Three Stars in NC State's 84-83 Win Over SMU

RALEIGH — The 84-83 win over SMU pushed NC State to 17-6 overall and 8-2 in ACC play. The Wolfpack extended its latest win streak to a season-high fifth straight victory, continuing to ride the forward momentum up the conference standings, making good on head coach Will Wade's promise to compete for a top-four spot in the ACC.

It didn't come easy against the Mustangs, who boasted a trio of incredibly talented guards that had NC State on the ropes through much of Tuesday's game. However, the Wolfpack got key performances from players who rose to the occasion when the team needed them most. Who were the three stars of the win for NC State?

Clutch shot-making from Able

After missing his first four 3-point attempts of the game, freshman guard Matt Able stayed the course and didn't lose confidence in his offense. With the flow of the game reaching a frantic pace in the second half as NC State made its push, Able found himself open more often than not. The Wolfpack needed him to knock down shots and the freshman delivered.

TOUGH 💪

Matt Able finds the basket through the contact for @PackMensBball!

📺 ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/L09wFliblB
— ACC Men's Basketball (@accmbb) February 4, 2026

Able's finish through contact and a foul to cut SMU's lead to just two points helped spark a 26-6 run that propelled the Wolfpack well ahead of the Mustangs. The freshman buried two of his six 3-point attempts, scoring 13 points for State in 22 minutes of action. He offered quality resistance on the defensive end as well, tallying a pair of steals.

A magical Copeland performance

Press ▶️ and enjoy all 16 of @unoducat’s assists last night pic.twitter.com/nn3BxpI1vH
— NC State Men's Basketball (@PackMensBball) February 4, 2026

There's not much left to say about the 16-assist, 10-rebound, 0-turnover performance from senior point guard Quadir Copeland. A week after stories of his Syracuse exit over a lack of opportunities to play the one swirled around him, he directed one of the finest offensive performances of the season for the Wolfpack.

12 of Copeland's 16 assists ended with made 3-point shots, or 36 of the Wolfpack's 84 points. Many of those assists were to players wide open because the guard's ability to collapse the defense with his driving and size. His assist total was the most by an NC State player since Dennis Smith Jr. racked up 15 in 2017.

Williams steadies the Pack

Darrion Williams continued to shoot the ball with great success and extended his streak of five or more 3-pointers made to a third straight victory. The senior forward finished with 25 points, shooting 8-of-18 from the field. Even after going down double digits in the first half, the savvy veteran never lost confidence in his own game or his team's ability to pull out the win on the road.

"With the style of basketball that they play, we knew it was going to be an up-and-down game," Williams said. "They were going to make some runs... We didn't want to play how they play, basically. We knew we'd come back at some point and once we started rolling... I knew we were going to win."

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