NC State Takes On Virginia In The Quarterfinals Of The Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament

On Thursday NC State who is an eight seed will take on the top seed in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament Virginia in the quarterfinals who unlike NC State has yet to play a game in the tournament.

NC State comes into the game with a record of 22-10 while they finished 9-9 in the Atlantic Coast Conference this season while Virginia comes into their Atlantic Coast Conference tournament opener with a record of 28-2 while they were 16-2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference this season. .

As for NC State and Virginia’s only meeting of the season Virginia topped NC State in overtime.

The 23rd-ranked NC State men's basketball team fell to third-ranked Virginia in overtime on Tuesday night at PNC Arena, 66-65.” “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/1/29/mens-basketball-wolfpack-falls-to-3rd-ranked-virginia-in-ot-66-65.aspx

With the loss, the Pack drops to 16-5 overall and 4-4 in conference play on the season while Virginia improves to 19-1 and  7-1 in the ACC. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/1/29/mens-basketball-wolfpack-falls-to-3rd-ranked-virginia-in-ot-66-65.aspx
 
Markell Johnson led NC State in scoring with 14 points, along with a season-high six rebounds. Torin Dorn (13), Wyatt Walker (11), and Devon Daniels (10) also posted double-digits for the Pack.”according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/1/29/mens-basketball-wolfpack-falls-to-3rd-ranked-virginia-in-ot-66-65.aspx

Virginia held a 27-23 lead at halftime and scored 15 of the first 20 points in the second half to open a 42-28 lead with 12:13 remaining in the game. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/1/29/mens-basketball-wolfpack-falls-to-3rd-ranked-virginia-in-ot-66-65.aspx

The Pack responded by holding the Cavaliers to just three points over the next four minutes as the Pack went on a 13-3 run to cut the deficit to four, 45-41, on two Walker free throws with 8:01 left in regulation.”according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/1/29/mens-basketball-wolfpack-falls-to-3rd-ranked-virginia-in-ot-66-65.aspx

Virginia increased the lead back to seven, but the Pack had one last spurt in them as NC State went on a 7-0 run to tie the game at 53 with 1:29 to go in regulation. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/1/29/mens-basketball-wolfpack-falls-to-3rd-ranked-virginia-in-ot-66-65.aspx

After a lay-up regained the lead for Virginia, Johnson knocked down two free throws to send the game to overtime. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/1/29/mens-basketball-wolfpack-falls-to-3rd-ranked-virginia-in-ot-66-65.aspx

Virginia was held to just four field goals in the final 12 minutes of regulation. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/1/29/mens-basketball-wolfpack-falls-to-3rd-ranked-virginia-in-ot-66-65.aspx

Johnson's three-pointer to open overtime gave NC State its first lead of the game, 58-55. The Pack then had a 4:31 stretch without a field goal until a Braxton Beverly bucket with eight seconds left ended the drought. In overtime, Virginia shot 66.7% from the field (2-3), while NC State shot only 33.3% (2-6).
  
Shooting 32.1% from the floor in the first half, the Wolfpack defense held strong to keep within reach. Virginia's 27 points at half tied for the lowest-scoring first half for the Cavaliers this season. Torin Dorn's jumper off a Braxton Beverly steal would pull the Wolfpack within four at the half, 27-23. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/1/29/mens-basketball-wolfpack-falls-to-3rd-ranked-virginia-in-ot-66-65.aspx
 
NC State trailed early, as Virginia shot 77.8% from the field in the first 10 minutes of the game, but the Pack's defense made enough stops to keep the game close as the Pack shot just 32.1 percent from the field in the first half.  “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/1/29/mens-basketball-wolfpack-falls-to-3rd-ranked-virginia-in-ot-66-65.aspx

As for how NC State got to the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament they topped Clemson.

