Pack Opens ACC Play by Welcoming FSU Saturday to the Lenovo Center

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NC State Game Notes | Florida State Game Notes

RALEIGH, N.C. – The NC State men's basketball team opens ACC play Saturday afternoon when it welcomes Florida State to the Lenovo Center.

Tipoff against the Seminoles is scheduled for 4 p.m. and the game will be televised on ESPNU. NC State fans can also listen to Matt Chazanow and Tony Haynes call the action on the Wolfpack Sports Network.

Pack Tracks
- NC State dropped a tightly contested matchup to Texas, 63-59, Wednesday night in the SEC-ACC Challenge.
- After the Longhorns jumped out to a 9-0 lead, NC State battled back to tie the score at 21 with 9:07 left in the first half. The rest of the game (29:07 of game time) was played with a one possession margin between the teams except for 54 seconds.
- Dontrez Styles shook had his best scoring game in an NC State uniform on Wednesday night as he scored a team-high 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including 3-of-5 from three-point range. Styles added a team-best two blocks in the game. Coming into this season, Styles had 24 blocks in 77 career games, but he now has 11 this season in eight games for the Pack. He ranks eighth in the ACC in blocks per game at 1.4 an outing.
- Marcus Hill chipped in 16 points for the Pack against Texas on 7-of-11 shooting. The Bowling Green transfer has been an efficient scorer for the Pack this season. He's shot 50 percent or better in six of eight games this season and is shooting 53.6 percent on the season and ranks second on the team in scoring, averaging 11.4 points per game.
- Michael O'Connell led NC State in assists (7), rebounds (6) and steals (2) against Texas, but the normally sure-handed guard did turn the ball over a season-high four times against the Longhorns. O'Connell entered the game against Texas, ranked second in the NCAA in assist-to-turnover ratio and was averaging one turnover for every 50 minutes played. Despite the turnovers, O'Connell still ranks third in the ACC in assist-turnover ratio at 4.63 and ranks seventh in the conference in assists (4.6 per game)
- NC State's bench outscored Texas' bench 19-9 as the Pack's bench has now outscored the opponent's bench in seven of eight games this season. NC State is averaging 24.5 bench points per game this season. While the season is still young, it is on pace to be the Pack's highest bench scoring average since the 2018-19 team averaged 29.0 bench points per game.

Saturday Storylines
- Since the beginning of the 2022-23 season (two seasons and counting), NC State is 32-8 (.800) in home games, including an 14-7 mark against conference opponents.
- NC State has been efficient on two-point field goals this season. The Pack has shot a combined 55 percent (176-of-320) on two-point field goals in NC State's first eight games of the season.
- Both of these programs have been mainstays at the top of the conference in turnover margin and this season is no different. After one month of play, the Pack leads the ACC in turnover margin at +4.63 while Florida State is right behind NC State in second place with a +4.56 turnover margin.
- Saturday is a matchup of the top two shot-blocking teams in the ACC through the first month of the season. Florida State leads the ACC with an average of 5.22 blocks per game while the Pack is second at 4.75 blocks per game. NC State is the only team in the ACC that has two players ranked in the top-10 in the conference in blocks (Ben Middlebrooks - 4th (1.63) & Dontrez Styles - 8th (1.38).
- The two programs also rank first and second in opponent three-point field goal percentage. FSU leads the ACC allowing opponents to make only 27.2 percent of its three-point attempts while the Pack is second in the league, allowing opponents to convert only 28.1 percent of their three-point attempts.
- NC State has finished 16th or better in the NCAA the last three seasons in turnovers and this year's team is again one of the nation's best at valuing the basketball. The Pack currently ranks 50th in the NCAA in turnovers per game, averaging just 10.25 an outing. NC State will get a test from Florida State on Saturday though as the Seminoles come into the game leading the ACC - and ranking sixth in the NCAA - in forcing opponents into an average of 17.8 turnovers per game.
- The Pack ranks fourth in the NCAA in fast break points, averaging 20.5 fast break points per game this season, and for the season is +92 over its opponents in fast break points, but during the current three-game losing streak NC State has been outscored in fast break points, 28-24.

NC State series with Florida State
- Saturday will be the 64th all-time meeting between NC State and Florida State. NC State holds a slim 32-31 edge in the all-time series.
- Last Meeting (Feb. 27, 2024): Florida State shot 59.7 percent from the field (highest field goal percentage NC State allowed last season) to defeat the Pack, 90-83, inside the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center. NC State never led in the second half, getting within 66-64 with 8:31 left, but a 10-2 run for Florida State put the game away for the Seminoles. Jayden Taylor led five NC State players in double figures with a career-high tying 24 points. The game against FSU also marked one of only two games in DJ Burns career that he did not score a point. (held scoreless two times in 165 career games)

Pack Opens ACC Play by Welcoming FSU Saturday to the Lenovo Center

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Players Mentioned

Marcus Hill

Ben Middlebrooks

Michael O'Connell

Dontrez Styles

Jayden Taylor