Thursday, November 23
Paradise Island, Bahamas
3:00 PM
NC State
vs
Northern Iowa
Pack Faces UNI in Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis Semis
11/23/2017 4:19:00 AM | Men's Basketball
NC State returns to the court 20 hours after knocking off second-ranked Arizona
Televised on ESPN2 | WatchESPN (ESPN3) | Game Notes
PARADISE ISLAND, BAHAMAS – The NC State men's basketball team faces Northern Iowa Thursday at 3 p.m. in the semifinals of the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis played at the Imperial Arena inside the Atlantis Resort.
The Pack advanced to the semifinals with a 90-84 win over second-ranked Arizona on Wednesday evening. Northern Iowa defeated SMU, 61-58, to move into the semifinals.
The game will be televised on ESPN2 with Karl Ravech and Dick Vitale on the call. Wolfpack fans can also listen on the radio to the Wolfpack Sports Network with Patrick Kinas and Andrew Sanders calling the action.
Pack Tracks
-NC State improved to 5-0 on the season with a 90-84 win over second-ranked Arizona Wednesday in the quarterfinals of the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis. Allerik Freeman scored a career-high 24 points, while Braxton Beverly, playing in his third collegiate game, added 20 points off-the-bench.
-The win was the Pack's 18th all-time against a team ranked in the top-two in the Associated Press poll and the first win over a No. 2 ranked team since Jan. 11, 2015 when the Pack defeated Duke, 87-75, in PNC Arena. It's the program's second non-conference regular season win over a No. 2 ranked team. The previous win was on Dec. 30, 1958 when the Pack knocked off Oscar Robertson and Cincinnati, 69-60.
-After forcing its first four opponents into a total of 94 turnovers, Arizona only committed eight on Wednesday night, 13 fewer the previous low the Pack had forced in a single game this season. NC State's relentless pressure did force the Wildcats into just 11.8 percent (2-of-17) three-point shooting.
-NC State's bench was huge in the win over Arizona. The Pack's bench outscored Arizona's bench, 39-6. The bench featured two of the Pack's three players in double figures (Beverly - 20 points & Omer Yurtseven - 11) and the Pack's top two rebounders in the game (Yurtseven - 9 & Abdul-Malik Abu - 8).
Thursday Storylines
- NC State is seeking a 6-0 start for the first time since the 2014-15 season. It would be only the program's second 6-0 start in the last 13 seasons.
- A win would give head coach Kevin Keatts the best start to a coaching career in NC State history. Sidney Lowe's 2006-07 team started the season 5-0, which is tied with Keatts 5-0 start for the best start to a head coaching career in NC State basketball history.
- The Pack has been outrebounded in three of its five games this season. Northern Iowa enters Thursday's contest with a +10.4 rebounding margin, while the Pack is just +0.6 on the season. In their last four games (all wins), the Panthers have been +60 in rebounding margin and have outrebounded their opponents by at least 10 in all four games.
- Conversely, UNI has turned the ball over at least 14 times in all five of its games this season and has a season turnover margin of -1.8. NC State is averaging to force its opponents into 20.8 turnovers per game in the first five games of the season, while the Pack has had 10 or fewer turnovers in four of the five games. NC State has a turnover margin of +10.6 through five games.
NC State-Northern Iowa Series
- Thursday's meeting will mark the first meeting between the two programs.
- The Pack has an all-time record of 5-1 against teams from
the Missouri Valley Conference.
Constant Defensive Pressure leading to Opponent Turnovers
NC State head coach Kevin Keatts came to Raleigh promising that his program would pressure the opponents full court and create turnovers. Through four games his inaugural Wolfpack team is living up to his promise.
-The Pack has forced four of five opponents this season into 20+-turnovers. The last NC State team to force opponents into 20 or more turnovers four times in a season was the 2009-10 team. The last seven NC State teams (2010-11 team through 2016-17 team) only twice forced opponents into 20 turnovers (2010-11 team forced East Carolina into 20 turnovers on 11/18/10 and 2016-17 team forced Virginia Tech into 20 turnovers on 1/4/17). In Keatts first four games at NC State, his teams forced opponents into 21 (VMI), 24 (Charleston Southern), 27 (Bryant) and 22 (Presbyterian) turnovers.
