Wednesday, February 7
Blacksburg, VA
9:00 PM
NC State
at
Virginia Tech
Pack Aims for Fourth-Straight Win as it Visits Virginia Tech on Wednesday
2/6/2018 3:47:00 PM | Men's Basketball
NC State aims for fourth-straight win Wednesday evening as it plays the Hokies
NC State Game Notes
RALEIGH, N.C. – The NC State men's basketball team (16-7, 6-4 ACC) seeks its fourth straight win Wednesday evening when it visits Virginia Tech (16-7, 5-5 ACC).
The game is scheduled to tipoff at 9 p.m. and will be shown in the Raleigh area on Fox Sports South with Wes Durham and Dan Bonner calling the action. A complete list of affiliates for Wednesday's game can be found here: http://www.theacc.com/sports/2018/1/30/mbask-rsn-180207b.aspx. NC State fans can also listen to Gary Hahn and Tony Haynes on the call on the Wolfpack Sports Network.
Pack Tracks
- NC State defeated Notre Dame, 76-58, Saturday afternoon for its third consecutive ACC win. The three straight ACC wins are the first for the Pack since the 2014-15 season that NC State has won three straight ACC games.
- After an 0-2 start in ACC play, the Pack has won six of its last eight conference games to stand 6-4 heading into Virginia Tech. The 6-4 mark is NC State's best record through the first 10 games of the ACC season since the 2011-12 team started 7-3.
- Torin Dorn led NC State with 21 points in the win over the Fighting Irish. Dorn has now scored in double figures in 7 of 10 ACC games this season - including the last six - after only reaching double figures three times in 18 ACC games last season.
- Markell Johnson had 10 assists in the win over Notre Dame. The sophomore has had double figure assists in four straight games. He is the first player in NC State history to have double-digit assists in four consecutive games. In 16 games this season, Johnson has 122 assists and is averaging 7.6 per game. Despite missing seven games, only two players in the ACC have more total assists this season.
Yurtseven Finding Comfort Level in Sophomore Season
NC State sophomore center Omer Yurtseven came to college last season as a consensus five-star player, but the Istanbul, Turkey native had an up-and-down season as a freshman. Now, as a sophomore a confident Yurtseven is becoming the No. 1 priority on opposing team's scouting reports.
- On the season, ranks third on the team in scoring (13.7) and leads in rebounding (7.0), field goal percentage (60.6%) and blocks (41). In 10 ACC games, leading the team in scoring (15.9), rebounding (7.4), blocks (21) and field goal percentage (56.3%).
- In five ACC home games, Yurtseven is averaging 21.0 points on 61.3% shooting (46-of-75), including 46.7% (7-of-15) from three-point range. Also averaging 7.4 rebounds and 2.4 blocks.
- Yurtseven had a career-high 29 points on 12-of-18 shooting, including 5-of-6 from three-point range in win over #19 Clemson on 1/11.
- Named Co-ACC Player of the Week on Jan. 22 after averaging 25 points on 65.7 percent shooting in a win over Wake Forest (Jan. 18) and a loss to No. 25 Miami (Jan. 21)
- One of 20 student-athletes to the preseason watch list for this year's Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award.
Another Sophomore making impact for the Pack
Omer Yurtseven's fellow sophomore teammate Markell Johnson has also seen his impact on this year's Pack team increase as well.
- Johnson leads the Pack in assists (122 / 7.63 per game) and steals (33 / 2.06 per game) this season. He's currently on pace to finish with the highest assist per game average at NC State since Chris Corchiani averaged 9.6 assists per game in the 1990-91 season. His steals per game average would be the best mark at NC State since Clifford Crawford average 2.13 (66 in 31 games) in the 2002-03 season.
- Johnson has not played in the required 75% of games to rank in ACC stats yet (he missed 7 games for a violation of the Student-Athlete Code of Conduct), but his current stats would lead the ACC in assists and steals if he were eligible. His 3.11 assist-to-turnover ratio in ACC play would lead the league, as well.
- Has had three or more steals in seven of 16 games and seven or more assists in 10 of 16 games.
- Johnson had a career-high 20 points in the win at No. 10 UNC-Chapel Hill on 1/27. He added 11 assists for his second career double-double. He scored or assisted on 15 straight NC State points from the 2:58 mark of regulation through the 2:25 mark of overtime. He clinched the win with two free throws with :04 seconds remaining in overtime.
