NC State Recovers With Win Over UNC Asheville
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RALEIGH — NC State suffered its third loss of the 2025-26 season to No. 20 Auburn on Wednesday and needed to turn things around before a crucial two-week stretch throughout the rest of December. It wasn't perfect, but the Wolfpack found a way to get the job done against UNC Asheville, beating the Bulldogs 75-63 in the Lenovo Center.
Saturday's win included a dominant performance from senior forward Ven-Allen Lubin, who logged 23 points and 12 rebounds against the Bulldogs.
Mixing things up
Before the game, Will Wade told the NC State radio broadcast that things were going to look different. Throughout the past two weeks, Wade indicated that his team lacked an edge throughout the Maui Invitational and apparently felt the same way in Wednesday’s loss to No. 20 Auburn.
“We've been playing the wrong guys,” Wade said. “This won’t be pretty, but we are going to be tough.”
He added that the analytics showed Auburn cut harder and played harder throughout the game. His frustrations led to a major change in the starting lineup for the Wolfpack, with center Scottie Ebube entering the first five in place of sophomore guard Paul McNeil in a major shift.
Switching it up.
— NC State Men's Basketball (@PackMensBball) December 6, 2025
📺 The CW pic.twitter.com/LoEvBA9K4W
The big man’s shift wasn’t long, playing less than three minutes before being pulled in favor of freshman guard Matt Able. He hauled in a pair of rebounds in that stint and offered some good energy, but a slow-shooting start prompted Wade to go with Able.
With only a few non-conference opportunities remaining against low-major or mid-major competition, Wade clearly wanted to tinker with different groups against the Bulldogs. In the first nine minutes of the game, 11 different players saw action for the Wolfpack. It was a disconnected start, but eventually the offense got itself together and went on an 11-0 run to take the lead.
Finding consistent shooting continues to be a problem
While all of the tinkering in the first half might help in the long run, it exacerbated some of the problems the Wolfpack has dealt with over the last two weeks. NC State shot 11-of-31 in the first half and struggled from 3-point range, making just four of its 14 triples. It was a balanced scoring effort in the first 20 minutes, as Tre Holloman led the way with eight and 10 of the 11 players subbed in scored.
Don’t let @jiggyTrawww get hot.
— NC State Men's Basketball (@PackMensBball) December 6, 2025
5 quick points for the senior. pic.twitter.com/LLqKJhh55p
UNCA came into the game shooting 37.5% from 3-point range and exceeded that total in the first half. One made field goal was the only difference for the Wolfpack, but it failed to extend its lead beyond six at any point in the first 20 minutes.
The Pack did find some rhythm early in the second half, with Lubin scoring a very quick six points to give NC State a 10-point advantage by the under-16 media timeout. Senior guard Quadir Copeland improved his distribution numbers, finishing the game with eight assists to go along with 11 points. McNeil, who was benched in favor of Ebube, shot just 1-of-6 in the game, scoring three points.
Improvement down low
UNCA didn’t present a significant size discrepancy, so NC State was able to control things in the post with relative ease. The Wolfpack took control of the glass, outrebounding the Bulldogs 38-32. The Pack didn’t allow UNCA many opportunities for second-chance points either, as the road team had just two offensive rebounds until the last few minutes of the game.
Lubin’s emergence as one of the steadier offensive options for the Wolfpack continued, as the North Carolina transfer notched a double-double, his second of the 2025-26 season. As the Wolfpack made a more concerted effort to attack the paint in the second half, Lubin dominated. 19 of his 23 points came in the second half, as he went a perfect 9-for-9 in the final 20 minutes.
If he can't go around you, he'll just go over you. pic.twitter.com/Qfx44uaBni
— NC State Men's Basketball (@PackMensBball) December 6, 2025
The Wolfpack finished the win with 40 points in the paint. The group adjusted as the 3-pointers simply weren't falling with enough consistency to keep firing. The success in the paint allowed the Wolfpack to maintain a cushion despite UNCA's impressive 3-point numbers, as the Bulldogs finished the game shooting 42% from beyond the arc.
Final word
The road will now get significantly more challenging through the rest of the month, even with stronger mid-major foes on deck. UNCA shooting the way it did from beyond the arc could mean trouble for NC State in Wednesday's matchup against a Liberty team that is one of the strongest 3-point shooting programs in the country.
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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.
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