Final Three Keys For NC State Against Seton Hall

Last Monday, No. 25 NC State narrowly avoided a loss in its first game as a ranked team, escaping a scare from the VCU Rams in the Lenovo Center to move to 4-0. Now, the Wolfpack is all set to go on the Hawaiian Islands for the Southwest Maui Invitational, an iconic event in the college basketball landscape.

The tournament starts with a tilt against Seton Hall, a 5-0 team from the daunting Big East, in Monday's opening round. A win in an event like the Maui Invitational can create a sort of avalanche for a team and propel it to the final.

On this episode of the NC State Insider Podcast, host and lead beat writer Tucker Sennett walks you through the three keys for the Wolfpack in Monday's matchup against the Pirates.

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Wade's Pre-Tournament Thoughts

NC State head coach Will Wade broke down his thoughts on the Maui Invitational and his team's performance to this point before the Wolfpack made the lengthy trip to Lahaina. Revisit Wade's Thursday press conference below:

On things he's been pleased with after the first four games of the season

"I'll say this... We look like we're holding on for dear life, sometimes rebounding, because we are against some of these bigger teams, but our rebounding... Our defensive rebounding numbers are better than we were anticipating and we were anticipating a little bit low... And our offensive rebounding numbers are a little bit better than I thought."

"I'd say that's been a pleasant surprise, but we'll talk after Maui, you know? Boise is a great team. USC is a great team. USC is the third-tallest team in the country. We'll see if that can hold up against them... So far, that's probably been one thing that's a little bit better than suspected..."

On the team's mindset entering the tournament

"Look, we need to put all our focus into winning the first game. That's really what I'm focused on, Seton Hall. Then we'll figure out Boise or USC based on our result and their result, but I've learned in these things, you put everything into the first one and then you kind of get momentum going."

"But Seton Hall has done well in these things. They beat VCU last year in the opening round in Charleston... We need to be ready. And they're very, very good defensively, in the top-25 in the country defensively... If we don't play with a little bit more purpose than we did Monday night, we're going to be swimming in the ocean."

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