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Late Night Snacks: NC State, Albany advance to Round of 64

T.J. Warren

GAME OF THE NIGHT: No. 16 Albany 71, No. 16 Mount St. Mary’s 64

Albany started the game on a 21-2 run. It looked like the Great Danes would cruise, but the Mountaineers were able to string together a 21-2 run of their own to tie the score in the first half.

In a game that featured talented guards on both sides such as Peter Hooley of Albany as well as Mount St. Mary’s Rashad Whack and Julian Norfleet, it was the 5-foo-9 Great Danes’ floor general D.J. Evans who shined the brightest. Evans scored a game-high 22 points, grabbed nine rebounds and dished three assists. He iced the game with a pair of free throws after Whack missed a game-tying free throw and Norfleet missed another look from beyond the arc.

Albany gets top-seeded Florida in the Round of 64 on Thursday evening.

TEAM OF THE NIGHT: No. 12 NC State

The Wolfpack were pegged as being on the wrong side of the bubble by the time Selection Sunday rolled around. A win over Syracuse in the ACC quarterfinals and an endorsement from Coach K helped land NC State and bid and on Tuesday night it did not disappoint in a 74-59 win over Xavier in the second First Four game.

ACC Player of the Year T.J. Warren and Tyler Lewis helped their team advance into the Round of 64 where the No. 12 seed NC State will be a popular upset pick over No. 5 Saint Louis, the Atlantic 10 regular season champion, which has lost four out of five games.

An NC State win over an A10 program will likely make Coach K happy and justify his rant from last week.

WEDNESDAY’S NCAA TOURNAMENT GAMES

No. 16 Cal Poly vs. No. 16 Texas Southern, 6:40 p.m. (truTV)

No. 11 Iowa vs. No. 11 Tennessee, 9:10 p.m. (truTV)

STARRED

D.J. Evans, Albany: The undersized guard scored a game-high 22 points and at 5-foot-9 he grabbed nine rebounds. He had some big finishes at key moments for the Great Danes, who advance to the Round of 64 against top-ranked Florida.

T.J. Warren and Tyler Lewis, NC State: The sophomore duo proved the Wolfpack did belong in the NCAA tournament with a First Four win over Xavier. Warren scored a game-high 25 points. Lewis was great with the ball in his hands with seven points and eight assists.

K.J. McDaniels, Clemson: He went for 30 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in an NIT opening round win over Georgia State

STRUGGLED

Rashad Whack and Julian Norfleet, Mount St. Mary’s: The duo combined for 23 points off 7-of-31 (3-of-19 from three) shooting. Whack had a great look at a game-tying 3-pointer with 39 seconds to play, only to see if go halfway down and come back out.

St. John’s: Either Robert Morris is the greatest NIT opening round team ever, or the Red Storm wanted to call it a season. What’s the importance of reaching Madison Square Garden for the Johnnies anyways?

Xavier defense: Allowed the Wolfpack to shoot 54.7 percent from the field. Warren was able to go 10-from-18 on the night. On the offensive end, the Musketeers shot 14.3 percent from deep.

NIT


  • No. 8 Robert Morris 89, No. 1St. John’s 78
  • No. 1 Florida State 58, No. 8 Florida Gulf Coast 53
  • No. 4 Georgetown 77, No. 5 West Virginia 65
  • No. 5 Belmont 80, No. 4 Green Bay 65
  • No. 1 Minnesota 88, No. 8 High Point 81
  • No. 3 Arkansas 91, No. 6 Indiana State 71
  • No. 3 Clemson 78, No. 6 Georgia State 66
  • No. 2 Missouri 85, No. 7 Davidson 77

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