-The 27 turnovers NC State forced Bryant into on Nov. 14 are the most turnovers the Pack has forced an opponent to commit since Mount St. Mary's had 27 on Nov. 22, 2002.
-Through the first four games this season, the Pack forced its opponents into more turnovers than made field goals. For the season, NC State opponents have turned the ball over 102 times, while connecting on 119 field goals.
-In five games, Pack has forced 102 turnovers. The 20.4 turnovers forced per game ranks tied 13th in NCAA Dl and are the second-most forced turnovers by a team from a power conference (West Virginia).
-NC State recorded 14 steals in Tuesday win over Bryant. It's the most steals in a game for NC State since the Pack had 16 steals in a win over Boston College on Jan. 19, 2012. It was a 192-game span between 14+-steal games for the Pack. NC State has 50 steals in five games this season, a mark that leads the ACC and ranks in a tie for 19th overall in NCAA DI.
Winning the Turnover Battle
Not only have the Pack been forcing turnovers, but they have been protecting the basketball, too. NC State has had 10 or fewer turnovers in four of its five games this season.
-The Pack is +53 in turnover margin. Pack has forced 102 turnovers and only turned it over themselves 49 times. +53 turnover margin is the best TO margin in NCAA Dl this season.
-Major turnaround from last year's team. Last season, NC State finished the season -67 in turnover margin, including -14 mark in non-conference games.
-The low number of turnovers has led to a great assist-to-turnover ratio for the Pack. NC State has had better than a 2:1 assist-to-turnover ratio in three of the five games this season.
Healthy Freeman Becoming an Offensive Force
NC State senior Lennard Freeman had offseason leg surgery prior to the 2015-16 season and after playing through pain that season, elected to have offseason leg surgery again prior to the 2016-17 season and sat out the year to recover. Now fully healthy, Freeman has started his senior season with an offensive outburst.
-A career 3.6 points per game average coming into the season, Freeman has reset his career-high three times this season and is averaging 16.3 points per game through four games. He opened the year with 15 points against VMI, had 20 against Bryant and then had 23 in the Pack's win against Presbyterian.
-Freeman is shooting a team-best 70.6 percent from the field and is also connecting on a team-best 84.0 percent of his foul shots (21-of-25). The Washington D.C. native, entered this season a career 52.7 percent free throw shooter.
-In 103 career games coming into this season, Freeman had only scored in double figures six times, he's scored in double figures in 3 of 5 games this season.
-Thursday's game against Presbyterian was the 107th career game in an NC State uniform for Freeman. It was the first time in those 107 games that Freeman led NC State in scoring.
-Freeman, who entered this season as a player best known for doing the gritty things that don't show up in the box score, has also set career-highs with three steals and three blocks this season, both set against Presbyterian.
Noting NC State's Returning and Lost
-Senior forward Abdul-Malik Abu is NC State's leading returning scorer (11.8 ppg.) and rebounder (7.0 rpg.). The Boston, Mass., native has led NC State in rebounding the last two seasons and is aiming to be the first NC State player to lead the Pack in rebounding in three consecutive seasons since Todd Fuller did it from 1993-96. Abu suffered a Grade 2 MCL Sprain in October and has not played this season.
-Torin Dorn (18 starts) and Omer Yurtseven (14 starts) also return for the Pack. Dorn averaged 9.5 points & 4.6 rebounds per game last season, while Yurtseven added 5.9 points & 4.4 rebounds per game.
- NC State must replace its top three scorers from last season in Dennis Smith, Jr. (18.1), Terry Henderson (13.8) and Maverick Rowan (12.0). The Pack also lost the school's all-time shot block leader in BeeJay Anya (243 career blocks). Smith, Jr., was named the ACC Freshman of the Year, the first Pack player to accomplish this feat since Hawkeye Whitney in 1977. Smith was selected by the Dallas Mavericks with the ninth pick of the NBA Draft. Henderson, after having his appeal denied to return to NC State, went through training camp with the Charlotte Hornets and is now on the Greensboro Swarm roster in the NBA G-League. Rowan was the third overall selection of the NBA G-League draft by the Lakeland Magic.
