Will Wade Discusses Importance of Win Over UNC Asheville

RALEIGH — NC State returned to the Lenovo Center for the first time in two weeks and got back into the win column after a pair of losses, beating UNC Asheville and his former co-worker, Mike Morrell, 75-63 behind a dominant performance from Ven-Allen Lubin.

The Wolfpack struggled in its loss to No. 20 Auburn on Wednesday, forcing Wade to get back to the drawing board in many ways. His consistent theme throughout the rough stretch was that his team lacked the edge and energy he was looking for. More importantly, the Wolfpack faces a difficult schedule the rest of December and just needed to win. Wade's group got the job done at the very least.

Watch Wade's press conference

Wade's major takeaways

Mike Morrell and Will Wad — Dec 6, 2025; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; NC State Wolfpack head coach Will Wade and UNC Asheville Bulldogs head coach Mike Morrell high-five after the second half of the game at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images | Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

Getting more energy

Wade broke things down about as simply as he could've. His group lost two of its three games at the Southwest Maui Invitational, then proceeded to lose the difficult road matchup against Auburn. The season was losing some momentum after the 4-0 start and Wade's group needed to be jump-started somehow. Clearly, he found some success in the two days between games.

"We just needed to win. I wouldn't say it was perfect. We just needed to win," Wade said. "It's been a rough couple of days on them, but we need to win. We've got a big week ahead of us coming up and we need to prepare and we need to rest. We probably don't need to see each other much for a while tomorrow and then regroup a little bit."

Big showing from Lubin

The Wolfpack got a massive performance from North Carolina transfer forward Ven-Allen Lubin. The undersized big man exploded in the second half and ultimately finished with 23 points and 12 rebounds. It was Lubin's second double-double of his Wolfpack career. After struggling against Auburn, Wade was impressed by the performance of Lubin.

"Ven was great tonight. He's very consistent. I mean, look, he was making dunks and layups," Wade said. "Our guys found him. Darrion (Williams) found him. (Quadir Copeland) found him... He was able to get behind the defense and make some easy plays. He finished better at the rim. He didn't finish real well at the rim on Wednesday night, but he did a better job finishing through contact.

Coaching against a friend

UNC Asheville head coach Mike Morrell became the latest former VCU assistant who worked with Wade to coach an opponent of the Wolfpack. The pair both coached under Shaka Smart with the Rams during the Final Four run in 2011 and met as head coaches of their two Carolina programs. Wade discussed coaching against his friend and the challenges that come with it.

"He knows our stuff, we know their stuff," Wade said. "One of his assistants was our GA, too... We do have similar terms... The terminology is similar. It's what you kind of grew up with... He had changed a few of them. He's a great guy and he's a great coach."

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