NC State hoops checks in at No. 36 in initial BPI projections

ESPN’s advanced college basketball ratings system expects to see some improvement out of NC State in Kevin Keatts’ second season at the helm. BPI has the Wolfpack as the 36th-best team in D-I hoops heading into the 2019 season, which is 12 spots higher than State’s finish this past season.

BPI projects that NC State will rank 19th in offensive efficiency and 100th in defensive efficiency, which in both cases would not be drastically different performance levels from last season.

Bart Torvik’s early projections expect similar production, though his system ranks NC State 46th overall.

BPI puts four ACC teams in the top 10, including Syracuse, and the Orange are ranked a little ahead of Duke and UVA, which, ... I dunno about that one. There are eight ACC teams ranked higher than NC State.

All four of State’s non-conference P5 opponents rank in the initial BPI top 60: Wisconsin at eight, Auburn at 18, Penn State at 42, and Vanderbilt at 55.