but NC State was slightly better with 62.5% in two. In addition to Shakeel Moore, all State players who saw the court hit at least half of their two-point attempts. DJ Funderburk had 6-9 on the field and scored 16, while Jericole Hellems had a time-high 17 on 6-9 shots before dropping out.
There were some official antics on this one, and that’s Jamie Luckie for you. Justin Champagnie had a day off, kicking just 3-11, but got 16 free throws to make up for it. Pitt made it to the line 28 times, but only hit 19 times. Thankfully, it’s not a good free-throw team!
In all, it was a good performance by a team from the state of NC with few employees who lost Hellems in times of crisis. We will achieve these victories in whatever way we can.