- NC State joins Florida State and Pittsburgh as the only ACC teams to lose its top three scorers from last season.
Yurtseven Selected to Preseason Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Watch List
NC State sophomore center Omer Yurtseven has been selected as one of 20 student-athletes to the preseason watch list for this year's Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award. Yurtseven was also on the preseason list that honors the nation's top center last season. A former five-star recruit, Yurtseven averaged 5.9 points and 4.4 rebounds per game last season.
NC State Adds Five Signees in Fall Signing Period
-NC State signed four-star high school recruits Manny Bates, Saddiq Bey, Jericole Hellems and Ian Steere in the fall signing period and signed juco transfer Derek Funderburk. The four high school players will be freshmen on the 2018-19 NC State basketball team, while Funderburk will be a redshirt sophomore on the 2018-19 team.
-Manny Bates is regarded as one of the best shot blockers in the 2018 class. He plays for Northwood Temple Academy in Fayetteville, N.C. where he is teammates with fellow signee Ian Steere.
-Saddiq Bey hails from Washington D.C., where he plays for Sidwell Friends School. He averaged 14.2 points per game as a junior to lead Sidwell Friends to a conference championship.
-Jericole Hellems is from Hazelwood, Mo., and plays for Chaminade High School. As a junior, he averaged 22 points, seven rebounds, three assists and one steal per game to lead Chaminade to a second consecutive Class 5 State Semifinal berth.
-Ian Steere from Sanford, N.C., plays with Bates at Northwood Temple Academy in Fayetteville. Steere is a physical player that helped lead his former school, Wesleyan Christian Academy, to a runner-up finish in the North Carolina 3A State Championship last season.
-Derek Funderburk from Lakewood, Ohio, is currently competing at Northwest Florida State Junior College. He signed with Ohio State out of high school and redshirted the 2016-17 season for the Buckeyes. Originally a four-star recruit, Funderburk played high school basketball at Hargrave Military Academy for current NC State assistant coach A.W. Hamilton and was teammates with current Pack freshman Braxton Beverly.
-Signing class is ranked 15th overall and 5th in the ACC by 247Sports.com. Ranked 17th overall and 6th in the ACC by Rivals.com.
PARADISE ISLAND, BAHAMAS – The NC State men's basketball team faces Northern Iowa Thursday at 3 p.m. in the semifinals of the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis played at the Imperial Arena inside the Atlantis Resort.
The Pack advanced to the semifinals with a 90-84 win over second-ranked Arizona on Wednesday evening. Northern Iowa defeated SMU, 61-58, to move into the semifinals.
The game will be televised on ESPN2 with Karl Ravech and Dick Vitale on the call. Wolfpack fans can also listen on the radio to the Wolfpack Sports Network with Patrick Kinas and Andrew Sanders calling the action.
Pack Tracks
-NC State improved to 5-0 on the season with a 90-84 win over second-ranked Arizona Wednesday in the quarterfinals of the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis. Allerik Freeman scored a career-high 24 points, while Braxton Beverly, playing in his third collegiate game, added 20 points off-the-bench.
-The win was the Pack's 18th all-time against a team ranked in the top-two in the Associated Press poll and the first win over a No. 2 ranked team since Jan. 11, 2015 when the Pack defeated Duke, 87-75, in PNC Arena. It's the program's second non-conference regular season win over a No. 2 ranked team. The previous win was on Dec. 30, 1958 when the Pack knocked off Oscar Robertson and Cincinnati, 69-60.
-After forcing its first four opponents into a total of 94 turnovers, Arizona only committed eight on Wednesday night, 13 fewer the previous low the Pack had forced in a single game this season. NC State's relentless pressure did force the Wildcats into just 11.8 percent (2-of-17) three-point shooting.
-NC State's bench was huge in the win over Arizona. The Pack's bench outscored Arizona's bench, 39-6. The bench featured two of the Pack's three players in double figures (Beverly - 20 points & Omer Yurtseven - 11) and the Pack's top two rebounders in the game (Yurtseven - 9 & Abdul-Malik Abu - 8).
