While the N.C. State players and fans celebrate one of their program’s biggest wins in years, the Duke Blue Devils are left to regroup after their first loss of the season. The Wolfpack claimed an 84-76 victory Saturday at PNC Arena in Duke’s first test without 6-10 senior Ryan Kelly in the lineup.
No. 20 N.C. State scored like no other team had against No. 1 Duke this season, making more than half their shots in an 84-76 win at PNC Arena.The Wolfpack (14-2, 3-0 in ACC) claimed their 10th consecutive win by shooting 50.8 percent, the first time Duke had allowed a team to shoot better than 50 percent this season. N.C. State is also the first team to top the 80-point mark against Duke (15-1, 2-1 in ACC).
The road to a second straight bowl game should be slightly easier for Duke next season.
For top-ranked Duke, life without injured senior forward Ryan Kelly begins with likely their toughest road trip of the season.
With a 3-point lead and just 49.4 seconds remaining in a see-saw ACC women’s basketball game at Reynolds Coliseum, the Tar Heels made the Pack pay with a five-second violation that turned the tide in UNC’s favor on its way to a 70-66 victory.
After a woeful performance from the free-throw line in the first half, No. 23 N.C. State found its touch in the second half and needed almost every one to avoid being upset by Boston College. The Wolfpack went 21 for 24 from the line after the break, making its final 15 and holding off the Eagles 78-73 on Saturday in its Atlantic Coast Conference opener, extending State’s winning streak to nine.
Aside from Duke’s remarkable non-conference season, it’s been another year of mediocre results for the ACC heading into league competition, which begins this weekend.
No team makes shots more frequently than N.C. State, and that’s largely because of the 23rd-ranked Wolfpack’s quality depth.
The Southeastern Conference is so strong that now even Vanderbilt, yes Vandy, is winning like the Commodores haven’t in nearly a century.
C.J. Leslie spent most of the first half in a fog. He stepped into the spotlight just in time.
Nine months after the indignity of an early round exit from the NCAA Tournament, Duke is on top of the men’s college basketball world again.
Area football fans watching Saturday’s NCAA Division II national championship game between Winston-Salem State and Valdosta State (1 p.m., ESPN2) will be familiar with many faces on the field.
Richard Howell had 17 points and 10 rebounds to help State beat Cleveland State 80-63 on Saturday in the Wolfpack’s annual return to its historic Reynolds Coliseum on-campus home.