Highlights! DJ Burns and the Pack come through at Wake

Sure, it was a Saturday, but DJ Burns went and made it a Bruisy Twos-day. Truly imbodying the Big McLargeHuge basketball lifestyle, Burns accounted for half of NC State’s two-point attempts by himself. finishing 14-26 inside. And unless I missed somebody, this is the first time a State player has attempted 20+ twos in a game since Torin Dorn took 22 against Lipscomb in the 2019 NIT.

With Burns cooking, NC State put up its second-lowest three-point attempt rate of the season. Being more selective in that respect paid off in efficiency, as Jarkel Joiner and Baby T combined to shoot 6-9 from beyond the arc (nice) and the team’s 47.1% three-point shooting was its most accurate showing of the season.

NC State continued an impressive run of ball security: five total turnovers yesterday, which was a rate of a little over seven percent. In ACC games, State is turnover the ball over just 11.2%, which is an incredible number. The Pack’s season-long turnover rate (13.6%) ranks second nationally, behind Penn State (13.1%). This team has turned the ball over seven times over its last 80 minutes of basketball; pretty good!

The win yesterday was a good one for the postseason resume and NC State has an opportunity over the next couple of weeks to solidify its position. FSU and GT come to Raleigh this week, and there’s a trip to BC the week after, with a game at UVA in between. Take care of business against the bottom portion of the league and State can make a run at a top-four seed at the ACC tourney.