NC State advanced to 2-0 with a 86-51 win over North Florida Friday night in game two of the Mako Medical Wolfpack Invitational in Reynolds Coliseum.

The Wolfpack took control with an early second-half scoring run similar to its opener. This time, freshman point guard Cam Hayes really found a rhythm in his second college game.

Hayes finished the contest with 13 points, six assists and one steal with no turnovers.

He was also able to get hot with his jumper. After a 1-for-5 shooting performance in his Wolfpack debut, Hayes went 6 of 8 from the field and 1 of 2 on three-point attempts Friday.

“I felt way more comfortable,” Hayes said. “Going in on Wednesday for my first college game, I was a little nervous and anxious. Once I got that first game out of the way, I just felt more comfortable coming in.

“Today, I just had a lot of confidence and wanted to bring a lot of energy on both ends of the floor, and I guess that showed with my performance tonight.”

Hayes was the first freshman to come off of the bench for the second straight game and played 19 minutes, one more than the Charleston Southern game.

“I've been tough on him,” NC State head coach Kevin Keatts said. “Sometimes I ask myself, 'Should I be tough on him because he's a freshman?' But I need him and Shakeel [Moore] to grow up and even the other guys, but if anybody Cam and Shakeel both have to play. He's getting better, he's handling that. He's not sensitive as a lot of the freshmen would be when we get up on them. He's moving on to the next play.

“There was a stretch in the game where he kind of took the game over and made some great plays. That says a lot about him. He's maturing in front of us, he's going to be a really good basketball player. I've taken it slow with him. Because he's played well in practice, he's had the opportunity where I could have started him, but I've also wanted him to see how the game flows before I put him in a game.”

After a quiet game in the opener, junior forward Jericole Hellems led the Wolfpack with 17 points against North Florida.

He also received his first start of the season in place of fifth-year senior guard Devon Daniels, who had a career-high 27 points and 10 rebounds against Charleston Southern.

When asked why Daniels came off of the bench after a dazzling performance less than 48 hours prior, Keatts admitted it was a disciplinary decision.

“He was 30 seconds late for film and that's not the culture that we got here,” Keatts said. “Everybody's held to the same accountability. If you can have 40, you're going to be early. That's just the way I've always been. I'm exaggerating, maybe 30 seconds, maybe it was a minute, minute and a half, but I made the decision because Jericole worked hard, but Devon was a little late for film.”

Hellems was efficient, making 7 of 12 field goal attempts and 1 of 2 from the perimeter. He also led the team with a 38 plus-minus margin when he was on the court.

“Coach talked to us about coming on and off the bench,” Hellems said. “It doesn’t necessarily matter. It just matters what you do on the court. I’m just worried about producing and helping the team win.”

Hellems was also impressive on the defensive end. He finished with three rebounds, two steals and one assist.

“Everybody’s bringing energy,” Hellems said. “Everybody’s close and meshing together. It’s much easier for us to bring the energy on the defensive end and force teams into making bad decisions by turning the ball over.”

Redshirt sophomore center Manny Bates scored in double figures for the fifth time in his career and the first time this season.

The 6-11 big man finished with 10 points going 5 of 9 from the field. He also reeled in a team-high eight rebounds and five blocks.

The starkest difference between game one and two was his playing time. Bates played 28 minutes Friday compared to just 13 against Charleston Southern.

He was able to stay on the court by staying out of foul trouble. After picking up four fouls in the opener, including three in the first half, Bates finished the night with just one foul, a new career-low.

“I don’t really think about it too much,” Bates said. “The coaches told me not to think about fouling or the ref’s calls tonight. They told me to just play and have fun, and that’s what I did. I didn’t even think about it until halftime when I realized I hadn’t fouled yet.”

NC State will have the weekend off before facing William & Mary in the third game of its season on Monday, Nov. 30 at 7:00 p.m. in Reynolds Coliseum.

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