NC State Sloppy Play Leads To Blowout Loss

TALLAHASSEE, FL – The NC State Wolfpack struggled drastically on the defensive side of the ball as the Florida State Seminoles walked away with a convincing 105-73 win on Wednesday (Jan. 13).

The Wolfpack entered tonight’s contest leading the ACC and ranking 11th in the country in turnover margin at +5.8, but in their last two games, they have been behind in the turnover battle and is a combined -8 turnover margin, which led to losses in both contests. The Wolfpack defense also leads the ACC and ranks seventh in the nation with 9.8 steals per game.

Both teams came out firing to start the game as each team didn’t miss a three-point shot through the first media timeout. Jericole Hellems scored eight of the first nine points for the Wolfpack as he was 3-of-3 from the field and 2-for-2 from three-point range through the first four minutes.

The Seminoles, went on a 20-2 run over a six and a half minute span, where they made eight straight buckets, to jump out to a 39-15 lead at the 5:53 mark left in the first half. The Wolfpack missed eight of nine shots and didn’t score for over four and a half minutes to allow the Seminoles to jump out to the large lead.

The Seminoles jumped out to a 57 to 32 lead at the half on a ridiculous 20-of-28 (71.4%) from the field and 7-of-10 (70%) on three-pointers. The Seminoles were led by RayQuan Evans with 13 points and M.J Walker with 12 points at the half. The Wolfpack were led by Jericole Hellems with ten points at the half.

With Manny Bates missing this game, the Wolfpack were dominated in the paint as the Seminoles scored 52 points in the paint compared to 28 from the Wolfpack. The Seminoles were able to force 11 Wolfpack turnovers, which led to 16 points off of turnovers. The Wolfpack managed to force 11 Seminole Turnovers but struggled to only score nine points off of those turnovers.

The Seminoles shot a scary 41-of-58 (70.7%) from the field and 12-of-18 (66.7%) from behind the three-point line. They were led by RayQuan Evans with 24 points, and M.J Walker with 19 points. The Wolfpack were led by Thomas Allen with 16 points and Devon Daniels with 14 points.

“They shot the heck out of the ball tonight.” NC State Coach Kevin Keatts said following the game.

The  Wolfpack, (6-4, 2-3) looks to bounce back as they host the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets on Saturday, January 16th at 2 P.M. at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina.

 

 

 

(Photo courtesy of FSU Athletics)