The NC State men’s basketball team fell to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in a disappointing hangover from its high-octane offensive performance against Virginia, losing 73-65 in South Bend, Indiana on Wednesday, Jan. 26.
If you were blindfolded and threw a dart at a board filled with potential issues a basketball team could face in a game, the odds are high that you’d hit the mark on something that plagued the Pack. Turnovers, fouls, failure to get key rebounds, allowing opposing big men to control the tempo of the game, you name it, it probably hurt the Wolfpack.
“I didn’t think we were sharp or played the way we’ve been playing on the offensive end,” said head coach Kevin Keatts. “Unfortunately, I didn’t think our big three had a great game. That being said, I thought we had our chances in the game. I thought we made some good plays. … When you look at the stat sheet, I think the major difference is that they went 11 for 28 from the 3-point line and obviously were able to get to the free-throw line.”
Redshirt sophomore guard Dereon Seabron did everything in his power to keep NC State competitive late, scoring all 10 of his second-half points within the last six minutes of regulation, but the Pack’s self-inflicted wounds ended up deciding the game.
The Pack shot just 42.6% from the floor, 31.6% from deep and 58.3% from the free-throw line — a far cry from its shooting splits against Virginia. That was due largely in part to poor shooting percentages from senior forward Jericole Hellems and freshman guard Terquavion Smith. That duo shot a combined 6 of 24 (25%) from the floor and 3 of 11 (27.3%) from deep.
“I know some nights some players’ shots aren’t going to be there,” Seabron said. “I still just try to encourage them to have the confidence to shoot those shots even if they’re not going in. Just because you miss a shot, it doesn’t mean the next one is not going in. I just try to keep thinking positive.”
To get a glimpse at just how much the Pack’s offensive performance is codependent on the performances of Smith and Hellems, in the big win over Virginia, Smith and Hellems shot 16 of 25 (64%) from the field and 9 of 16 (56.3%) from deep. In NC State’s win over Louisville, its biggest ACC win, the duo shot 16 of 23 (69.6%) from the floor.
NC State was also hurt by foul trouble, with Hellems playing most of the second half with four fouls and junior guard Casey Morsell joining Hellems in the danger zone. Both players wound up fouling out. Morsell finished the game with 10 points and eight rebounds on 3 of 4 shooting in just 21 minutes, so losing his production handcuffed the Pack.
“Casey and [Hellems] are real big parts of our team and real big pieces,” said sophomore guard Cam Hayes. “They know how to play with foul trouble but you know, just today they couldn’t overcome it and they [both] fouled out. So, I mean, it was kind of hard, but we always got to adjust accordingly. … It was tough having them in foul trouble, but I mean, people just gotta step up and try and help the team win.”
One bright spot from the loss was the reemergence of Hayes. Hayes had seen his minutes dwindle in recent games, partly due to freshman guard Breon Pass offering more from a defensive standpoint, but he proved patience is a virtue in the loss. Hayes still had four turnovers, something he needs to clean up, but he also posted 10 points on 5 of 9 shooting and registered a team-best plus-two net rating.
“I was happy to see the ball go in the hole for [Hayes],” Keatts said. “Through this process, he’s lost his confidence a little bit. But he has worked harder at practice to get it back. He’s done some extra shooting and everything else. Did he play a perfect game? Absolutely not, but he played better tonight than he’s played in the past. Hopefully he can continue to get out of this little shooting slump and get back to helping us. We need another veteran guard to play really well.”
NC State also did a good job of tightening up its defense against Notre Dame guard Blake Wesley. Wesley, a potential first-round pick in this year’s NBA Draft, has taken the NCAA by storm as a freshman. With decent veterans already in place in Prentiss Hubb, Nate Laszewski and Paul Atkinson Jr., Wesley’s 15-point-per-game season has been a welcome surprise for college basketball fans.
The Wolfpack was able to avoid a huge performance from Wesley, even though he still ended up with 15 points, six boards, four assists and two steals, holding him to just 3 of 16 from the field and 1 of 6 from 3-point land.
However, NC State wasn’t as fortunate with the aforementioned Laszewski who, like every other big the Pack has played this season, torched it. Unlike some of those other opposing bigs, Laszewski poured in 18 points, 11 rebounds and shot 80% from downtown in the Fighting Irish victory.
Hubb also demonstrated something the Pack lacks: a lead guard that can pace the offense and play solid defense while limiting turnovers. He finished the contest with 11 points, five assists and two blocks while registering zero turnovers and just one foul.
It originally seemed as though the two teams would be neck and neck for the duration of the contest. In the first half, neither team shot it particularly well, with opposing players like Hubb and Wesley failing to find their grooves. Smith found ways to make an impact despite his shot not falling, such as accounting for six rebounds, an assist, a block and two steals in the first half.
While the two teams continued to trade blows, Seabron accounted for 11 of his 21 points in the period. Heading into the break, NC State and Notre Dame were all tied up at 30 points apiece.
However, it became evident early in the second half that NC State was going to end up playing from behind. The Fighting Irish went on a 15-0 run after sophomore forward Ebenezer Dowuona and Morsell put the Pack up 35-30. Laszewski himself was responsible for 11 of those points, hitting 3 after 3 to bury the Wolfpack.
NC State did its best to fight back with good late efforts from Seabron and Hellems, but it wasn’t enough, as the Wolfpack will head back to the Triangle back under .500.
“It was very critical,” Seabron said. “Coming into the second half, those first four minutes of the game are really important. Because whichever team comes out the hardest, that’s the way the ball will swing and who will get the calls. The energy just feeds on those first four minutes. When we couldn’t get those stops, it put us in a tough situation, and we had to dig ourselves out of a hole.”
Next up, the Wolfpack remains on the road when it takes on UNC-Chapel Hill on Saturday, Jan. 29 in the Dean E. Smith Center. That game tips off at 2 p.m. and can be viewed on ACC Network. Be sure to follow @TechSports on Twitter for live updates and coverage from the game.
“As a team, I just want us to figure out how we can close out games,” Hayes said. “Just make sure we make the right stops at the end of games so we can come out on top next time.”