- Johnson has had double-digit assists in four straight games. He's the first player in NC State history to have four straight games of double-digit assists.
- In the last five games with Johnson back in the starting lineup, NC State has assisted on 101 of its 145 field goals (69.7%). In the seven games Johnson missed, NC State had 108 assists on 199 made field goals (54.3%).
Constant Defensive Pressure leading to Opponent Turnovers
- The Pack has forced half its opponents this season into 16+-turnovers. Four times, the Pack has forced opponents into 20 or more turnovers in a single game. 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. 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.
- In 23 games, the Pack has forced 355 turnovers. The 15.4 turnovers forced per game ranks 48th in NCAA Dl and are the most forced turnovers by a team from the ACC.
- In ACC play, the Pack is 6-0 when it has less turnovers than its opponents and 0-4 when it has more turnovers than its opponents.
Pack Already Have Most Steals Since 2012-13 Team
- With 181 steals in 23 games, the Pack has already surpassed last season's total steals total of 162, as well as the 2015-16 (149), 2014-15 (138) and 2013-14 (173) NC State teams. The Pack is currently on pace to finish in the top-10 in season steals in program history.
- NC State ranks second in the ACC and 48th overall in NCAA DI with 181 steals.
- NC State recorded 14 steals in the win over Bryant on Nov. 14. 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.
- Sophomore guard Markell Johnson leads the Pack with 33 steals in 16 games this season. Johnson's per game average of 2.06 steals per game would lead the ACC.
Eight Games Against Top-18 RPI Teams
- Through games of Feb. 5, NC State has played eight games against teams currently ranked in the top-18 in the RPI. That is the most in the country. Vanderbilt has played 7 (0-7), while Marquette (1-5), Louisville (0-6) and Wake Forest (0-6) have played six.
- With four wins over top-18 teams (Duke - 4, Clemson - 7, UNC-Chapel Hill - 11, Arizona - 16), NC State is tied with Virginia for the most in the country. Only three teams in the country have more than two wins over teams in the top-18 in the RPI: Virginia (RPI #1), Villanova (RPI #2) and NC State.
Freshman Braxton Beverly Shining in Freshman Season
- Freshman guard Braxton Beverly wasn't cleared to play for NC State this season until Tuesday, Nov. 14 after initially being declared ineligible by the NCAA.
- Beverly currently ranks second in the ACC with a 2.81 assist-to-turnover ratio. The freshman guard has had only two games this season with more turnovers than assists and has had one turnover or fewer in 11 of the 20 games he's played in this season.
- Beverly has been Mr. Clutch at the foul line late in close games this season. The Hazard, Ky., native is 27-of-31 (87.1%) from the foul line with less than four minutes left in the second half.
- In the win over No. 2 Arizona, Beverly went 7-for-9 from the foul line in the closing minutes. He knocked down two free throws with 3:21 left to give the Pack an 80-75 lead, made two more with 2:02 left to go up 84-76 and knocked down two more free throws with 1:48 to play to give NC State an 86-76 lead.
- In the win over Penn State, Beverly made two free throws with :52 seconds left to give the Pack a 79-74 lead. He made two more with :30 seconds left to give NC State an 82-76 lead.
- In the win over No. 19 Clemson, Beverly made two free throws with :09 seconds remaining to give NC State a 78-73 lead. The Pack won the game 78-77 when Clemson missed a free throw with :01 second left.
- In the win over No. 10 UNC-Chapel Hill, Beverly made two free throws with :13 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Pack a 93-88 lead on its way to a 95-91 victory.
- For the season, Beverly is shooting 86% (37-of-43) from the foul line.
Winning the Turnover Battle
- The Pack is +76 in turnover margin. Pack has forced 355 turnovers and only turned it over themselves 279 times. +76 turnover margin is the second-best in the ACC. Major turnaround from last year. Last season, NC State finished the season -67 in turnover margin.
70 is the Magic Number
When the Pack scores 70 or more points this season, NC State is 16-2. When the Pack scores 69 or fewer points, NC State is 0-5.
Winning the Rebounding Battle
- NC State enters Wednesday's contests at Virginia Tech having outrebounded seven of its 10 ACC opponents this season
- Last season, the Pack was outrebounded in ACC play in 10 of 18 games.
