After a 21-12 overall season record from the NC State men’s basketball team in 2017-18, head coach Kevin Keatts will be ready to lead the Wolfpack to yet another successful season.

The team began by hosting an exhibition game against Chowan on Oct. 29 and secured a victory 111-62. The Wolfpack will officially begin its season on Tuesday when it faces Mount St. Mary’s in PNC Arena.

NC State will begin its Wolfpack Classic Nov. 10-24 when it takes on multiple opponents such as Maryland Eastern Shore, Maine, Saint Peter’s and Mercer.

January will be a tough month for the Wolfpack as it takes on three teams ranked in the preseason top 25.

Big Ten Matchup

NC State will travel to Wisconsin in its first away game of the season to take on the Badgers on Nov. 27. Wisconsin sat on a 15-18 record last season and forward Ethan Happ will be returning for his senior season. Happ was the first Big Ten player since 1996 to lead his team in points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals.

The Wolfpack will also compete against Penn State who finished 26-13 last season. Tony Carr, Penn State’s leading scorer last year, is no longer with the Nittany Lions since he was drafted by the New Orleans Pelicans in the second round. This matchup will occur on Dec. 15th in the Boardwalk Classic in New Jersey.

Big ACC Games

At Miami, Jan. 3: Last season the Hurricanes and Wolfpack had a nail-biting game where NC State came up short 86-81. Lonnie Walker, Bruce Brown and Ja’Quan Newton were power players for Miami, but are all gone. NC State has many returning players with a lot of talent including senior guard Torin Dorn and junior guard Markell Johnson. There are a few notable transfers and players coming off of injuries such as redshirt sophomore guard Devon Daniels and redshirt junior guard C.J. Bryce.

No. 8 UNC-Chapel Hill, Jan. 8: The rival Heels will be the Wolfpack’s first home ACC opponent of the 2018-19 season. Last year, NC State defeated the Tarheels 95-91 in the Dean Smith Center, but later lost 96-89 in PNC Arena. Three key players UNC will have back are Luke Maye, Cameron Johnson and Kenny Williams. Although this will be a tough team for the Wolfpack to guard, NC State has many versatile options.

At Notre Dame, Jan. 19: Notre Dame will be working with a younger team than usual after losing two of their starters, Matt Farrell and Martinas Geben. Head coach Mike Brey has recruited a Connecticut transfer, Juwan Durham, as well as bringing up sophomore DJ Harvey. Last season, the Wolfpack split the series with the Fighting Irish.

No. 22 Clemson, Jan. 26: The Tigers will make a trip to Raleigh to compete against the Wolfpack after tying 1-1 in their matchups last year. Clemson is in high perspectives for this season as they have three big returning players in Marcquise Reed, Shelton Mitchell and Elijah Thomas. The last time the Tigers came to PNC Arena, the Wolfpack secured the win in a close game 78-77.

No. 5 Virginia, Jan. 29: Virginia will be a challenging game for NC State as the Cavaliers have Kyle Guy and Ty Jerome returning as well as De’Andre Hunter who was injured for part of last season. Although these are all backcourt players, Alabama transfer Braxton Key is said to be eligible to step up in the frontcourt.

No. 15 Virginia Tech, Feb. 2: The Hokies return four of the five starters from last year. Last time these two teams met was in Blacksburg, Virginia when the Wolfpack came up short, 75-85.

No. 16 Syracuse, Feb. 13: The Sweet 16 contenders last season will be returning with three of the five starters including All-American candidate Tyus Battle, Oshae Brissett and Frank Howard. The Orange will travel to PNC Arena this season.

At No. 4 Duke, Feb. 16: Duke contests some of the best freshmen in this upcoming recruiting class as they bring out RJ Barrett, Zion Williamson, Tre Jones and Cam Reddish. Although this is an extremely young team, head coach Mike Krzyzewski is known for taking on star athletes and forming a winning team. Last season the Wolfpack went into the game as the underdog, but nonetheless defeated the Blue Devils 96-85.

At No. 17 Florida State, March 2: Last season, Florida State made it to the Elite Eight before falling to Michigan. The Seminoles bring back three of its five starters as well as adding five-star recruit, M.J. Walker. Last season the Wolfpack defeated Florida State 92-72 in Raleigh.

The 2019 ACC Tournament will be held in Charlotte at the Spectrum Center on March 12-16.