Buzzketball Central: NC State Wolfpack (16-7, 6-4) at Virginia Tech Hokies (16-7, 5-5) 9PM Feb 7 RSN

IT'S GAMEDAY!🏀 #BeatNCState📍 Cassell Coliseum🕘 9 PM📺 RSN pic.twitter.com/5uWC621vIf— VT Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) February 7, 2018

GAME INFORMATION
Date/Time: Feb. 7, 2018 / 9 p.m.
Opponent: North Carolina State University
Site: Blacksburg, Virginia (Carilion Clinic Court at Cassell Coliseum)
Radio: Virginia Tech IMG Sports Network
Talent: Jon Laaser & Mike Burnop
TV: Regional Sports Networks
Talent: Wes Durham & Dan Bonner
Live Stats: HokieSports.com
Game Notes: Virginia Tech
SIRI 81 (Internet 81)

Regroup and Refocus

Buzzketball is having to recover from a tough home loss to Miami, where at times, most of the roster looked as if they were wearing concrete shoes. Short arming shots, failing to play a semblance of defense, and other miscues ultimately doomed the Hokies against the Hurricanes. Now it faces a different but possibly equal challenge. Tech faces NC State at home. This game becomes even more crucial because after tonight, the Hokies face a three game road trip starting at #2 Virginia.

The game is sold out so Cassell should be packed. The Hokies have to come out ready for the Wolfpack to try to punch them in the mouth early and sustain through that to build a solid lead by halftime. This will be a tough test, especially with the talent surge the Wolfpack brought in the last two seasons. NC State brings much the same height disparity to this contest that most ACC schools present Tech, as they have six players 6'7 or taller that play enough minutes to cover two or three positions on the floor for the entire game. There is another bevy of talented freshman for the Hokies to take on.

NC State is currently 16-7. Their losses this season are to Northern Iowa, Tennessee, and UNC Greensboro out of conference and Clemson, Notre Dame, UVA and Miami in the ACC. Five of the seven losses for the Wolfpack have come on the road or at neutral site games. NC State comes in on a three game winning streak with wins over Pitt, UNC and Notre Dame. NC State has beaten Arizona, Duke and UNC this season.

This will be the fifty sixth meeting between the Hokies and the Wolfpack. NC State leads the all-time series 40-15, starting all the way back in 1915. The Hokies last victory against the Wolfpack came in 2016 in a 73-68 win in overtime in Blacksburg.

Last time we faced NC State in the Cassell...🦃 73 - 68 🐺 pic.twitter.com/q1noTvmeFi— VT Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) February 7, 2018

The Wolfpack are coached by first year head coach Kevin Keatts. Keatts is 88-35 as a head coach, with three seasons at the helm of UNC Wilmington and this his inaugural season at NC State. Keatts led UNC Wilmington to three straight CAA regular season titles and the NCAA tournament in two of his three seasons there and have the Wolfpack poised to reach the tournament as well.

Defensively, Keatts approaches the game with this statement "Don't let your opponent breathe". The Wolfpack utilize an aggressive 2-3 Zone defense that attempts to protect the perimeter and force turnovers on the outside. Keatts has the Wolfpack using the entire floor to play defense, regularly employing a full court defensive scheme. They will switch to man to man in certain circumstances. Regardless of which style they are employing, NC State so far this season has done a very good job defensively. This was supposed to be a facet of the game where they might struggle, but it just hasn't been the case. They have been greatly improved defensively compared to last season. Keatts has the team buying in to executing the basics.

NC State was already a huge scoring threat under Gottfried but Keatts has upped the tempo and has his team constantly looking to get out and run. Keatts wants to go fast on both ends of the floor to keep opponents off balance. NC State shoot 52% from inside the arc and are struggling a bit, shooting 32% from outside. Expect to see a ton of passes to a big at the top of the lane, who then reads and reacts to what the defense is doing in terms of finding a pass or developing a shot. All five starters have averaged in double figures at points this season, currently four are and another at 9.5. PPG.

What does that mean for the Hokies?

The Hokies need to come out ready for a sprint. They need to expect a big home crowd providing the energy and they are going to need it. They have to be ready to take NC State's best shot. The Wolfpack's style of play gives the tempo of the game the speed the Hokies thrive in but they have to be prepared for an aggressive defensive stance from NC State.

This should be a high paced game since both programs look to get out and run in transition. NC State struggles with personal fouls, with six members of the Wolfpack averaging more than 2 per game. The Hokies need to identify the weaknesses in coverage to get open looks at the basket while also taking advantage of the Wolfpack's weakness in stopping dribble penetration to the rim. Expect Robinson and Clarke to have big nights in the lane for the Hokies to be successful.

NC State relies on the perimeter shot so closing out opponents is a must that we talk about every game but doesn't seem to be part of Buzz philosophy. It would be great to see hands in face, forcing NC State to pass around the perimeter to keep them from their primary offense. Blackshear will also have to be ready for bigs that like to muscle down the lane.

Beyond the six man primary rotation, NC States production falls off precipitously, so being able to get their starters in early foul trouble could be a great benefit to whom the Hokies face.

Wolfpack Backcourt

Senior Graduate Transfer Allerik Freeman, (#12) 6'3, 200 Lbs, leads the Wolfpack in scoring, putting up 14.2 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 2.5 APG and 1.1 SPG in his final season away from Baylor. His scoring is more from amount of attempts rather than quality of shooting. He is shooting 3% from outside, 36% from inside and 76% from the charity stripe.