The eight-seed NC State men's basketball team defeated nine-seed Clemson Wednesday afternoon, 59-58, to advance to the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/3/13/mens-basketball-second-half-surge-leads-pack-past-clemson.aspx

NC State improves to 22-10 on the season, and Clemson drops to 19-14. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/3/13/mens-basketball-second-half-surge-leads-pack-past-clemson.aspx
 
The Pack posted the second-largest halftime deficit comeback (16 points) in ACC Tournament history as it outscored Clemson 33-16 in the second half to win, holding the Tigers to just 19 percent shooting from the field. NC State held Clemson to just one made three-pointer in the second half after the Tigers knocked down eight shots from behind the arc in the first half. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/3/13/mens-basketball-second-half-surge-leads-pack-past-clemson.aspx

Junior guard Markell Johnson made two clutch free throws with 2.6 seconds remaining to give NC State the win. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/3/13/mens-basketball-second-half-surge-leads-pack-past-clemson.aspx
 
Johnson led all scorers with 23 points and four assists and was the only Pack player to tally double figures. Torin Dorn grabbed 12 rebounds, the guard's seventh double-digit rebounding effort of the season. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/3/13/mens-basketball-second-half-surge-leads-pack-past-clemson.aspx
 
Trailing by as many as 18 in the contest, NC State would reclaim the lead at the 5:38 mark in the second half following a 20-2 run. Johnson rattled off eight straight points over the course of the run to put NC State ahead for the first time since its first basket at the 19:22 mark in the opening half. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/3/13/mens-basketball-second-half-surge-leads-pack-past-clemson.aspx
 
NC State converted three consecutive turnovers into five points during the run to cut the Pack's deficit to four heading into the 12-minute media timeout. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/3/13/mens-basketball-second-half-surge-leads-pack-past-clemson.aspx
 
In a game filled with runs, NC State continued to inch back within striking distance as it pulled within 12 on five occasions in the second half before getting over the hump. “according to https://gopack.com/news/2019/3/13/mens-basketball-second-half-surge-leads-pack-past-clemson.aspx

As for how Virginia closed out the regular season they topped Louisville in Charlottesville.

No. 2 Virginia (28-2, 16-2 ACC) earned a share of the ACC Regular-Season title and clinched the No. 1 overall seed in the 2019 ACC Tournament with a 73-68 win over Louisville (19-12, 10-8 ACC) on Saturday at John Paul Jones Arena. “according to https://virginiasports.com/news/2019/3/9/mens-basketball-no-2-virginia-closes-regular-season-with-73-68-win-over-louisville.aspx
 
Junior Ty Jerome (New Rochelle, N.Y.) scored a game-high 24 points to lead the Cavaliers. Junior Kyle Guy (Indianapolis, Ind.) added 13 points and a team-high six rebounds. “according to https://virginiasports.com/news/2019/3/9/mens-basketball-no-2-virginia-closes-regular-season-with-73-68-win-over-louisville.aspx
 
Virginia shot 40 percent from the field, 43 percent beyond the arc (12-28). The Cavaliers finished with just four turnovers, with six blocks and seven steals. “according to https://virginiasports.com/news/2019/3/9/mens-basketball-no-2-virginia-closes-regular-season-with-73-68-win-over-louisville.aspx
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Virginia opened the game with threes from Guy and freshman Kihei Clark (Woodland Hills, Calif.). Louisville responded with a three before redshirt sophomore De'Andre Hunter (Philadelphia, Pa.) hit one as well. The Cavaliers took a 17-9 lead after back-to-back threes from Jerome. The Cardinals hung around and cut the UVA lead to 23-22, but redshirt sophomore Jay Huff (Durham, N.C.) hit the first of his three 3-pointers to keep UVA in the lead. The Cavaliers had a 10-0, including five points by Jerome, to lead 36-27. Louisville closed the half on a 6-0 run as UVA took a 36-33 edge into halftime. The Cardinals scored the first five points of the second half to take a 38-36 lead. Louisville was leading 59-55 when Guy and junior Braxton Key (Charlotte, N.C.) hit threes to put UVA back in front. The teams traded the lead before a 7-0 run gave Virginia a 68-62 lead with 3:36 to play. Key hit four free throws down the stretch as UVA held on for the win. “according to https://virginiasports.com/news/2019/3/9/mens-basketball-no-2-virginia-closes-regular-season-with-73-68-win-over-louisville.aspx

Tip-off is set for 12:30pm from the Spectrum Center in Charlotte that is home to the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets.