NC State Wolfpack basketball will play its first game of the 2021 ACC Tournament Wednesday at 12:00 p.m. against Syracuse on ACC Network.

The Orange (15-8, 9-7 ACC) are coming off of a 64-54 win over Clemson, and the Wolfpack (13-9, 9-8 ACC) claimed an 80-69 road victory over Notre Dame in its regular-season finale.

Syracuse won both meetings against the Pack in the regular season, coming out on top 76-73 in the Carrier Dome and 77-68 in PNC Arena.

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

Thrid time's the charm, right?

I think so.

NC State head coach Kevin Keatts was 3-0 against Syracuse in his first three seasons in Raleigh before being swept in the 2020-21 regular-season series.

The Wolfpack had its chances to win both, and one could make the argument that the three-point loss in the Carrier Dome was a moral victory of sorts considering it was the Pack’s first game without fifth-year senior guard Devon Daniels, who led the team in scoring, assists and steals before suffering a season-ending ACL tear against Wake Forest four days prior.

Then NC State found out it would be without fifth-year senior forward DJ Funderburk due to “university policies” on the way up to Syracuse.

Despite career performances from junior forward Jericole Hellems and redshirt sophomore center Manny Bates, the Wolfpack squandered a nine-point halftime lead to lose by three to the Orange in the first meeting.

The Pack lost by nine in round two in Raleigh. It only has itself to blame for that defeat. Syracuse produced 21 points off of 20 Wolfpack turnovers, NC State’s highest total of the season.

The common denominator in each of those two games was how successful the Orange were from the perimeter.

Syracuse averages 33 percent on three-point attempts this season, which ranks 212th nationally. In the two meetings against NC State, the Orange shot a combined 42.5 percent from beyond the arc.

Cuse forward Buddy Boeheim, son of head coach Jim Boeheim, had a lot to do with that. The 6-6 junior has averaged just 34.9 percent from three this season but shot a combined 7-of-12 from deep against the Wolfpack.

I don’t expect NC State to turn it over 20 times, and I don’t expect Boeheim to continue shooting 58.3 percent from deep against the Pack Wednesday.

If one of those two things happens, the Wolfpack will be in trouble. If neither does, the third time will be the charm.

Prediction: NC State 76, Syracuse 71

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)

ACC Game 16: NC State 75, Pittsburgh 66 (NC State 65-62)

ACC Game 17: NC State 81, Notre Dame 76 (NC State 80-69)

Regular season picks: 10-7

My head tells me that it's hard for a team to beat someone three times during a season. My gut tells me that NC State is playing so well that it's set up for a nice ACC Tournament run.

My eyes tell me after looking at my past predictions that I am not very good at predicting NC State-Syracuse games. I'm 0-for-2, although I nearly got the score correct last time, just for the wrong teams.

You would think having a couple of extra practices to prepare for Syracuse's 2-3 zone defense would help. The switch to a taller lineup may also be more ideal since the Orange's length on the perimeter bothered the Wolfpack previously.

Those are just some of the good reasons why it would make sense to predict a Wolfpack win. My head and gut tell me that the Pack is going to pull out the victory as well.

But I'm a history buff, and my eyes tell me that lesson gleaned from my past predictions is to go the opposite of what I think should happen.

Prediction: Syracuse 75, NC State 70

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)

ACC Game 16: NC State 79, Pittsburgh 65 (NC State 65-62)

ACC Game 17: Notre Dame 79, NC State 73 (NC State 80-69)

Regular season picks: 10-7

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