NC State Shoots the Lights Out, Completes Season Sweep of Wake Forest
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - On a snowy Saturday in Winston-Salem, NC State brought the heat from beyond the arc. The Wolfpack (16-6, 7-2 ACC) completed a season sweep of Wake Forest (11-11, 2-7 ACC) with a commanding 96-78 win at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum, riding a red-hot shooting performance and a breakout game from freshman Paul McNeil Jr.
McNeil Jr. was electric. The freshman poured in 28 points-his second-highest total in a Wolfpack uniform and his best showing yet against ACC competition.
He was locked in from the jump, scoring 14 in each half and finishing a blistering 8-of-12 from the field, including 6-of-8 from deep. Every time Wake Forest tried to make a push, McNeil Jr. seemed to have the answer.
Darrion Williams added to the offensive onslaught with 20 points of his own, despite being limited to just 24 minutes due to a second-half injury. Williams was efficient and fearless, knocking down 5-of-8 from three and 7-of-13 overall. His early scoring helped NC State build a cushion that Wake Forest never fully erased.
Ven-Allen Lubin brought balance in the paint with 12 points and eight rebounds, while Tre Holloman chipped in 11 points. Quadir Copeland didn’t need to score in bunches-he orchestrated the offense with precision, finishing with 10 assists to go along with eight points, just shy of a double-double.
As a team, the Pack was simply on fire. They shot 54.1% from the field and an eye-popping 16-of-28 from three-point range.
That 57.1% clip from deep was more than just a hot night-it was a statement. It marked their best shooting performance since their Jan. 10 win at Florida State, when they shot 56.1% overall.
The game didn’t start pretty. NC State missed its first four shots and didn’t score until nearly three minutes in, when McNeil Jr. buried a three to break the ice.
That shot sparked a 9-0 run to give the Pack a 9-2 lead, and they never looked back. A Terrance Arceneaux three pushed the lead to double digits at 17-6, and Wake Forest never got within single digits for the rest of the half.
By halftime, NC State had built a 49-31 lead, thanks to 17-of-31 shooting and nine threes in the opening frame.
Wake Forest made a push after the break, opening the second half with urgency. The Deacs cut the deficit to seven, 64-57, on a Juke Harris three with 11:54 remaining.
But the Pack didn’t flinch. Matt Able responded immediately with a three of his own, and after Wake trimmed it to eight again, Able calmly knocked down two free throws to stretch the lead back to double digits.
From that point on, NC State kept Wake at arm’s length.
Harris was a lone bright spot for the Demon Deacons, finishing with a career-high 31 points. But it wasn’t enough to overcome a Wolfpack team firing on all cylinders.
NC State now turns its attention to the road once again, wrapping up a grueling stretch of six road games in eight contests. Next up: a Tuesday night showdown at SMU.
Tipoff is set for 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
If the Pack keeps shooting like this, they’re going to be a problem for anyone standing in their way.