Game predictions: NC State vs Pittsburgh

NC State Wolfpack basketball continues ACC play Sunday at 4:00 p.m. against Pittsburgh on ACC Network.

The Panthers (9-9, 5-8 ACC) are coming off of a 79-72 road loss to Florida State, and the Wolfpack (11-9, 7-8 ACC) claimed a 68-61 road victory over Virginia in its last game.

Here are The Wolfpacker staff's game predictions for State's matchup with Pitt:

NC State is playing its best basketball of the season, and Pittsburgh may have reached its low point. Good timing for the Wolfpack, theoretically.

The Panthers will be without star upperclassmen guards Xavier Johnson and Au'Diese Toney for the first time this year.

Both announced that they were leaving the Pitt program last week and would be entering the transfer portal.

Pittsburgh had three players averaging 14 points or more per game. Johnson and Toney were two of them. They almost ranked one and two on the team in assists, with Johnson being second in the ACC in assists per game at the time of his departure.

In Pittsburgh's one-point loss to NC State on Feb. 17, Johnson and Toney combined for 31 points, six assists, five rebounds and one steal in 58 minutes. That's a lot of production left behind.

I expect the Panthers to come out energy, as they normally are, because what else do they have to lose. After all, if you're in the Pittsburgh camp, you're feeling like you should have won the first meeting with the Wolfpack.

It won't be enough, however, as Pitt will be missing too much while NC State has built up enough confidence recently to handle its business, even if the shots aren't dropping early.

Game prediction: NC State 75 Pittsburgh 66

Previous predictions:

ACC Game 1: NC State 79, UNC 75 (Actual: NC State 79-76)

ACC Game 2: NC State 87, Boston College 80 (Actual: NC State 79-76)

ACC Game 3: NC State 73, Clemson 71 (Actual: Clemson 74-70)

ACC Game 4: NC State 72, Miami 64 (Actual: Miami 64-59)

ACC Game 5: NC State 82, Florida State 77 (Actual: Florida State 105-73)

ACC Game 6: North Carolina 81, NC State 75 (Actual: UNC 86-76)

ACC Game 7: NC State 80, Wake Forest 71 (Actual: NC State 72-67)

ACC Game 8: NC State 75, Syracuse 72 (Actual: Syracuse 76-73)

ACC Game 9: Virginia 70, NC State 65 (Actual: Virginia 64-57)

ACC Game 10: NC State 77, Boston College 70 (Actual: NC State 81-65)

ACC Game 11: NC State 75, Syracuse 69 (Actual: Syracuse 77-68)

ACC Game 12: Duke 85, NC State 84 (Actual: Duke 69-53)

ACC Game 13: Pittsburgh 70, NC State 67 (Actual: NC State 74-73)

ACC Game 14: NC State 78, Wake Forest 67 (Actual: NC State 80-62)

ACC Game 15: Virginia 65, NC State 61 (NC State 68-61)

When NC State was getting ready to play Syracuse on the road in the Wolfpack’s first game since the torn ACL to star fifth-year senior guard Devon Daniels, I wrote how sometimes those first games without a key player can be deceiving to what conventional wisdom may suggest.

It is not uncommon for a team to rise to the occasion absent one of its top performers in the immediate aftermath of his absence before reality settles in.

Such was the case this week when we learned that Pittsburgh’s third-leading scorer, Xavier Johnson, was leaving and entering the transfer portal. My immediate thought was that loss of Johnson, who was hit with a technical foul during NC State’s one-point win at Pittsburgh in a game that seems like yesterday, could be a short-term boost along those lines of what I was just explaining.

Then came the news that guard Au’diese Toney was also in the transfer portal. Pittsburgh has three players averaging double-digits in points. Johnson and Toney were two of them. Toney was also second on Pitt in rebounding and assists. Johnson led the Panthers in assists. The two tied for the team lead in steals.

That’s not to say my theory does not still apply. Boston College, playing without three of its four leading scorers on the season, put up 96 points and stunned Notre Dame in its first game back from a COVID-19 pause.

But I don’t think that’ll happen here.

Prediction: NC State 79, Pittsburgh 65

Previous predictions:

ACC Game 1: UNC 79, NC State 70 (Actual: NC State 79-76)

ACC Game 2: NC State 78, Boston College 66 (Actual: NC State 79-76)

ACC Game 3: Clemson 79, NC State 76 (Actual: Clemson 74-70)

ACC Game 4: NC State 79, Miami 76 (Actual: Miami 64-59)

ACC Game 5: Florida State 79, NC State 76 (Actual: Florida State 105-73)

ACC Game 6: North Carolina 79, NC State 76 (Actual: North Carolina 86-76)

ACC Game 7: NC State 77, Wake Forest 71 (Actual: NC State 72-67)

ACC Game 8: NC State 69, Syracuse 66 (Actual: Syracuse 76-73)

ACC Game 9: Virginia 72, NC State 59 (Actual: Virginia 64-57)

ACC Game 10: NC State 74, Boston College 62 (Actual: NC State 81-65)

ACC Game 11: NC State 78, Syracuse 67 (Actual: Syracuse 77-68)

ACC Game 12: Duke 83, NC State 76 (Actual: Duke 69-53)

ACC Game 13: Pittsburgh 71, NC State 62 (Actual: NC State 74-73)

ACC Game 14: NC State 77, Wake Forest 71 (Actual: NC State 80-62)

ACC Game 15: Virginia 72, NC State 58 (NC State 68-61)

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