The NC State men’s basketball team was steamrolled in a 69-53 loss to the Duke Blue Devils inside PNC Arena on Saturday, Feb. 13.

Last time Duke traveled to PNC Arena, the Pack blew out the Blue Devils in a 88-66 rout. The complete opposite was true today, as Duke took control of the game midway through the first half and never let up.

“It’s going to be hard to win any ACC game, or any conference game down the stretch, if our ball security is not very good,” said head coach Kevin Keatts. “To be honest with you, we stink right now in that area…Against Syracuse, we had 20 turnovers. Against Duke tonight, we had 18. We don’t put ourselves in a great situation to win, no matter how hard we play and no matter who has the hot hand…we dug ourselves such a big hole. And then you’re climbing back out of that hole the entire game.”

The Blue Devils began to force numerous turnovers for the Pack, as NC State finished the first half with 13 turnovers compared to just nine made field goals. The Wolfpack only had five turnovers in the second half, but the damage from the first half was already done.

“That right there, that’s our problem,” said freshman guard Shakeel Moore. “We’ve just got to tighten up and protect the ball. This is the biggest reason why. That’s 18 times we don’t have a chance to score on the offensive end. So we’ve just got to have more ball security and quit turning the ball over. We need those possessions. Possessions count in this league.”

Duke forward Matthew Hurt had the Pack’s number for the entire game, as he hit 3 after 3 to further bury NC State. The talented forward finished the game with 24 points on 6-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc. Other Duke players stood out too, with players like center Mark Williams dominating defensively with 13 points and five blocks, while DJ Steward finished with 12 points and four assists on 62.5% shooting from the floor.

“I thought [Hurt] was tremendous,” Keatts said. “We did have a couple breakdowns where he made shots. But also give him credit. I don’t want to take away from his performance. Because even when we switched out, we switched out to take away from the pick and pop and he would shoot over a shorter guy. We switched out with [redshirt sophomore forward Manny Bates] a couple times, and [Hurt] made shots. He had an incredible day. He’s a good basketball player.”

Most of the team’s offensive production once again came from the frontcourt, with junior forward Jericole Hellems and redshirt senior forward D.J. Funderburk accounting for 11 points and five rebounds each, with both shooting 5 of 11 from the floor. Meanwhile, Bates added eight points, seven rebounds, three blocks and two steals.

“I’m frustrated at any loss but especially one of this magnitude,” Bates said. “I’m definitely frustrated a lot…[we had] too many breakdowns and then just not communicating as well as we normally should be.”

At the half, the Pack’s leading scorer, Hellems, had a meager six points, while Funderburk and Bates had five and four, respectively. Whereas Duke made five 3-pointers in the first half, NC State only attempted two and missed both. By the end of the contest, NC State had made just two of its 10 attempts from downtown compared to Duke’s 9-of-18 outing from the same range.

In the second half, anytime the Pack showed life, the Blue Devils answered right back. Moore got it going in the second after earning a start, as he scored all 13 of his points in the second half, but it wasn’t enough.

“I think their motivation is there,” Keatts said. “Our guys are fighting. Our guys are bothered by the fact that we don’t have great ball security. I do think that’s something we can fix, but we need to fix it in a hurry because it’s not a great formula to win ACC games.”

The guard play was once again dismal all around for the Pack outside of Moore, though the freshman guard got beat several times in the first half. Senior guard Braxton Beverly, redshirt junior guard Thomas Allen, freshman guard Cam Hayes and redshirt freshman guard Dereon Seabron combined for 10 points and six assists on 26.7% shooting and 10 turnovers in 73 minutes, a miserable showing.

“We have to solve it,” Keatts said. “It’s on me. I’m the coach; I’ll get it straight. We’re just not very good in that area. When you’re not good in that area, obviously it doesn’t work well for you to win games. I think we gave away 22 points off turnovers. Those are opportunities that you don’t have a chance to defend against the other team. I think we gave away 16 fast-break points. Some of that is a combination of turning the ball over. And it’s everybody.”

Next up, the Pack will embark on a three-game road trip in an attempt to salvage its season, beginning with Pittsburgh on Wednesday, Feb. 17.