Who Will Wade Needs the Most From in Maui
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RALEIGH — NC State, currently ranked No. 25 but likely to rise in Monday's AP poll update, is ready to roll in Hawaii. The Wolfpack is set to participate in the iconic Southwest Maui Invitational in head coach Will Wade's first year and the team has a serious chance to win the event. While Darrion Williams will be crucial, Wade's roster goes beyond the superstar.
If Wade and his group want to walk away victorious from the Lahaina Civic Center, the coach will need a lot out of his group in what will be the first set of significant tests it will face this season. Two players must perform at a high level if the Wolfpack wants to get a win and significantly boost the outlook nationally for the season. Who are they?
Getting Lubin going
During his Thursday press conference and even before the season began, Wade outright admitted that rebounding won't be the strength of this group. The team's starter at the five, North Carolina transfer Ven-Allen Lubin, stands 6-foot-9, but carries a major portion of the responsibility on the glass for the starting unit. In the first four games, Lubin averaged 8.8 points and 5.5 rebounds.
With some taller opposition potentially on deck in Maui, Lubin's physicality will be critical for the Wolfpack if it wants to make a run. He enters the event after playing his best game as a member of the Wolfpack, as he scored 11 points and hauled in nine rebounds in the win over VCU. If the forward can be more of a factor offensively, the Wolfpack will be an even larger threat.
Pull up pure. pic.twitter.com/EUoDVO98QO
— NC State Men's Basketball (@PackMensBball) November 18, 2025
Lubin also has experience in Maui already. He made the trip to the island last season with the Tar Heels, who finished fourth place in the tournament. Lubin played 24 minutes against Auburn, scoring 10 points and hauling in nine boards, four of which came on the offensive side of the floor.
As the most experienced big on the roster, he'll provide Wade with a quality option in case the larger stage overwhelms freshman center Musa Sagnia.
Keeping Holloman hot
Lubin's new teammate, Tre Holloman, was part of the Michigan State team that dished his Tar Heels a loss in the third place game in Maui last season. The guard got off to an impressive start shooting the basketball after operating as more of a true point guard for Tom Izzo's squad during his time in East Lansing.
Holloman scored a career-high 25 points in the win over the Rams. He made 3-of-6 threes, continuing to show an improved 3-point shooting ability unseen since his sophomore year with Michigan State. Holloman's reliability offensively takes a massive load off the shoulders of Williams, the Pack's alpha, or superman, as Wade called him.
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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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