Georgia Tech’s best chance was to try and ugly the game up and confuse NC State with varying defense.
It worked for about 32 minutes. Where it didn't was the last four minutes of the first half and last four minutes of the game.
NC State closed out a tight contest with a 14-3 run over the last 3:51 to win 72-64 in front of 15,473 fans in attendance at PNC Arena. The closing push was a deja vu of what happened in the first half. NC State had a 10-0 run before halftime to take a 41-35 lead.
The Wolfpack improved to 19-5 overall and 9-4 in the ACC, and play at Virginia at 9 p.m. Tuesday. That will be the start of three straight road games.
“They are really tough for us because they mix up their defenses,” NC State coach Kevin Keatts said. “They are playing a unique offense with the Princeton offense. We couldn’t disrupt them.”
Georgia Tech last led 61-60 with 3:51 left in the game. Keatts said they went to their “22 fullcourt press” late in the game, and the move paid off.
“I think it kind of changed it for us,” Keatts said. “It forced some turnovers. The reason being that I switched to that, we couldn’t get steals late in the game. D.J. [Burns] man was just coming up to get the basketball, so went more to a zone press.”
Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner thinks NC State could be a “dangerous” team in the NCAA Tournament. He predicts NC State will be one of at least seven NCAA Tourney teams from the ACC.
“The turnaround they’ve had from last year to this year is not easy to do,” Pastner said. “I think our league is really good.
“I look at North Carolina State as similar to Miami (Fla.) last year. Miami obviously went to the Elite Eight. They had great guard play that led to the Elite Eight. North Carolina State is capable of that.”
Georgia Tech went ultra small with 6-foot-11, 256-pound center Rodney Howard injured for the game. With Howard not playing, the Yellow Jackets played zone and were susceptible against the size of NC State redshirt junior center Burns and sophomore power forward Ernest Ross. The duo combined for 40 points and 15 rebounds in the win.
The inside scoring was needed because the starting backcourt of Jarkel Joiner and Terquavion Smith combined to go 3 of 17 for 10 points in the game. Smith’s three-pointer represented the first-half total.
Redshirt junior wing Casey Morsell scored a career-high 17 points in an ACC game, with four three-pointers.
“Defensively, we did a heck of a job,” Pastner said. “Smith and Joiner, how many times you are playing teams with two of the top five scoring guards in the league? They combined for 10 points.
“You have to give Morsell credit. He hit some tough shots. I thought he hit pro shots.”
The fact that NC State could still win the game, even against a struggling Georgia Tech program, was a good sign.
“I thought our frontcourt was tremendous,” Keats said. “Ernest was great and D.J. was great. Greg [Gantt] gave us good minutes. We found a way to win when our two great superstars didn’t play their best game.”
It wasn’t easy though in the first half. Georgia Tech point guard Kyle Sturdivant hit three three-pointers and undersized center Javon Franklin added nine points before halftime.
There was definitely a point in the first half where Keatts was not happy.
“We didn’t defend and I didn’t like the way we played,” Keatts said. “I thought we closed and responded after that.”
GT wing Miles Kelly had 17 points and nine rebounds to lead the way, and Franklin added 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists, while playing in the high post.
Georgia Tech also took away NC State’s open court chances. The Yellow Jackets actually held a 17-7 advantage on fastbreak points.
“I wanted to win so bad for our guys,” Pastner said. “Losing stinks. Losing is no fun and we’ve taken quite a few on the chin. I thought we’d break through the barrier and it would be great for our young men.”
Georgia Tech fell to 8-15 overall and 1-12 in the ACC, which is last last place.
“I feel for Josh because he does a really good job,” Keatts said. “In this league, you can have a really good basketball team, but not always see success with winning.”
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