NC State welcomed back sophomore shooting guard Terquavion Smith, and said good-bye to long-time Notre Dame coach Mike Brey on Tuesday.
NC State’s defense got tested by Notre Dame, but senior point guard Jarkel Joiner poured in 28 points and dished out six assists to power the Wolfpack to a 85-82 win at PNC Arena. NC State improved to 16-5 overall and 6-4 in the ACC, with at Wake Forest coming up next Saturday.
Smith proved to bounce back from his nasty fall Saturday with 9:30 left at North Carolina. He was fouled while skying toward the rim, and crashed down, causing some numbness to his elbow and soreness to his neck. He was taken off the court on a stretch as a precaution, and taken to a nearby hospital.
Smith started against Notre Dame and played all but one minute of the game, His shot was off — he went 2 of 14 from the field and 2 of 9 on three-pointers — but he was aggressive throughout. Smith made 11 of 13 free throws to finish with 17 points.
Smith said he felt better once the juices of game day kicked in. He also thanked strength and conditioning coach Pat Murphy.
“I just know it’s going to be physical,” Smith said. “Being at the top of everybody’s scouting report. Being that guy with this team, I am a scorer. They are going to try and do everything they can to key in on me. I’m not going to get anything easy.”
Smith also talked with UNC senior Rechon “Leaky” Black on the phone and emphasized that he is OK with everything.
“I spoke with Leaky, and that is my guy, he’s a North Carolina guy [from Concord],” Smith said. “It’s all love there and there has never been anything but love. It’s just a basketball play. I never hated him. I know he was making a basketball play.
“It was just the fall, honestly, and it blew it out of proportion. The things that happened prior to that fall just dragged it out even more.”
Brey, who recently announced his retirement, has been the Fighting Irish coach since 2000. However, he’s mired in his worst season, with a 9-12 record and 1-9 mark in the league.
Keatts got to know Brey when he was an assistant coach at Louisville, and the two programs were in the Big East together. Keatts joked that the Big East didn’t call any fouls.
“What a class act Mike Brey is,” NC State coach Kevin Keatts said. “We, as in ACC coaches, are going to miss him in a big way.”
Keatts was worried about the game, despite Notre Dame’s record and unorthodox lineup of four guards and a post player. Notre Dame shot 9 of 21 from three-point land and had a one possession game after Cormac Ryan made a three-pointer to make it 69-68 with 4:59 left.
NC State pulled away, due in part to only having two turnovers for the entire game, a new school record. Notre Dame shot 51.9 percent from the field and held a 41-32 rebounding advantage.
Five players recached double figures for the Fighting Irish, led by Ryan, who had 19 points and five three-pointers.
“They can shoot the basketball,” Keatts said. “I tried to get my guys to not play the record, but play the team. They have veteran guys that can make shots.”
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