NC State unable to supplant No. 12 Tennessee in comeback effort
NC State’s first two games against quadrant one teams this season did not go the Wolfpack’s way. The Pack led by five before it lost to BYU in Las Vegas in late-November, and then it was blown out at Ole Miss by 20 in the ACC/SEC challenge four days later.
But against No. 12 Tennessee, in what might have been a must-win to build a solid NCAA Tournament resume, NC State displayed its grit. The Pack trailed by as many as 11 in the second half, but it clawed its way back in the waning minutes of the contest.
Though the Wolfpack was able to will its way back into a tight game against the Volunteers, it could not supplant Tennessee as it knocked down multiple triples in the final three minutes to beat the Pack 79-70 on Saturday night in San Antonio.
NC State was without a field goal for more than four minutes down the stretch, which allowed the team clad in its usual white and orange uniforms to walk away with the win.
Graduate guard DJ Horne led the Wolfpack with 16 points, while graduate forward DJ Burns had 15 and junior guard Jayden Taylor chipped in with 11.
Though the Pack did not earn the result it wanted, it shut down Dalton Knecht, the Volunteers’ leading scorer. Knecht, who entered the game averaging 18 points a night, was held to just 2 on 1-of-7 shooting. While Knecht did not do the damage, Josiah-Jordan James did as he paced the Vols with 23 points, including five 3-pointers.
When NC State needed a basket early, it turned to Horne. The Arizona State transfer knocked down a trio of 3-pointers in the first six minutes to give the Wolfpack a 4-point lead.
NC State led by as many as six, but Tennessee was able to pull ahead with a 17-2 run midway through the first half to lead by seven — the Vols’ largest lead of the first half.
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The Wolfpack, however, would not go away. NC State was able to cut the lead down to three by halftime thanks to Woods’ 3-pointer, his first basket of his Wolfpack career.
In the early going of the second half, it appeared that NC State was going to stick around with Tennessee. But soon after the teams traded baskets for the first four minutes of the period, the Volunteers went on a 9-0 run to stretch its lead to 11.
While Tennessee was on its run, NC State’s offense struggled to find a rhythm. The Pack went one-and-done on several possessions, while the Volunteers were able to generate multiple shots per possession.
But as the second half wore on, NC State was able to climb back into the contest behind a 10-2 run that made it a 1-point game. Though the Pack was able to get close, NC State was not able to get over the hump as Tennessee was able to stave off the red and white’s comeback bid with timely shooting.
The Vols knocked down multiple 3-pointers in the final four minutes, while the Pack went without a field goal during the same period down the stretch.
