Pack Heads to Pitt for Saturday Noon Tip

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NC State Game Notes | Pitt Game Notes

RALEIGH, N.C. – The NC State men's basketball team (13-6, 4-2 ACC) is back on the road Saturday when it plays at Pitt (8-11, 1-5 ACC).

Tipoff against the Panthers is scheduled for noon and the game will be televised on ESPNU. NC State fans can also listen to Matt Chazanow and Chucky Brown call the action on the Wolfpack Sports Network.

Pack Notes
- NC State secured its first win over a ranked opponent in the Will Wade era with an 80-76 overtime win at No. 18 Clemson on Tuesday night
- Ven-Allen Lubin led four NC State players in double figures with 22 points. He finished the game 9-of-12 from the field and 4-of-4 from the foul line. Lubin has now shot over 50 percent in every game except for one this season. The Orlando, Fla., native leads the ACC and ranks fifth in the NCAA in field goal percentage at 67.1 percent. In his fourth season of college basketball, Lubin is averaging a career-best 13.2 points per game and his rebounding average of 6.6 per game is also the best of his career.
- Quadir Copeland had 16 points, six assists, four rebounds and two steals at Clemson as the Philadelphia, Pa., native continues to stuff the stat sheet this season. Over the last 13 games, Copeland is averaging 15.0 points, 6.8 assists, and 2.0 steals per game while shooting 52.7 percent (68-of-129) from the field. The senior has led the Pack in scoring in six of the last 13 games, in assists in 12 of the last 13 games (including the last 11 games) and in steals in seven of the last 13 games.
- NC State tied the program record with 19 made three-pointers in the win over Florida State on Jan. 10. It also tied an ACC record for most three-pointers by a single team in an ACC game. It's the third time in program history that NC State has made 19 three-pointers in a game and the second time this season -- NC State also hit 19 three-pointers in the season-opening win over NC Central.
- NC State has had double-digit three-pointers in 10 of 19 games this season. The Pack has had two games with 19 made three-pointers, a game with 17 made threes and another game with 16. The Pack currently ranks second in the ACC and 13th in the NCAA with an average of 10.9 three-pointers made per game. NC State leads the ACC and ranks seventh in the NCAA in three point percentage, making 39.6 percent of its attempts from long range this season.
- Paul McNeil, Jr., has made multiple three-pointers in eight consecutive games and has made 34 three-pointers in that stretch (4.3 per game) and is shooting 46.6% from long range in those contests. For the season, McNeil is averaging 3.1 three-pointers per game to rank second in the ACC and 34^th in the NCAA while his three-point percentage of 41.1 percent is also second in the ACC and 36^th in the NCAA.

Saturday storylines
- NC State has won its first three ACC road games this season. The last time the Pack won four straight conference road games was the end of the 2020–21 season, when NC State closed its ACC slate with road wins at Pitt, Wake Forest, No. 15 Virginia and Notre Dame. The last time the Pack started its ACC schedule by winning its first four ACC road games was during the 1973–74 season, when NC State went 12–0 in conference play and went on to capture the National Championship with a 30–1 overall record.
- Entering Tuesday's game at Clemson, the Pack ranked third in the ACC in fewest turnovers per game while the Tigers led the ACC in fewest turnovers, but after forcing Clemson into 13 turnovers while only turning it over only seven times themselves, NC State now leads the ACC in turnovers (and ranks 23rd in the NCAA), averaging just 9.8 per game. In the overtime win over Clemson, the Pack's five starters combined to commit just one turnover in the 45 minute game. NC State only has 29 turnovers (7.3 per game) in the Pack's last four outings.
- In its last four games, NC State passed out 69 assists and had just 29 turnovers (2.38 assist-to-turnover ratio). NC State leads the ACC and ranks 17th in the NCAA with a 1.71 assist-to-turnover ratio this season.
- The Pack has a +35 turnover margin in its six ACC games this season and leads the ACC and ranks 13th in the NCAA with a +4.5 turnover margin. The only two power conference teams in the NCAA to have a better turnover margin than the Pack are Houston (+6.9) and Iowa State (+6.1). NC State has had the same or fewer turnovers than its opponent in 17 of 19 games this season. VCU and Ole Miss are the only two opponents to have fewer turnovers than the Pack when they played.
- The Pack's offense has traveled well this season, as NC State has actually shot better away from Raleigh than at home. In eight road or neutral-site games, the Pack is shooting 48.1 percent, including 43.2 percent from three-point range, and averaging 84.1 points per game. Ven-Allen Lubin leads NC State in scoring in those contests, averaging 15.6 points while shooting 70.0 percent from the field (49-of-70) away from Raleigh. Quadir Copeland is close behind, averaging 14.3 points per game and shooting 59.1 percent (39-of-66) on the road.
- NC State finished the game against Clemson with a 19-6 advantage in points off turnovers. The Pack has now had more points off turnovers than its opponents in 11 of the last 12 games. For the season, NC State has outscored its opponents by 152 points in points off turnovers.
Finding the range - Terrance Arceneaux was just 3-for-17 from three-point range in the first 11 games he played this season. Starting with the Boston College game on Jan. 6, Arceneaux has hit at least one three-pointer in every game and is 7-for-9 (77.8%) from three-point range in the last four contests.
- Win the Boards, win the game? NC State won on Tuesday at Clemson despite being outrebounded by eight. The Pack is 10-0 when it outrebounds its opponent this season, but just 3-6 when it is outrebounded.
- NC State has had double digit steals in four of its six ACC games and has 61 overall in ACC play. The Pack leads the conference in ACC-only contests with an average of 10.2 steals per game. Quadir Copeland's 2.5 steals per game average in ACC play is the third-best average in the conference. NC State has eight players that have double-digit steals on the season.
- The win at Florida State marked the fourth time this season NC State has gone over the century mark. It's the most 100 point games in a single season for NC State since the 1995-96 team had four. For the season, NC State averages 85.5 points per game which is third in the ACC and 32nd in the NCAA. The Pack is currently on pace to average its most points since Fire & Ice (Chris Corchiani and Rodney Monroe) led the Pack to an average of 89.3 points per game in the 1990-91 season.
- Ven-Allen Lubin has been unstoppable in the second half of games this season: A missed shot midway through the second half against Liberty on Dec. 10 snapped a streak of 24 consecutive made second half field goals for Ven-Allen Lubin. In 19 games this season, Lubin is shooting 77.2 percent (61-of-79) from the field in the second half. As a team this season, NC State is shooting over 50 percent from the field in the second half. Through 19 games, the Pack is shooting 50.9 percent in the second half, including 43 percent from three-point range. NC State has also been excellent at the foul line in the final 20 minutes of games as the Pack is making 77.8 percent of its free throw attempts in the second half.

NC State series with Pitt
- Saturday will be the 29th all-time meeting between NC State and Pitt. The Pack leads the series, 22-6, including a 5-2 record at Petersen Events Center.
- Last Meeting (March 5, 2025): NC State defeated Pitt, 71-63, in its final home game of the 2024-25 season. The Pack's seven seniors combined to score all 71 points for NC State in the win. Michael O'Connell led NC State with 15 points and a game-high eight assists.

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Players Mentioned

Terrance Arceneaux

Quadir Copeland

Ven-Allen Lubin

Paul McNeil, Jr.

Michael O'Connell

North Carolina State University Athletics