Despite playing its third game in three days, NC State men’s basketball looked like the more energetic team in a 74-69 win over two-seed Duke in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament.
NC State’s (20-14, 9-11 ACC) spirited effort was led by junior forward Mohamed Diarra who scored 14 points and snatched a monstrous 16 rebounds. Diarra also played intense defense down the stretch when the Blue Devils (24-8, 15-5 ACC) attempted a comeback, recording four blocks and three steals.
Diarra is observing Ramadan and refueled on fluids and food in the second half after the sun went down. He grabbed 12 of his 16 rebounds in the final 20 minutes and accumulated three blocks, including a couple on Duke star center Kyle Filipowski.
Even though Filipowski scored a game-high 28 points, Diarra frustrated him throughout the game and forced him into tough shots late in the contest. Filipowski let Diarra’s aggressive defense get in his head as he fouled out late in the game. The fouls leading up to the fifth came out of frustration on the offensive end.
The junior forward’s relentless energy and passion have spread throughout the team. The Pack beat the Blue Devils to nearly every loose ball despite being the team playing for the third-straight day while Duke was playing its first.
Joining Diarra in the second half was graduate guard Casey Morsell who poured in 11 points, including three emphatic dunks. The energy disparity between the teams grew larger with each Morsell slam, giving the Wolfpack momentum and demoralizing the Blue Devils.
Morsell is making the most of his final ACC Tournament in his hometown. The Ft. Washington, Maryland native scored 25 points in the first round against Louisville and saved all 11 of his points for the second half against Duke.
While Morsell had a dip in production from last season, his leadership has been crucial during the rough stretch leading up to the tournament. NC State ended its regular season on a four-game losing streak. Despite this, Morsell kept a positive attitude, continually emphasizing that it’s just part of the team’s story. He truly believed the Wolfpack could make a run at the ACC Championship and his belief has clearly radiated throughout the locker room.
Diarra and Morsell were the heroes of the second half, but graduate guard DJ Horne was the reason NC State took a halftime lead. Horne came off the bench for the second-straight game but didn’t take nearly as long to sound the horn as he did against Syracuse.
Against the Orange, Horne didn’t score in the first half, but against the Blue Devils, he checked in with just under 17 minutes left and quickly scored five points on his first two shots. The Pack’s offense was scoreless before Horne checked in but then went on to make five of its next field goals when he entered the game.
Horne finished the first half with 12 points that included a buzzer-beater floater as the time expired to end the first frame. He scored just six points in the second half, but the threat of his scoring opened up opportunities for his teammates.
With Duke focused on limiting Horne, graduate guard Micahel O’Connell took advantage, scoring 12 points, shooting an efficient 5-7 while knocking down both 3s he attempted. O’Connell has scored in double figures in all three of NC State’s postseason games. He entered the tournament averaging just over five points per game, and his sudden offensive explosion has been crucial in taking pressure off the Pack’s main scorers.
The shocking result makes NC State the first double-digit seed in the ACC Tournament to make the semifinal since 2010.
Now, the Wolfpack will try to continue its Cinderella run against the winner of Virginia vs. Boston College. The semifinal game is Friday, March 15 at 9:30 p.m.