Thursday Storylines
- NC State is seeking a 6-0 start for the first time since the 2014-15 season. It would be only the program's second 6-0 start in the last 13 seasons.
- A win would give head coach Kevin Keatts the best start to a coaching career in NC State history. Sidney Lowe's 2006-07 team started the season 5-0, which is tied with Keatts 5-0 start for the best start to a head coaching career in NC State basketball history.
- The Pack has been outrebounded in three of its five games this season. Northern Iowa enters Thursday's contest with a +10.4 rebounding margin, while the Pack is just +0.6 on the season. In their last four games (all wins), the Panthers have been +60 in rebounding margin and have outrebounded their opponents by at least 10 in all four games.
- Conversely, UNI has turned the ball over at least 14 times in all five of its games this season and has a season turnover margin of -1.8. NC State is averaging to force its opponents into 20.8 turnovers per game in the first five games of the season, while the Pack has had 10 or fewer turnovers in four of the five games. NC State has a turnover margin of +10.6 through five games.
NC State-Northern Iowa Series
- Thursday's meeting will mark the first meeting between the two programs.
- The Pack has an all-time record of 5-1 against teams from
the Missouri Valley Conference.
Constant Defensive Pressure leading to Opponent Turnovers
NC State head coach Kevin Keatts came to Raleigh promising that his program would pressure the opponents full court and create turnovers. Through four games his inaugural Wolfpack team is living up to his promise.
-The Pack has forced four of five opponents this season into 20+-turnovers. The last NC State team to force opponents into 20 or more turnovers four times in a season was the 2009-10 team. The last seven NC State teams (2010-11 team through 2016-17 team) only twice forced opponents into 20 turnovers (2010-11 team forced East Carolina into 20 turnovers on 11/18/10 and 2016-17 team forced Virginia Tech into 20 turnovers on 1/4/17). In Keatts first four games at NC State, his teams forced opponents into 21 (VMI), 24 (Charleston Southern), 27 (Bryant) and 22 (Presbyterian) turnovers.
-The 27 turnovers NC State forced Bryant into on Nov. 14 are the most turnovers the Pack has forced an opponent to commit since Mount St. Mary's had 27 on Nov. 22, 2002.
-Through the first four games this season, the Pack forced its opponents into more turnovers than made field goals. For the season, NC State opponents have turned the ball over 102 times, while connecting on 119 field goals.
-In five games, Pack has forced 102 turnovers. The 20.4 turnovers forced per game ranks tied 13th in NCAA Dl and are the second-most forced turnovers by a team from a power conference (West Virginia).
-NC State recorded 14 steals in Tuesday win over Bryant. It's the most steals in a game for NC State since the Pack had 16 steals in a win over Boston College on Jan. 19, 2012. It was a 192-game span between 14+-steal games for the Pack. NC State has 50 steals in five games this season, a mark that leads the ACC and ranks in a tie for 19th overall in NCAA DI.
Winning the Turnover Battle
Not only have the Pack been forcing turnovers, but they have been protecting the basketball, too. NC State has had 10 or fewer turnovers in four of its five games this season.
-The Pack is +53 in turnover margin. Pack has forced 102 turnovers and only turned it over themselves 49 times. +53 turnover margin is the best TO margin in NCAA Dl this season.
-Major turnaround from last year's team. Last season, NC State finished the season -67 in turnover margin, including -14 mark in non-conference games.
-The low number of turnovers has led to a great assist-to-turnover ratio for the Pack. NC State has had better than a 2:1 assist-to-turnover ratio in three of the five games this season.
Healthy Freeman Becoming an Offensive Force
NC State senior Lennard Freeman had offseason leg surgery prior to the 2015-16 season and after playing through pain that season, elected to have offseason leg surgery again prior to the 2016-17 season and sat out the year to recover. Now fully healthy, Freeman has started his senior season with an offensive outburst.
-A career 3.6 points per game average coming into the season, Freeman has reset his career-high three times this season and is averaging 16.3 points per game through four games. He opened the year with 15 points against VMI, had 20 against Bryant and then had 23 in the Pack's win against Presbyterian.