Junior Torin Dorn, (#2) 6'5, 201 Lbs is averaging 13.7 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 1.6 APG and 1 SPG. Dorn is shooting 59% from the inside, 35% from behind the line and 71% from the line in about 29 MPG. Dorn will likely be called upon to cover Clarke so it should be an interesting matchup.

Freshman Braxton Beverly, (#10) 6', 180 Lbs, has put up 10.1 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 4.1 APG and 1 SPG. He is the secondary ball handler behind Markell Johnson. He shoots 39% inside, 35% outside and 88% from the line.

Sophomore Markell Johnson, (#11), 6'1, 164 Lbs is averaging 8.1 PPG, 3.1 RPG, and an incredible 7.6 APG on just over 28 MPG so far this season. He has had double digit assists in his last four ACC contests. The NCAA doesn't have him listed due to games played or he would be tied for fourth in the country in assists per game.

Wolfpack Frontcourt

Sophomore Omer Yurtseven, #14, 7', 245 lbs was not expected to return this season but decided last minute to remove himself from the draft. He has put up 13.7 PPG, 7 RPG, and 1.8 BPG while shooting 61% from the field. His one weakness is the charity stripe, where he is only managing to hit 58% so far this season.

Senior Forward Abdul-Malik Abu, #0, 6'8, 240 lbs returned to the Wolfpack a second time after putting his name in the draft after last season and he has missed almost a third of the season so far due to a knee injury he suffered preseason. It has not benefitted him as his numbers have dramatically decreased over last season. He is putting up 5.8 PPG and 3.9 RPG, about half of what he put up last season. He stays completely inside the arc on offense, shooting 51% while also hitting 58% from the free throw line.

Senior Lennard Freeman, #1, 6'8, 245 Lbs, is averaging 9.5 PPG and 4.9 RPG in about 20 MPG. He is shooting 66% from the field.

What to expect from NC State?

The Wolfpack play predominantly a half court defense in either man to man or zone geared towards making opponents turn the ball over but with Keatts have stretched their defense to the entire floor in many more situations. Its tough to tell what they are trying to accomplish other than getting back on offense. They actually have greatly improved on turning their opponents over, but they don't rebound well to prevent second chance opportunities and they are not very good at closing out the passing lanes.

The Wolfpack are averaging 83.1 PPG and allowing opponents 73.6 PPG. That's a nine point average margin of victory so far this season but is full of holes. There are a few extreme blowouts that contribute to that with some inexplicably close games mixed in along with their three losses by 14 or more. This team essentially relies on its offense to outscore their opponent much more than putting on a defensive effort to limit their opponent. With the number of freshman on this squad, Tech needs to put significant pressure on the defensive end to create a huge gap in the NC State game plan.

Rebounding wise, the Wolfpack are a team with size and depth. Their rebounding is fairly average at about 39 per game but considering the shooting percentages of their team, that plays a major factor in offensive rebounds being low.

NC State fouls its opponents more than average, giving up about 23 personal fouls per game with Yurtseven averaging more than 3 fouls per game. It would be extremely beneficial if the Hokies could get the two bigs in early foul trouble to level the opponents to a much more manageable size.

The Hokies

Tech needs to be ready to keep a high paced tempo the entire game without letting up. They need to pressure NC State on offense to create turnovers and lead to transition baskets. Limiting NC State on the offensive end could turn this contest into a blowout. Defense, Defense, Defense. Unfortunately sounds familiar, I would settle for no long stretches of concrete shoes.

Even with the height of the opponent here, Tech should be able to succeed inside. NC State has not been able to stop their opponents from penetrating the lane or fouling opponents in the process of shooting inside. Most of this comes from teams abilities to pass easily on the interior of this NC State defense. It creates one on one and other mismatches for Tech to take advantage of. Robinson, Clarke and Blackshear all need to plan to take the ball to the rim. Even Bibbs, if he can continue his play like he did against Boston College should be successful inside with the ball against the Wolfpack.

Patience and no let down. They need to recognize the fact that this matchup may not have the energy that the UNC game did and play through that, definitely not play down to NC States level. Avoiding that trap is probably the biggest key to this game.

Highlight of the Miami Game

Over the last four games, @5Alive_ has been the definition of a #FloorGeneral 👊1⃣5⃣.8⃣ ppg2⃣5⃣ assists4⃣ turnovers pic.twitter.com/O6nSGv9S3i— VT Men's Basketball (@HokiesMBB) February 5, 2018

Having the fortitude to crawl back into a game they had let get out of hand, even though they were not able to finish it off.

In Closing

Less Hype, equal talent, better coached is what this Hokies victory comes down to. Buzz' ability to get this team to play both ends of the floor with equal passion is what will set these two teams apart.
Hitting shots on the perimeter is something that the Hokies should not focus on but if the shots are open the Hokies need to knock them down. Hokies shooting centered around the basket is the key to a win here tonight.

This game should see the Hokies throw many different defensive fronts at the Wolfpack to keep them guessing on what to expect each trip down the court. They will likely call upon Bibbs and Robinson to run some full court press later in the first half as well as the second half if they need to establish some separation.

Tech should win this one going away if it brings the same mindset to the game as it did against UNC. If it plays down though like it did for 30 minutes of the Miami game, anything could happen. Tough first ten minutes to this game and then Buzz gets them going. Tech wins 84-77.

In pursuing different ways to #getBETTER, forcing yourself outside of your daily itinerary and then learning how to translate those experiences back into your 🌎, allows you to grow!#gBTimeout pic.twitter.com/ypXqvKKygK— Buzz Williams (@TeamCoachBuzz) February 6, 2018