- The Pack ranks third in the ACC, averaging 13.39 offensive rebounds per game (308 in 23 games). The Pack has had double-digit offensive rebounds in every ACC game except for one this season (1/21 vs. Miami when they had 9). NC State is only 21 offensive rebounds shy of the total the team had last season (329 in 32 games)
RALEIGH, N.C. – The NC State men's basketball team (16-7, 6-4 ACC) seeks its fourth straight win Wednesday evening when it visits Virginia Tech (16-7, 5-5 ACC).
The game is scheduled to tipoff at 9 p.m. and will be shown in the Raleigh area on Fox Sports South with Wes Durham and Dan Bonner calling the action. A complete list of affiliates for Wednesday's game can be found here: http://www.theacc.com/sports/2018/1/30/mbask-rsn-180207b.aspx. NC State fans can also listen to Gary Hahn and Tony Haynes on the call on the Wolfpack Sports Network.
Pack Tracks
- NC State defeated Notre Dame, 76-58, Saturday afternoon for its third consecutive ACC win. The three straight ACC wins are the first for the Pack since the 2014-15 season that NC State has won three straight ACC games.
- After an 0-2 start in ACC play, the Pack has won six of its last eight conference games to stand 6-4 heading into Virginia Tech. The 6-4 mark is NC State's best record through the first 10 games of the ACC season since the 2011-12 team started 7-3.
- Torin Dorn led NC State with 21 points in the win over the Fighting Irish. Dorn has now scored in double figures in 7 of 10 ACC games this season - including the last six - after only reaching double figures three times in 18 ACC games last season.
- Markell Johnson had 10 assists in the win over Notre Dame. The sophomore has had double figure assists in four straight games. He is the first player in NC State history to have double-digit assists in four consecutive games. In 16 games this season, Johnson has 122 assists and is averaging 7.6 per game. Despite missing seven games, only two players in the ACC have more total assists this season.
Yurtseven Finding Comfort Level in Sophomore Season
NC State sophomore center Omer Yurtseven came to college last season as a consensus five-star player, but the Istanbul, Turkey native had an up-and-down season as a freshman. Now, as a sophomore a confident Yurtseven is becoming the No. 1 priority on opposing team's scouting reports.
- On the season, ranks third on the team in scoring (13.7) and leads in rebounding (7.0), field goal percentage (60.6%) and blocks (41). In 10 ACC games, leading the team in scoring (15.9), rebounding (7.4), blocks (21) and field goal percentage (56.3%).
- In five ACC home games, Yurtseven is averaging 21.0 points on 61.3% shooting (46-of-75), including 46.7% (7-of-15) from three-point range. Also averaging 7.4 rebounds and 2.4 blocks.
- Yurtseven had a career-high 29 points on 12-of-18 shooting, including 5-of-6 from three-point range in win over #19 Clemson on 1/11.
- Named Co-ACC Player of the Week on Jan. 22 after averaging 25 points on 65.7 percent shooting in a win over Wake Forest (Jan. 18) and a loss to No. 25 Miami (Jan. 21)
- One of 20 student-athletes to the preseason watch list for this year's Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award.
Another Sophomore making impact for the Pack
Omer Yurtseven's fellow sophomore teammate Markell Johnson has also seen his impact on this year's Pack team increase as well.
- Johnson leads the Pack in assists (122 / 7.63 per game) and steals (33 / 2.06 per game) this season. He's currently on pace to finish with the highest assist per game average at NC State since Chris Corchiani averaged 9.6 assists per game in the 1990-91 season. His steals per game average would be the best mark at NC State since Clifford Crawford average 2.13 (66 in 31 games) in the 2002-03 season.
- Johnson has not played in the required 75% of games to rank in ACC stats yet (he missed 7 games for a violation of the Student-Athlete Code of Conduct), but his current stats would lead the ACC in assists and steals if he were eligible. His 3.11 assist-to-turnover ratio in ACC play would lead the league, as well.
- Has had three or more steals in seven of 16 games and seven or more assists in 10 of 16 games.
- Johnson had a career-high 20 points in the win at No. 10 UNC-Chapel Hill on 1/27. He added 11 assists for his second career double-double. He scored or assisted on 15 straight NC State points from the 2:58 mark of regulation through the 2:25 mark of overtime. He clinched the win with two free throws with :04 seconds remaining in overtime.
- Johnson has had double-digit assists in four straight games. He's the first player in NC State history to have four straight games of double-digit assists.
