NC State gets one more tune-up before the schedule tightens up, hosting Troy on Friday night at 7:00 PM at Lenovo Center. The game will air on ACC Network, and it comes at an important moment for the Wolfpack: this is the final home game before the season’s first road trip, with two games in the Bahamas next Thursday and Friday against much tougher competition.
On paper, this should be a game NC State handles. Troy comes in at No. 185 in KenPom, a number that puts the Trojans closer to ETSU, ranked No. 167, than Presbyterian at No.
- Still, the Wolfpack has a few things to sort out beyond the final score.
The bigger question is whether NC State can deliver a complete performance and, as Coach Gainey puts it, play to the standard rather than the score.
Rebounding is one area worth watching. NC State controlled the glass against Presbyterian, a smaller and less talented team, and Troy doesn’t bring much size either.
The Trojans have only one 6’9” player and one 6’8” player who have logged more than 10 total minutes this season. The Wolfpack should have another chance to impose itself inside, though the real test will come later against stronger competition.
There’s also the lingering question of perimeter defense. Can this team defend the 3PT line better than last season’s Wolfpack? The answer is still up in the air.
Shah Hall has missed the last couple of games because of injury, and he is expected back soon, though there is no specific timetable yet.
Troy enters the matchup with Adam Howard in his first head coaching job. Howard spent last season as NC State’s offensive coach under whatshisname, and he’s replacing Coach Scott Cross, who took the Georgia Tech job.
Troy is coming off back-to-back Sun Belt Conference championships and an NCAA Tournament appearance. Howard also has prior ties to the program, having worked there as an assistant from 2016-2018.
He brought Jayme Kontuniemi with him from last season’s Wolfpack roster, though Jayme has not yet played his first minute of American college ball.
The Trojans are 1-2 so far. They opened with a home loss to UMass, 71-60, then fell on the road at FSU, 91-68. They picked up their first win Tuesday, edging Loyola Marymount 74-69 in overtime at home.
For NC State, a few individual performances are worth tracking. Darius Adams has looked sharp against weaker competition but struggled against ETSU, and this matchup should provide a better measuring stick than Presbyterian. If he keeps showing inconsistency in the starting role, as the source puts it, “I know a guy.”
Paul McNeil is coming off the second double-double of his career, but he also shot 30% or less for the second time in the season’s three games. He should settle in, but better shot selection would help him bump that percentage up.
Kyle Evans played fewer minutes in the last game, likely because of the lopsided score. It was his first outing without a blocked shot, and he finished with just 2 points. Even so, he remains a major piece for this team, and it may be a little early to be saving minutes if that was indeed the reason.
Then there’s Mikey Wilkins, who may have moved ahead of Jurkovic as Kyle Evans’ backup. That’s how it looked Tuesday.
Against the undersized Presbyterian team, Wilkins turned in the best game of his career with 13 points and 7 rebounds in 14 minutes. By comparison, Jurkovic has totaled 13 minutes, 4 points, 1 rebound and a block so far this season.
The question now is simple: can Mr. Basketball do it again?
Mikey says, ‘watch me!’
In Other News...
NC State's Early Depth Is Giving The Wolfpack A Different Look
NC States 94-60 win over Presbyterian offered another early look at a Wolfpack team that is starting to show more ways to beat an opponent. Ven-Allen Lubin powered the front line with 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Christian Hammond, Paul McNeil Jr. and Zymicah Wilkins all chipped in with meaningful scoring and work on the glass as the Wolfpack moved to 3-0.
What stood out just as much was how the offense spread itself around. NC State piled up 50 points in the paint and got 41 points from the bench, a sign that the rotation is already giving the team a different feel than it had in recent seasons. The challenge now is whether that depth can keep translating once the schedule tightens and the competition gets more demanding. [Read more 🡒]
Philip Rivers Could Be Closing In On NC States Biggest Job
Philip Rivers appears to be moving closer to a return to Raleigh in a role few would have imagined a few years ago. The NC State Board of Trustees is expected to approve a contract for the former Wolfpack quarterback to become the football teams head coach, following the firing of Dave Doeren. Rivers, who is currently coaching at the high school level, has already met with university officials about the opening.
Rivers has not publicly confirmed the hire, but he has acknowledged that conversations are ongoing about what comes next. For a program looking to reset after making a change at the top, the possibility of bringing back one of its most recognizable former players adds an unmistakable layer of intrigue, even as the final steps remain to be completed. [Read more 🡒]
NC State Has No Margin For Error Against Syracuse
NC States defense left plenty to clean up after the Duke game, when the Wolfpack gave up 238 rushing yards and watched Nate Sheppard carve through them for 217 yards and three touchdowns. Even in a game with a rare bright spot, safety Andrew Pellicciotta turned a missed 50-yard field goal into a 109-yard touchdown return, reportedly the first play of that kind in program history, but the bigger takeaway was how much ground the Wolfpack surrendered on the other side of the ball.
Interim head coach Todd Goebbel didnt hide from the breakdowns, and he also didnt sound rattled by them as NC State turns to Syracuse. The Wolfpack know the margin for error is thin now, especially if the defense is going to be tested again, and the next step is proving the preparation matches the urgency of the moment. [Read more 🡒]