NC State’s Terquavion Smith day-to-day after scary fall in UNC loss

Associated PressJan 22, 2023, 12:19 PM EST

Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina State guard Terquavion Smith is day-to-day after a scary fall led to him being wheeled off the court on a stretcher in a loss at North Carolina, the school said.

Smith reported neck and elbow pain as well as numbness in his right arm after being fouled on a drive by UNC’s Leaky Black, who was ejected for a Flagrant Two foul, the school said.

Medical personnel used the backboard and stretcher due to his report of neck pain, though X-rays at the UNC Medical Center were negative for any fractures.

Smith was released from the hospital and returned to Raleigh.

Smith leads the Atlantic Coast Conference in scoring at 18.7 points per game.

N.C. State next hosts Notre Dame.

N.C. State beats Georgia Tech 78-66 for fourth straight win

Associated PressJan 17, 2023, 11:21 PM EST

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ATLANTA – Terquavion Smith scored 25 points, Jarkel Joiner added 19 and North Carolina State beat Georgia Tech 78-66 on Tuesday night for its fourth straight win.

Georgia Tech trailed 59-47 but cut the deficit to 63-57 with 6:16 to play. N.C. State answered with a 12-2 run for a 75-59 lead with 2:42 remaining. Smith hit a pair of 3-pointers and Joiner made four free throws during the stretch.

Smith was 9 of 17 from the floor and made four 3-pointers to go with five assists and two blocks. Joiner was 5-of-11 shooting and made all nine of his free throws.

Casey Morsell added 12 points and D.J. Burns Jr. had 10 for N.C. State (15-4, 5-3 ACC). Morsell also blocked three shots, including one that lead to a Joiner dunk.

Jalon Moore had 17 points and eight rebounds to lead Georgia Tech (8-10, 1-7). Four others added nine points apiece for the Yellow Jackets.

Georgia Tech built a 10-point lead five minutes into the game before an 8-2 surge gave N.C. State the lead for good with 1:29 remaining in the first half.

N.C. State is on the road against North Carolina on Saturday. Georgia Tech hosts Syracuse on Saturday.

Smith, Joiner help NC State roll past No. 16 Duke 84-60

Associated PressJan 4, 2023, 11:48 PM EST

Jaylynn Nash-USA TODAY Sports

RALEIGH, N.C. – Terquavion Smith scored 24 points and North Carolina State jumped all over No. 16 Duke from the opening tip, rolling to an 84-60 win on Wednesday night in the long-running series between Atlantic Coast Conference neighbors.

Jarkel Joiner added 21 points, nine assists and six rebounds for the Wolfpack (12-4, 2-3 ACC), who scored the game’s first 15 points and led by 22 by halftime in a shocking romp.

While the Wolfpack pounced, the Blue Devils (11-4, 2-2) watched early shots roll off the rim or be swatted away. They compounded their problems by piling up turnovers in a game that quickly got away.

N.C. State shot 47% and made 10 3-pointers, nine coming from its its dynamic backcourt duo. More impressively, the Wolfpack scored 30 points off turnovers on a night that Kevin Keatts’ squad repeatedly pushed the tempo.

One highlight came when Joiner hit a corner 3-pointer just before the halftime horn with Duke’s Jeremy Roach defending on his hip. Joiner gave a yell toward the courtside fans, then giddily backed away to join his teammates heading to the locker room with a 44-22 lead.

And early in the second, Joiner and Smith got loose together in transition. First Joiner hit Smith for a right-wing 3-pointer on the break, then did it again – only this time falling to the court while delivering the pass.

No matter. Joiner still raised both arms while laying on his back near the baseline as though signaling the shot was good as it swished through the net. By that point, the Wolfpack led 54-28 with 17:05 left and never let Duke closer than 22 again.

Freshman Kyle Filipowski scored 14 points to lead Duke, which shot 40% and just 5 of 15 from 3-point range. Duke also committed 21 turnovers, many fueling the Wolfpack’s 25 fast-break points.

BIG PICTURE

Duke: It was a jarring result for the Blue Devils in a year of change, from Jon Scheyer in his debut season as the successor to retired Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski to a roster with 11 new players and the nation’s No. 1-ranked recruiting class. But the Blue Devils never looked comfortable, confident or capable of consistently creating quality looks as the deficit ballooned. It amounted to a second rough showing on the road, the other coming in a loss at Wake Forest a few days before Christmas.

N.C. State: This one can ease some of the frustration amid ACC losses to now-No. 12 Miami, Pittsburgh and Clemson. Smith and Joiner showed their potential to impose their will from the wings. More impressively, the Wolfpack did this without starter and team rebounding leader Jack Clark, who is out indefinitely after suffering a core muscle injury late last week at Clemson.

UP NEXT

Duke: Plays a second straight road game, traveling to Boston College on Saturday.

N.C. State: Visits Virginia Tech on Saturday.

Taylor, Duke’s perimeter shooting upend No. 6 N.C. State

Associated PressDec 30, 2022, 4:49 PM EST

William Howard-USA TODAY Sports

RALEIGH, N.C. – Celeste Taylor helped Duke to its most significant victory in coach Kara Lawson’s three seasons.

Taylor scored 23 points, including a big 3-pointer in the fourth quarter, and the Blue Devils beat No. 6 North Carolina State 72-58 on Thursday night.