-Freeman is shooting a team-best 70.6 percent from the field and is also connecting on a team-best 84.0 percent of his foul shots (21-of-25). The Washington D.C. native, entered this season a career 52.7 percent free throw shooter.
-In 103 career games coming into this season, Freeman had only scored in double figures six times, he's scored in double figures in 3 of 5 games this season.
-Thursday's game against Presbyterian was the 107th career game in an NC State uniform for Freeman. It was the first time in those 107 games that Freeman led NC State in scoring.
-Freeman, who entered this season as a player best known for doing the gritty things that don't show up in the box score, has also set career-highs with three steals and three blocks this season, both set against Presbyterian.
Noting NC State's Returning and Lost
-Senior forward Abdul-Malik Abu is NC State's leading returning scorer (11.8 ppg.) and rebounder (7.0 rpg.). The Boston, Mass., native has led NC State in rebounding the last two seasons and is aiming to be the first NC State player to lead the Pack in rebounding in three consecutive seasons since Todd Fuller did it from 1993-96. Abu suffered a Grade 2 MCL Sprain in October and has not played this season.
-Torin Dorn (18 starts) and Omer Yurtseven (14 starts) also return for the Pack. Dorn averaged 9.5 points & 4.6 rebounds per game last season, while Yurtseven added 5.9 points & 4.4 rebounds per game.
- NC State must replace its top three scorers from last season in Dennis Smith, Jr. (18.1), Terry Henderson (13.8) and Maverick Rowan (12.0). The Pack also lost the school's all-time shot block leader in BeeJay Anya (243 career blocks). Smith, Jr., was named the ACC Freshman of the Year, the first Pack player to accomplish this feat since Hawkeye Whitney in 1977. Smith was selected by the Dallas Mavericks with the ninth pick of the NBA Draft. Henderson, after having his appeal denied to return to NC State, went through training camp with the Charlotte Hornets and is now on the Greensboro Swarm roster in the NBA G-League. Rowan was the third overall selection of the NBA G-League draft by the Lakeland Magic.
- NC State joins Florida State and Pittsburgh as the only ACC teams to lose its top three scorers from last season.
Yurtseven Selected to Preseason Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Watch List
NC State sophomore center Omer Yurtseven has been selected as one of 20 student-athletes to the preseason watch list for this year's Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award. Yurtseven was also on the preseason list that honors the nation's top center last season. A former five-star recruit, Yurtseven averaged 5.9 points and 4.4 rebounds per game last season.
NC State Adds Five Signees in Fall Signing Period
-NC State signed four-star high school recruits Manny Bates, Saddiq Bey, Jericole Hellems and Ian Steere in the fall signing period and signed juco transfer Derek Funderburk. The four high school players will be freshmen on the 2018-19 NC State basketball team, while Funderburk will be a redshirt sophomore on the 2018-19 team.
-Manny Bates is regarded as one of the best shot blockers in the 2018 class. He plays for Northwood Temple Academy in Fayetteville, N.C. where he is teammates with fellow signee Ian Steere.
-Saddiq Bey hails from Washington D.C., where he plays for Sidwell Friends School. He averaged 14.2 points per game as a junior to lead Sidwell Friends to a conference championship.
-Jericole Hellems is from Hazelwood, Mo., and plays for Chaminade High School. As a junior, he averaged 22 points, seven rebounds, three assists and one steal per game to lead Chaminade to a second consecutive Class 5 State Semifinal berth.
-Ian Steere from Sanford, N.C., plays with Bates at Northwood Temple Academy in Fayetteville. Steere is a physical player that helped lead his former school, Wesleyan Christian Academy, to a runner-up finish in the North Carolina 3A State Championship last season.
-Derek Funderburk from Lakewood, Ohio, is currently competing at Northwest Florida State Junior College. He signed with Ohio State out of high school and redshirted the 2016-17 season for the Buckeyes. Originally a four-star recruit, Funderburk played high school basketball at Hargrave Military Academy for current NC State assistant coach A.W. Hamilton and was teammates with current Pack freshman Braxton Beverly.
-Signing class is ranked 15th overall and 5th in the ACC by 247Sports.com. Ranked 17th overall and 6th in the ACC by Rivals.com.
Players Mentioned
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