NC State gets first ACC win as Wolfpack spurts past Louisville in second half
N.C. State’s D.J. Burns said Wolfpack coach Kevin Keatts had a few choice words to say to his team at halftime Thursday.
Loudly.
The Pack led Louisville by three points at PNC Arena, and only after a late 3-pointer by Jarkel Joiner. Nothing was smooth about the Wolfpack offense and there wasn’t enough defensive focus or toughness and …
“Coach came in at halftime and he let us have it,” Burns said. “When we come in lacking energy or not doing the things we’re supposed to, he’s going to call it out. He’s going to look you in the eyes and say, ‘Play better for me.’ That man always lays it out for us and we wanted to give it back for him.”
Those might not be Keatts’ exact words, but the message was clear and the Pack responded, pulling away in the second half for a 76-64 victory and its first ACC win of the season as Burns had a team-high 17 points.
Louisville is, in a word, struggling. Kenny Payne’s first season as head coach has been nightmarish so far and the Cardinals came in 2-10 after a homecourt loss to Lipscomb.
Payne has Danny Manning and Nolan Smith, no strangers to the ACC, on the bench as assistants but the talent base is low the frustration building -- an angry Payne got a technical foul in the second half.
But the effort was there from the Louisville players, as Keatts reminded his team at halftime.
Keatts is an intense coach – all the time. He’s constantly on the move during games, instructing his team with some bite in his voice. He turned it up even more at the break.
“We weren’t playing hard enough,” the Pack’s Terquavion Smith said. “Coach told us they played harder than us in the first half. Coach was honest with us.”
Smith, guarded closely and physically by the Cards, missed five of six shots in the opening half and also a couple of free throws. The touch wasn’t there. But he didn’t stop shooting.
Smith made his first 3-pointer with 17:41 left in the second half and soon followed with another 3.
“Once my boy gets going …” Burns said. “That’s what he does.”
The Pack, with better ball movement and patience, began getting better shots and hitting them. Clark had a dunk and 3-point play. Morsell hit shots. Joiner contributed. Burns banged inside.
“My teammates believed in me and encouraged me to keep shooting,” Smith said. “I took that good positive energy and I ran with it.”
Smith finished with 14 points and five assists as the Wolfpack (11-3, 1-2 ACC) closed with good offensive balance. Casey Morsell had 15 points, on 5-of-7 shooting on 3’s, Jack Clark 14 points and Joiner 13 as the Pack had 17 assists on its 26 baskets.
“Our energy level went up and we really got after it,” Keatts said.
Sydney Curry, a hard-working post player, had 16 points for the Cardinals (2-11, 0-3) and had a big-boy battle Burns under the basket – Burns a 275-pounder and Curry weighing in at 270.
Burns scored on a variety of moves, using his soft left-handed touch.
“His athleticism, that’s his hidden talent,” Morsell said, smiling.
The Pack built the lead to 18 points in the second half, withstood a Louisville run that trimmed the lead to 10, then sealed the victory.
“They made a good run but we stayed the course and got it done,” Smith said. “There’s no easy games in the ACC. You have to play hard every night and that’s what we did to close this game out.”
This story was originally published December 22, 2022 at 9:16 PM with the headline "NC State gets first ACC win as Wolfpack spurts past Louisville in second half."