- In the last five games with Johnson back in the starting lineup, NC State has assisted on 101 of its 145 field goals (69.7%). In the seven games Johnson missed, NC State had 108 assists on 199 made field goals (54.3%).
Constant Defensive Pressure leading to Opponent Turnovers
- The Pack has forced half its opponents this season into 16+-turnovers. Four times, the Pack has forced opponents into 20 or more turnovers in a single game. 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. 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.
- In 23 games, the Pack has forced 355 turnovers. The 15.4 turnovers forced per game ranks 48th in NCAA Dl and are the most forced turnovers by a team from the ACC.
- In ACC play, the Pack is 6-0 when it has less turnovers than its opponents and 0-4 when it has more turnovers than its opponents.
Pack Already Have Most Steals Since 2012-13 Team
- With 181 steals in 23 games, the Pack has already surpassed last season's total steals total of 162, as well as the 2015-16 (149), 2014-15 (138) and 2013-14 (173) NC State teams. The Pack is currently on pace to finish in the top-10 in season steals in program history.
- NC State ranks second in the ACC and 48th overall in NCAA DI with 181 steals.
- NC State recorded 14 steals in the win over Bryant on Nov. 14. 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.
- Sophomore guard Markell Johnson leads the Pack with 33 steals in 16 games this season. Johnson's per game average of 2.06 steals per game would lead the ACC.
Eight Games Against Top-18 RPI Teams
- Through games of Feb. 5, NC State has played eight games against teams currently ranked in the top-18 in the RPI. That is the most in the country. Vanderbilt has played 7 (0-7), while Marquette (1-5), Louisville (0-6) and Wake Forest (0-6) have played six.
- With four wins over top-18 teams (Duke - 4, Clemson - 7, UNC-Chapel Hill - 11, Arizona - 16), NC State is tied with Virginia for the most in the country. Only three teams in the country have more than two wins over teams in the top-18 in the RPI: Virginia (RPI #1), Villanova (RPI #2) and NC State.
Freshman Braxton Beverly Shining in Freshman Season
- Freshman guard Braxton Beverly wasn't cleared to play for NC State this season until Tuesday, Nov. 14 after initially being declared ineligible by the NCAA.
- Beverly currently ranks second in the ACC with a 2.81 assist-to-turnover ratio. The freshman guard has had only two games this season with more turnovers than assists and has had one turnover or fewer in 11 of the 20 games he's played in this season.
- Beverly has been Mr. Clutch at the foul line late in close games this season. The Hazard, Ky., native is 27-of-31 (87.1%) from the foul line with less than four minutes left in the second half.
- In the win over No. 2 Arizona, Beverly went 7-for-9 from the foul line in the closing minutes. He knocked down two free throws with 3:21 left to give the Pack an 80-75 lead, made two more with 2:02 left to go up 84-76 and knocked down two more free throws with 1:48 to play to give NC State an 86-76 lead.
- In the win over Penn State, Beverly made two free throws with :52 seconds left to give the Pack a 79-74 lead. He made two more with :30 seconds left to give NC State an 82-76 lead.
- In the win over No. 19 Clemson, Beverly made two free throws with :09 seconds remaining to give NC State a 78-73 lead. The Pack won the game 78-77 when Clemson missed a free throw with :01 second left.
- In the win over No. 10 UNC-Chapel Hill, Beverly made two free throws with :13 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Pack a 93-88 lead on its way to a 95-91 victory.
- For the season, Beverly is shooting 86% (37-of-43) from the foul line.
Winning the Turnover Battle
- The Pack is +76 in turnover margin. Pack has forced 355 turnovers and only turned it over themselves 279 times. +76 turnover margin is the second-best in the ACC. Major turnaround from last year. Last season, NC State finished the season -67 in turnover margin.
70 is the Magic Number
When the Pack scores 70 or more points this season, NC State is 16-2. When the Pack scores 69 or fewer points, NC State is 0-5.
Winning the Rebounding Battle
- NC State enters Wednesday's contests at Virginia Tech having outrebounded seven of its 10 ACC opponents this season
- Last season, the Pack was outrebounded in ACC play in 10 of 18 games.
- The Pack ranks third in the ACC, averaging 13.39 offensive rebounds per game (308 in 23 games). The Pack has had double-digit offensive rebounds in every ACC game except for one this season (1/21 vs. Miami when they had 9). NC State is only 21 offensive rebounds shy of the total the team had last season (329 in 32 games)
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