“We kept our composure when they went on runs,” Lawson said. “We just stayed focused and stayed locked in and didn’t allow the emotions of the game to take over our execution.”

Elizabeth Balogun had 16 points for the Blue Devils. Shayeann Day-Wilson and Kennedy Brown each scored 10 points.

Duke (12-1, 2-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) went 9 for 14 on 3-pointers in its seventh straight victory. Reigan Richardson’s 3 stretched the lead to 66-56.

“To see it all work out for us is pretty good,” Taylor said. “Conference play starts and you have to get after it. You have to fight harder.”

N.C. State had won 19 straight ACC games at Reynolds Coliseum. The last conference school to win on the Wolfpack’s court was Duke on Feb. 24, 2020.

Saniya Rivers had 17 points for N.C. State (11-2, 1-1), which had won seven straight games this season. Jakia Brown-Turner scored 12 points and Aziaha James had 10.

“They came in here and just, in simple terms, kicked our butts,” N.C. State coach Wes Moore said. “They took us out of anything we wanted to do offensively. … Duke just came in here and took it.”

N.C. State trimmed Duke’s 14-point lead to 50-44 by the end of the third quarter.

Taylor’s 3 pushed the Blue Devils in front 59-50 near the midway mark of the fourth. She was 5 of 6 on 3s and had a game-high eight rebounds.

Duke finished 15 for 15 on free throws, including 10 attempts in the fourth quarter.

“You’ve got to get those free ones,” Lawson said.

Duke outscored North Carolina State 24-4 across the final seven minutes of the first half for a 35-23 edge. The Blue Devils were 6 for 9 in the first half on 3-pointers.

“We had a chance to guard them,” Moore said. “It wasn’t like we were playing `Horse.”‘

N.C. State used a 13-0 stretch spanning the first and second quarters for a 19-10 lead.

BIG PICTURE

Duke: The Blue Devils overcame early shooting woes and had the Wolfpack’s defense off balance by the end because of their perimeter shooting. The Blue Devils were rarely rattled despite a difficult road atmosphere, improving to 5-0 in true road games this season.

N.C. State: The Wolfpack had spans when the offense didn’t flow well and that was costly when trying to keep up with Duke’s timely shooting. N.C. State’s 18 turnovers also prevented a comeback and the full-court press didn’t do much to disrupt the Blue Devils. The Wolfpack managed only five assists.

WORTH NOTING

N.C. State played its third full game in a row without scoring leader Diamond Johnson (13.9 points per game), who sustained an ankle injury Dec. 11 vs. South Florida. … Duke also beat a top-10 N.C. State team on the road in February 2020 for its last win against the Wolfpack. … The lone losses for both teams this season entering the game came against Connecticut.

UP NEXT

Duke: Hosts Louisville on Sunday.

N.C. State: Sunday at Syracuse.

Smith returning to NC State instead of staying in NBA draft

Associated PressJun 1, 2022, 12:11 AM EDT

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RALEIGH, N.C. – North Carolina State guard Terquavion Smith is returning for his sophomore season after going through the NBA draft process.

The 6-foot-4 sophomore participated in the league draft combine in Chicago earlier this month and was considered a potential first-round prospect. But Smith posted a video to social media Tuesday announcing his plan to return, saying: “The job’s not done. Let’s get to work.”

ESPN, which first reported Smith’s decision, had Smith ranked 22nd among draft prospects after he averaged 16.3 points and shot 37% from 3-point range. He was second in the Atlantic Coast Conference in freshman scoring behind only Duke’s Paolo Banchero, a candidate to go No. 1 overall.

Smith’s biggest game had him scoring 34 points in a loss at rival North Carolina in January, marking the No. 2 total by a freshman in program history.

N.C. State is still awaiting a decision from 6-7 sophomore wing and leading scorer Dereon Seabron, who also participated in the draft combine. Players have until the NCAA’s deadline Wednesday night to decide whether they’re returning to school or staying in the draft.

North Carolina State transfer joins revamped Butler roster

Associated PressMay 9, 2022, 8:07 PM EDT

Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports

INDIANAPOLIS — Butler coach Thad Matta landed his second big man in less than a week Monday, announcing the addition of 6-foot-11 Manny Bates from North Carolina State.

The grad transfer had 147 blocks, fourth in school history, and shot 64.7% from the field in two seasons with the Wolfpack. He played just one game last season after suffering a season-ending shoulder injury in the first minute of North Carolina State’s season opener.

“Manny’s presence defensively will be incredibly impactful,” Matta said in a statement. “He blocks and alters shots at a high level. Offensively, his size and athleticism give him the ability to score in the post, in the pick-and-roll, and in transition.”

The announcement comes just days after Matta announced that 6-10 forward Jalen Thomas would transfer to Butler from Georgia State. The Bulldogs also recently landed former Akron swingman Ali Ali and are expected to announce soon that a fourth player will transfer into the program.

Last week, Matta also hired former Ohio State stars Greg Oden and Jon Diebler to his staff.

Oden, the IndyStar Mr. Basketball in 2006 and No. 1 overall draft pick in 2007, will serve as director of basketball operations. Diebler will be director of recruiting.

“Both possess great energy and strong basketball knowledge,” Matta said. “They will relate well to our players and will help them grow on and off the court. I was excited years ago when they committed to be part of my program as players, and I’m just as excited they are joining my staff.”