Wolfpack Tipoff: Game 14, Clemson
NC State (10-3, 1-1 ACC) vs. Clemson (6-7, 0-3)
Littlejohn Coliseum (10,325)
Noon., ACC Network (PxP: Wes Durham; Analyst: Malcom Huckaby)
Streaming: ACC Network Extra; Satellite Radio: Sirius XM 382; Live stats: GoPack.com
Series history: State leads 103-53 (22-28 at Clemson)
Last meeting: State won 59-58 at ACC tournament in Charlotte, March 13, 2019
Most recent game: State beat Appalachian State 72-60; Clemson lost to Miami 73-68 (OT)
BetOnline line: n/a
Projected starters
NC State stats | Wake Forest stats
NC STATE | Stats | CLEMSON | Stats | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Markell Johnson | 6-1 Senior | 13.1 ppg 6.8 apg | Tevin Mack | 6-6 Graduate | 10.9 ppg 5.0 rpg |
Braxton Beverly | 6-0 Junior | 8.0 ppg 1.7 apg | John Newman III | 6-5 Sophomore | 9.2 ppg 2.0 apg |
Devon Daniels | 6-5 Redshirt Junior | 11.8 ppg 4.6 rpg | Curran Scott | 6-4 Graduate | 7.0 ppg 1.9 rpg |
Pat Andree | 6-7 Graduate | 6.9 ppg 3.2 rpg | Clyde Trapp | 6-4 Junior | 8.0 ppg 1.7 rpg |
Manny Bates | 6-11 Freshman | 6.0 ppg 3.3 bpg | Aamir Simms | 6-8 Junior | 13.2 ppg 7.7 rpg |
They said it
"Every game that we played in the nonconference, most of them, will certainly prepare us for the rest of the ACC season. We're excited about it." Coach Kevin Keatts
"It's hard for us offensively at times. We just don't have an easy advantage situation and we've got to create and execute off of our offense really well. And when we don't, we have a hard time scoring. So when we make mistakes, execution, it just puts too much pressure on our team. We're not good enough to have somebody save us. We're a grinding team." Clemson coach Brad Brownell
"We're going to keep it humble, But we're definitely ready for every opponent we play, we're going to play at our best and hopefully come out with a win every time. That's the best-case scenario." Junior D.J. Funderburk on the team's mindset going into the bulk of ACC play
Notable
Redshirt senior wing C.J. Bryce, State's leading scorer and rebounder at 16.1 points and 6.8 rebounds, is unlikely to play against the Tigers. His official status won't be determined until pregame warmups, according to team spokesman Craig Hammel. Bryce is in concussion protocol after getting accidently hit in the head by teammate Manny Bates during State's pregame shootaround before last Sunday's win against Appalachian State. ...
The Wolfpack won both meetings with the Tigers last season. The combined margin of those victories, however, was only three points. State won 69-67 at PNC Arena last January when Braxton Beverly made a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to complete a comeback from six points down in the final 24 seconds. Then in the opening round of the ACC tournament in Charlotte last March, the Wolfpack rallied from a 16-point halftime deficit to win 59-58 on a pair of Markell Johnson free throws with less than three seconds remaining. ...
State has lost its last two trips to Littlejohn Coliseum. Its last win there was a 66-61 victory on March 3, 2015. ...
A win on Saturday would give the Wolfpack three straight ACC road wins dating back to last season. State hasn’t won three ACC road games in a row since the final two of the 2002-03 season and the first ACC road game of 2003-04. ...
A win on Saturday would also mark the first time since the 2011-12 season that State won its first two road games of the ACC season. ...
Johnson has scored in double figures in nine consecutive games. The longest double-digit scoring streak of his career. He is averaging 15 points per game and shooting 47.7 percent during this stretch. ...
Junior forward D.J. Funderburk enters the Clemson game having shot 76.7 percent (23-of-30) from the floor in his last four games. ...
After being outrebounded in four of five games, including a season-worst minus-14 margin at UNC Greensboro on Dec. 15, the Wolfpack has outrebounded its last three opponents by a combined total of 34. State had a season-best plus-19 rebounding margin in the win over Appalachian State on Sunday. Manny Bates (9) and Markell Johnson (11) both set career-highs for rebounds against the Mountaineers while Devon Daniels (11) and D.J. Funderburk (9) both tied their career-highs,
