Seton Hall Dominates NC State in Maui Opener
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No. 23 NC State found itself thoroughly outclassed in the opening round of the 2025 Southwest Maui Invitational, as the Seton Hall Pirates stormed to an 85-74 victory over the Wolfpack. The loss made the Wolfpack the first ranked team to lose to an unranked opponent in the 2025-26 season.
Seton Hall's chaotic defense and significant athleticism frustrated the Wolfpack all morning in the Lahaina Civic Center, never allowing the Wolfpack to gain any semblance of rhythm with consistency.
Able stabilizes the Pack
Remember the name. pic.twitter.com/B6YvmHnTJL
— NC State Men's Basketball (@PackMensBball) November 24, 2025
The Wolfpack came out sluggish after all of the extra preparation during the team’s travel. Starting guard Tre Holloman was revealed to be battling the flu and actually flew to Maui separately from the team, per ESPN’s Jay Bilas on the broadcast of the game. With Holloman and star forward Darrion Williams both struggling out of the gate, Wade’s group needed an injection of energy.
Wade turned to freshman guard Matt Able in that situation and the five-star responded in a major way. Able took advantage of the soft rims at the Lahaina Civic Center and scored seven points to help the Pack come back from a 10-point early deficit.
Seton Hall’s smaller guards weren’t much of a match for the 6-foot-6 Able, who began hunting matchups throughout the first half when he could. When the pace picked up late in the half, Able committed a couple of turnovers, causing Wade to turn back to veteran guard Quadir Copeland. Able led the Pack with 10 points in the first half and finished the game with 15.
Shooting woes
Mike is COOKIN' early 🧑🍳 pic.twitter.com/1d3TCPlKht
— Seton Hall Men's Basketball (@SetonHallMBB) November 24, 2025
NC State struggled to shoot the ball as a group early, but picked things up and finished the first half 13-of-28 from the field. Where the Pack faltered was the free-throw line and beyond the arc, shooting 5-of-10 at the charity stripe and 2-of-8 from three in the first half.
While the Pirates came out firing from 3-point range, primarily due to a trio of threes from Mike Williams III to open the game, their offense became stagnant as the half wore on. Seton Hall suffered multiple lengthy scoring droughts, allowing a cold Wolfpack team to hang around and work its way back.
Starting guard Paul McNeil, who was blanked by VCU in the last game for NC State, found his shooting stroke late in the half and buried the Pack’s second 3-pointer of the game to cut the Seton Hall lead to two.
Darrion Williams scored his first points late in the first half, getting a strong fadeaway jumper in the middle of the lane to fall. The team made its last six field goals and finished the half with a brilliant half-court set, which saw Ven-Allen Lubin fake a handoff back to Copeland and surge to the basket for an uncontested dunk after surprising the entire defense.
The Pirates dominated a Wolfpack team that refused to take advantage of shot fakes and ball fakes in the second half. Seton Hall blocked nine shots and tallied 11 steals, helping propel them to the upset victory. NC State’s second-half offense was woeful, as the Wolfpack shot just 25-of-59 from the field.
Major defensive breakdowns
Seton Hall applied downhill pressure throughout the entire game, scoring 40 paint points to the Wolfpack's 26. The Pirates came out of the second half as the aggressors, just as they had begun the game. NC State’s defense missed assignments throughout the entire game, as Seton Hall guard Adam Clark continually penetrated and kicked out to open shooters.
The Wolfpack dared the Pirates to make shots and the Pirates answered the call frequently. While Seton Hall used its defense to create offense, the Wolfpack had no equal answer. Pirates center Najai Hines frequently found open space behind the defense. The freshman finished the game with 10 points and dominated the Pack inside.
A Williams no-show
Unfortunately for NC State, Williams’ early struggles carried over into the second half. The star forward was never able to find a rhythm and committed his fourth foul with over 12 minutes in the game.
The frenetic Seton Hall defense never allowed Williams to work with his back to the basket, his area of strength, with any consistency. Williams got things going when he came back in as the margin on the scoreboard grew too large, but his efforts came too late.
Final Word
Back at it tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/pPwighPcH8
— NC State Men's Basketball (@PackMensBball) November 24, 2025
The opening round loss exposed some major issues for NC State. Athletic defense clearly affected the the Wolfpack significantly and the level up in competition was one the group wasn't quite ready for. NC State failed to adjust to Seton Hall's defensive pressure successfully coming out of halftime.
The Wolfpack will await its next opponent, the loser of the first round matchup between USC and Boise State.
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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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