NC State Tries to Extend Win Streak Against Louisville
In this story:
RALEIGH — NC State men's basketball extended its win streak to six games with Saturday's victory over Virginia Tech. Now, the Wolfpack has a chance to prove itself against one of the nation's best offenses and another strong contender in the ACC, hitting the road to take on No. 24 Louisville.
The Cardinals (17-6, 7-4 ACC) were a preseason darling of sorts, but dealt with the injury bug during the middle portion of the season. It will be the first matchup between Will Wade of State and Pat Kelsey of Louisville, two of the ACC's brightest new coaching stars in an era of transition for the conference, as it rebuilds from the old guard passing the torch at some of the historic programs in the league. Monday could be the start of a new rivalry.
What to expect from Louisville
There will be serious fireworks between the Wolfpack and the Cardinals if the statistics hold for both teams. Both teams average exactly 85.7 points per game, sitting in a tie for second in the ACC behind SMU as the conference's most potent offenses from a scoring standpoint. Kelsey's team already dealt with the gauntlet portion of its schedule, excluding NC State and a handful of other late-season matchups.
Louisville should be at full strength once again, as standout freshman guard Mikel Brown made a return on Jan. 24 after missing a full month. The Cardinals are a different team with Brown running the point, as the freshman averaged 15.4 points and 5.3 assists across his first 15 games. He is crucial for an offense that is nearly entirely dependent on one kind of shot: the 3-pointer.
The Cardinal offense attempts more 3-pointers per game than any team in the country, shooting from beyond the arc on 53.9% of their possessions. Despite the high volume of shots, they don't knock them down at a very high clip, hitting just 32.8% of their 3-point shots in conference play, ranking 10th in the ACC. However, the high volume also means they are capable of exploding at any point.
Senior guards Ryan Conwell and Isaac McKneely account for most of that 3-point prowess, accounting for more than six attempts in each game. Conwell leads Louisville in scoring, averaging 18.4 points per game, while McKneely chips in 11.7 points. The balanced offensive diet from the Cardinals includes five different players scoring in double figures each game.
How the Wolfpack can attack the Cardinals
While NC State isn't one of the more elite defensive teams in the conference, it showed improvement in that area in some of the wins during the latest streak. Holding Louisville under 80 points could be a difficult task, but it's been a recipe for success for the Cards' previous opposition. Kelsey's team scored under 80 points in five of its six losses, hitting exactly 80 in the sixth loss.
The Wolfpack boasts the strongest 3-point percentage in the ACC through 11 games, shooting a torrid 41.7% from beyond the arc. If Wade can find his team open looks and the stars, like Paul McNeil and Darrion Williams, can respond, the Pack should be able to keep pace with the high-octane Louisville offense. That's easier said than done, especially in the KFC Yum! Center. Luckily for State, the road hasn't been much of an issue, as it is a perfect 6-0 away from the Lenovo Center in ACC play.
Turnovers caused problems for Louisville during the first month of the conference season, as the Cardinals gave the ball away 16.6% of their possessions, ranking 11th in the league. The turnover margin is a major point of pride for Wade's group, ranking at the top of the ACC in that category. If the Wolfpack can speed up the Cardinals and Quadir Copeland can stay hot passing the basketball, things should stay consistent offensively.
Louisville has some size between Kasean Pryor, Aly Khalifa and Sananda Fru, who all stand 6-foot-10 or taller. It will be another enormous challenge for senior forward Ven-Allen Lubin, the 6-foot-9 warrior in the middle for the Wolfpack. He already acquitted himself well against a 7-footer with SMU and the physical bigs of Virginia Tech, so there shouldn't be major cause for concern.
The ESPN "Big Monday" matchup is the kind of game Wade wanted NC State to be a part of once again when he signed on to lead the program a year ago. With the spotlight now on the Wolfpack, it will try to live up to the lofty expectations set by Wade once again. The game is scheduled to tip-off at 7 P.M. EST.
Want more NC State basketball content throughout the year? Follow @WolfpackOnSI and @SennettTucker on X (Twitter) and never miss another breaking news story again.
Please let us know your thoughts when you like our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE
Tucker Sennett graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Sports Journalism from the esteemed Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. A former basketball player, he has gained valuable experience working at Cronkite News and brings a deep passion for sports and reporting to his role as the NC State Wolfpack Beat Writer On SI.
Follow SennettTucker