If there was one prevailing thought about the last few seconds of regulation or overtime, it was don’t let Georgia Tech senior center James Banks beat you.

Banks was cooking against NC State’s smaller frontcourt, putting the Yellow Jackets in position to steal a win in the two teams' season opener Tuesday at PNC Arena. A deja vu feeling started to seep in with each Georgia Tech basket, which was usually from either Banks or sophomore guard Michael Devoe, who scored a team-high 22 points.

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Banks took junior point guard Jose Alvarado’s dish for a dunk to help Georgia Tech upset NC State 63-61 last year at PNC Arena. The same duo were working their magic down the stretch Tuesday. Alvarado dished to Banks for a dunk to tie the game 75-75 with 1:37 remaining.

Alvarado tried to sneak a pass to Banks, but redshirt junior wing Devon Daniels was there to pick it off with a shade over 20 seconds remaining and NCSU leading 81-80. Daniels could have tried to run out the clock and force GT to foul, but he whipped a pass to a streaking Manny Bates, but the redshirt freshman center had the ball go through his hands. Georgia Tech tracked down the loose ball with 11.9 seconds remaining to set up a little bit of deja vu.

“It was a bang-bang play but I wish Devon had the chance to hold the ball,” NCSU head coach Kevin Keatts said. “We could have gotten fouled and to the free-throw line. He saw Manny streaking and passed the ball to him.”

Alvarado fired up a quick three-pointer with 8.9 seconds left, but sophomore forward Khalid Moore tracked down the rebound, and slid a pass to Banks for the layup attempt. Daniels fouled him with 2.1 seconds left. Banks made the first free throw, and following a Wolfpack timeout, sank the second to win the game 82-81.

“Give Georgia Tech credit, they finished the game and we didn’t,” Keatts said. “Unfortunately, we fouled him and I hoped that he would miss both, but he stepped up and made both of his free throws.”

Banks finished with 20 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks, and had to play with four fouls after picking up his fourth with 9:19 left in the game.

“He’s a good player and has done a tremendous job,” Keatts said. “You look at the stat sheet, I thought he played great tonight.”

The Wolfpack needed someone to step up and carry the offensive load with the absence of senior point guard Markell Johnson (ankle injury) and redshirt junior center D.J. Funderburk (suspension). Fifth-year senior wing C.J. Bryce was more than ready for that challenge, scoring a game-high 24 points on 11 of 17 shooting.

Bryce took advantage of his 6-foot-5, 210-pound frame and worked the mid-range, and really started to get cooking in the second half. Bryce had four big baskets with a turnover mixed in to carry NC State’s offense. He finished his drive to give the Wolfpack a 73-70 lead with 2:42 left in the game.

Bryce didn’t get as many touches after that, and NC State mustered just two Jericole Hellems free throws down the stretch, resulting in overtime.

“I feel like we definitely could have pulled it out, but we made a few mistakes,” Bryce said. “We have to get back to work. We were short-handed tonight, but no excuse.”

Bryce was four points shy of his career-high at NC State, but proved adept at both ends of the court. He had 11 rebounds and played 44:09 of the game.

“I thought C.J. Bryce made some great plays down the stretch,” Keatts said. “If we could have one or two possessions back, it would probably be a different outcome.

“We talked in the locker room about making plays. One or two plays a different, you have a different outcome.”

Keatts is hopeful that when Johnson is back, and that could be as early as Sunday’s game against Detroit Mercy, the offense will settle down a little smoother.

“When you might not have a pure point guard on the floor, different guys are trying to make plays that obviously you wouldn’t have if you had somebody who as a little bit more of a distributer,” Keatts said.

NC State publicly acknowledged that freshman small forward Dereon Seabron was battling a high ankle sprain going into the season opener, but it was news that he also was trying to appeal his academic eligibility for this season.

Keatts acknowledged following the Georgia Tech loss that NC State’s lone freshman would be redshirting this season after his appeal to the NCAA was turned down.

“Dereon will be this year an academic redshirt,” Keatts said. “He has been hurt. We obviously tried to appeal to the NCAA about it, but we lost the appeal. He won’t be available to play.”

Seabron had attended Norfolk (Va.) Lake Taylor for four years and then elected to have a post-graduate season at Massanutten Military Academy in Woodstock, Va. The program was coached by Chad Myers, who is Keatts’ former assistant at Chatham (Va.) Hargrave Military Academy.

Seabron took advantage of his new spotlight at Massanutten Military and he picked NC State over Pittsburgh, Georgia, Providence, Minnesota, East Carolina and VCU among others. Rivals.com ranked him No. 124 overall in the country in the class of 2019, and he was expected to add depth along the perimeter this season.

The 6-foot-7, 180-pound Seabron won the slam dunk contest at Primetime With The Pack, but then suffered his high ankle sprain, which was likely to keep him out for a good chunk of November.

Seabron will now join Nebraska junior shooting guard transfer Thomas Allen, Greensboro (N.C.) Day senior point guard commit Camren Hayes, Apex (N.C.) Friendship senior power forward commit Nick Farrar and Newnan (Ga.) Heritage Academy senior center commit Ebenezer Dowuona as newcomers next year. The Wolfpack still have two scholarships remaining.

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