Wolfpack Fall to #20 Creighton 112-94

The NC State men’s basketball team fell to #22/20 Creighton, 112-94, on Sunday night in the Paradise Jam semifinals played at St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.

The Pack and Bluejays went back-and-forth in an entertaining first half that saw eight lead changes and six ties. NC State started the game on fire from long distance as they hit seven three-pointers in the opening 10 minutes with senior guard Terry Henderson hitting five of those seven. The Pack finished the first half 9-of-18 from three-point range. NC State entered the game having hit nine three-pointers total in its first three games of the season.

After a Dennis Smith Jr., three-pointer with 2:46 left in the first half gave NC State a 47-46 lead, Creighton closed the half on an 8-1 run to take a 54-48 lead into the break.

The Bluejays extended their run out of the locker room in the second half as they scored eight of the first 10 points to take a 12 point lead, 62-50 with 18:25 to play. Overall, it was a 16-3 run between the end of the first half and the beginning of the second half and NC State was never able to recover. The Pack didn’t get closer than seven points the rest of the way.

Henderson led the Pack in scoring, tying his career-high with 28 points. The Raleigh native was 9-of-14 from the field, including 7-of-11 from three-point range. Smith also was effective on the offensive end as he scored 21 points for the second consecutive game and also passed out seven assists against just two turnovers. Torin Dorn added 16 points and six rebounds,  while Abdul-Malik Abu had 13 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Markell Johnson came off the bench to add eight points and recorded four assists with just one turnover.
NC State finished the game hitting 14-of-28 three-pointers.

The Pack are back in action Monday evening in its third and final game at the Paradise Jam. NC State will face Saint Joseph’s in the third place game. The game will start at 6 p.m. ET and will be televised on CBS Sports Network.