It’s that time of the season again; time for NC State to face off against our rival Tarheels at 8pm in PNC. Unfortunately the Tarheels have been doing well this season with a 11-3 conference record, while NC State has been extremely up and down with an average 14-13 overall record and 4-10 CC record.
Although NC State basketball is less than reliable this season, there is always the chance for a Wolfpack win. However, that hope tends to make the year a rougher emotional rollercoaster than necessary. With that being said, the Pack is coming off of a close win against Clemson and it’s a home game, which tends to favor the Pack.
NC State has the ability to surprise people, but sometimes it seems like it comes down to whether or not the players really want to win. When the team tends to fall apart in the second half, it makes you wonder if they want it bad enough.
It’s no secret that Carolina has a strong team, including 4-year veteran Marcus Paige (thankfully he’ll be leaving soon), Brice Johnson, and Kennedy Meeks. The Wolfpack defense needs to step up and play consistently like when they out rebounded Clemson 43-30. Beejay Anya finally played big with Malik Abu combining for 6 put back dunks and nine dunks total.
If Cat Barber plays like his normal dominating self, and gets a little help from Abu and Caleb Martin and the team plays together like they did against Clemson last week, the Pack may give PNC something to cheer about tonight.