Rob Kinnan/USAToday sports
Wolfpack Tipoff: ACC Tournament vs. Pittsburgh
NC State (19-12) vs. Pittsburgh (16-16)
Greensboro Coliseum (23,000)
Approximately 2:30 p.m., ESPN (PxP: Dave O'Brien; Analyst: Jordan Cornette; Sideline: Allison Williams)
Streaming: WatchESPN; Satellite radio: Sirius XM 81; Live stats: GoPack.com
Series history: State leads 18-2 (State leads 1-0 in ACC tournament)
Last meeting: State won 77-73 at PNC Arena, Feb, 29, 2020
Most recent game: State beat Wake Forest 84-64; Pitt beat Wake Forest 81-72
BetOnline line: No line
PROJECTED STARTERS
NC State stats | Pittsburgh stats
| NC STATE | Stats | PITTSBURGH | Stats | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Markell Johnson | 6-1 Senior | 13.0 ppg 6.6 apg | Xavier Johnson | 6-3 Sophomore | 11.6 ppg 5.0 apg |
Devon Daniels | 6-5 Redshirt Junior | 12.4 ppg 5.3 rpg | Trey McGowens | 6-4 Sophomore | 11.5 ppg 3.3 rpg |
C.J. Bryce | 6-5 Redshirt Senior | 13.3 ppg 6.1 rpg | Au'Diese Toney | 6-6 Sophomore | 9.6 ppg 4.9 rpg |
D.J. Funderburk | 6-10 Junior | 12.9 ppg 6.1 rpg | Justin Champagnie | 6-6 Freshman | 12.8 ppg 7.2 rpg |
Manny Bates | 6-11 Junior | 5.2 ppg 2.9 bpg | Eric Hamilkton | 6-9 Graduate | 5.5 ppg 4.3 rpg |
THEY SAID IT
"We expect to play hard. I think everybody understands who we are. We play, we get up and down. We’re starting to get a little bit more healthy. We absolutely haven’t been able to play the way we normally would because we haven’t had the depth. But, we’ve got some of our guys that play really good basketball." Coach Kevin Keatts
"They're really good and they're going to run a bunch of ball screens. They have multiple guys that can dribble, pass and shoot. I think Funderburk has been one of the most improved guys in our league. I think Johnson is one of the better guards in our league Daniels has had a heck of a season. C.J. ... they can come at you in so many different levels. Their last game of the regular season, Beverly went nuts and so they're a really good basketball team." Pittsburgh coach Jeff Capel
"Our approach is that we want to win the whole tournament. Our (women's team), congrats to them for being able to win their conference championship. We want to do the same thing. ... We know what's at stake. We want to give it our all. We had a lot of energy coming in today, because we're ready to play." Redshirt senior wing C.J. Bryce
NOTEABLE
The 13th-seeded Panthers earned their spot in Wednesday's second round against the Wolfpack by beating No. 12 Wake Forest 81-72 behind a 31-point performance from freshman wing Justin Champagnie. Pitt shot 52.3 percent in the game from the floor and forced 18 Deacon turnovers. ...
State won the only previous meeting in an ACC tournament, defeating Pitt 81-70 in the opening round of the 2015 tournament, the last time the event was held in Greensboro. ...
The Wolfpack has won nine straight against the Panthers, but it hasn't been easy. The margin of victory in the last five meetings has been six points or fewer, including a four-point decision in which State had to battle from behind in the final seven minutes less than two weeks ago. ...
This marks State’s 67th appearance in the ACC tournament. The Wolfpack has an all-time record of 72-56 in the event and has won 10 championships. The most recent, however, was in 1987. The last time State won a tournament title in Greensboro was 1974, when the Pack outlasted Maryland, 103-100 in overtime in what is generally considered the greatest game in conference history.
The Wolfpack has an all-time record of 26-24 in ACC tournament games played in Greensboro. ...
State has had a balanced scoring attack all season, with its top four scorers separated by less than one point. C.J. Bryce finished the regular season leading the team at 13.3 points per game. Markell Johnson averages 13.0 points, D.J. Funderburk averages 12.9 points and Devon Daniels is fourth on the team with a 12.4 points per game average. Over the past four games, the Wolfpack has had five different players either lead or tie for the team-lead in scoring ...
Johnson was named to the All-ACC second team on Monday. The senior point guard leads the ACC in assists (6.63 per game) and ranks third in steals (1.93 per game).
