NC State basketball fans get holiday gift as the Wolfpack knocks off No. 17 UNC
Fans really would have loved to have seen this one live.
Played in a nearly empty PNC Arena, the N.C. State and North Carolina basketball rivalry came early this season, just three days before Christmas. The few fans in the building got the gift of being able to watch how the ACC contest played out.
N.C. State got Cam Hayes back but entered the game shorthanded again due to coronavirus issues in its program, but played its best basketball of the season. UNC, known for struggling early only to come back late and steal a win, was right on brand, and trailed by double-digits in the first half.
But Wolfpack coach Kevin Keatts and his team found a way to win, upsetting the No. 17 Tar Heels, 79-76 Tuesday night. It was Keatts’ first win over the Tar Heels in PNC.
“I’m proud of my team,” Keatts said. “I thought we fought for 40 minutes. Our guys, we bent a little bit, we never broke. We played a tremendous game. I’m excited about the way we played.”
North Carolina’s calling card this season had been trail early, only to fight back and win. But in a year when the unusual is normal, N.C. State wasn’t having any of it.
The Wolfpack (5-1) led by seven at the break, but the Heels (5-3), who closed the first half on a 13-3 run, kept chipping away, and pulled to within two points six times and as close as one, 63-62, after a three-point play from Andrew Platek.
However, N.C. State senior Devon Daniels scored an old-fashioned three-point play on the other end and that lit a fire in the team. The Wolfpack went on a 12-2 run to go up double-digits with less than six minutes remaining and didn’t look back. By the time Manny Bates put back a miss with a dunk with 5:13 remaining, the Pack led by 13.
The Tar Heels, who only led once (2-0) came unglued, turning the ball over three times in a 2:22 span as the Wolfpack found their spark.
UNC wasn’t done. With consecutive baskets from Armando Bacot and Caleb Love, the Heels trailed by nine. N.C. State turned the ball over its next trip down the floor and UNC freshman Walker Kessler hit one of two from the foul line to make it 77-69 with 3:56 left in the game. Leaky Black’s steal and layup made it a six-point game the next trip and the pressure suddenly turned to the underdog Pack.
N.C. State used some clock, but UNC got a stop that led to a dunk by Love to cut it to four. UNC missed two chances to cut it to two after missed baskets by Garrison Brooks and Love. Bates came up with a big rebound, State turned it over again, but Love missed another close one near the basket, giving the ball back to the Wolfpack.
Daniels hit one of two to push the lead to five with one minute remaining, the breathing room State needed. Daniels led the Pack with with 21 points. UNC had four players in double figures, led by Armando Bacot with 16. R.J. Davis and Caleb Love with 11 each. Garrison Brooks had 10.
“We just can’t seem to get a good start versus anybody, I mean, maybe other than the first game,” Bacot said. “We’ve just been coming out real flat, just not playing hard, and then we get down and that’s when we want to play harder. When we’re playing good teams like the school we played today, sometimes it’s hard to come back.”
For the sixth time in the last eight games, UNC trailed by double digits in the first half. N.C. State led by as many as 17, but the Tar Heels turned it on late. The Wolfpack went scoreless for the final 3:25 of the first half, and UNC started rolling, closing out the first 20 minutes on a 13-3 run.
The run was sparked on the defensive end - Andrew Platek took three charges - and the Heels hit five of six from the floor, trailing by single digits, 49-42, at the break.
UNC took advantage of its size, scoring 24 of its 42 points in the paint, and got its last two buckets from Brooks and Bacot. The taller Heels took advantage of Bates sitting on the bench with two fouls.
After peaking out at 67% from the floor, State missed its last two field goals.
The Wolfpack went up 49-33 after a triple from Braxton Beverly, but didn’t score again in the first half. N.C. State came out the gates swinging and got an unexpected spark from freshman guard Shakeel Moore.
Moore scored 13 points in eight minutes during the first half, going on a personal 8-0 run to put State ahead 23-15. The Wolfpack shot 67% from three in the first half, but the Tar Heels countered by connecting on 75% of their free throws and attacking the paint. Moore finished with a season-high 17. Bates added 14.
“We’ve got to have a greater sense of urgency and then the other thing is just paying attention to the details of what we’re talking about in the scouting report,” UNC coach Roy Williams said. “And Roy Williams has got to do a better job. Their staff, no, not their staff, their head coach did a heck of a lot better job than Roy Williams did.”
It was the eighth win over a ranked opponent for Keatts, six of those wins have come at home. With the win, N.C. State ended a five-game losing streak to UNC.
“I’m excited for one reason,” Keatts said. “Going into Christmas break we are 1-0 in the conference.”
AND ONE
It was N.C. State’s first home win over UNC since the 2013 season.
LANE VIOLATION
UNC went the final 2:45 of the game without a made field goal. N.C. State went the last 5:13 without making a field goal, but sealed the game from the foul line.
ICYMI
Cam Hayes returned for N.C. State after missing two games due to the coronavirus. The freshman guard scored seven points in 11 minutes.
MAKING SENSE OF THE NUMBERS
17: Career-high points for Wolfpack freshman guard Shakeel Moore.
2: Number of made three-point shots by UNC. The Heels finished 2 of 12 from three.
19: Number of points N.C. State scored off of 18 UNC turnovers.
This story was originally published December 22, 2020 at 7:40 PM with the headline "NC State basketball fans get holiday gift as the Wolfpack knocks off No. 17 UNC."
