The NC State men’s basketball team began its holiday break with a 65-48 over the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats on Thursday, Dec. 9 at Reynolds Coliseum.

The Wolfpack (7-2) led from start to finish against the Wildcats (1-8), holding a five-point lead at halftime before opening up a more comfortable lead in the second half.

“Good game for us, especially in the second half,” said head coach Kevin Keatts. “In today’s college basketball, if you’re not mentally and physically ready to play any game, it looks like anybody can beat you on any given night, so I’m glad to get away with a good win. I thought our guys responded in the second half.”

The Pack opened up the game by scoring the first nine points, which enlivened the crowd inside Reynolds Coliseum. While smaller than the usual home court of PNC Arena, Reynolds offers players a different experience.

“I kind of like playing in Reynolds better,” said freshman guard Terquavion Smith. “It’s more compact and it gets very loud in here, so it’s a very good experience.”

NC State went into halftime up 34-29 after holding the Wildcats to 29% from the deep in the first half.

The Pack held a steady double-digit lead in the second half. The team turned up the defense on the Wildcats’ leading scorer, guard Joe French, who had just two points in the second half after scoring 12 in the first. 

Redshirt sophomore guard Dereon Seabron had 10 of his game-high 16 points in the half to go along with 14 rebounds for a double-double, his sixth of the season, Smith had nine of his 14 in the second half and senior forward Jericole Hellems finished with 13 points as the Pack held on for the 65-48 win. Sophomore forward Ebenezer Dowuona also had a game-high four blocks.

“I feel like we played better in the second half,” Seabron said. “[In the] first half we were a little sloppy, but in the second half we picked it up and finished out the game well.”

For NC State, this game is sandwiched between two tough games. The team is coming off a tough loss against Louisville in the ACC opener and, after this, travels to Brooklyn, New York to take on Purdue, the No. 1 team in the country.

“I’m just glad we got a game and won a game,” Keatts said. “In this program, we talk about when we lose a game, we’re sick. We wanted to get well. Obviously, losing to Louisville, then coming back and getting a win to get back on the right track.”

The Pack faces Purdue on Sunday, Dec. 12 at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.