Defense does the trick: 3 takeaways from NC State basketball’s win over William & Mary
Michael O’Connell held his hands up and motioned “come here” to his teammates. Ben Middlebrooks had just picked up his fourth foul and sent William & Mary’s Noah Collier to the line. The visitors had clawed back from a 20-point deficit to make it a single-digit game.
The Wolfpack responded.
Middlebrooks, trapped in the far corner, found Dontrez Styles down the floor for a two-handed dunk. Then, he picked off a pass. Marcus Hill turned that into a traditional 3-point play and 14-point lead.
Despite struggling in the second half, N.C. State’s defense ultimately led it to an 81-64 win over William & Mary on Friday night at Lenovo Center to end the team’s five-game homestand.
“We’re going through a learning process. I thought we played great in the first half, and we were a little slow in the start of the second half,” head coach Kevin Keatts said. “That’s where a new team has got to learn how to continue to play the way we do. But, boy, did we finish the game the right way.”
William & Mary took a 7-5 lead three minutes into the first half, but the Wolfpack responded with a 15-0 run to take a 17-8 lead. It moved the ball well, recording eight assists on 16 made shots and committed just four turnovers. N.C. State outrebounded the Tribe, 22-19, with seven offensive boards.
The Wolfpack started the second half slowly, unable to find a rhythm on either end. N.C. State went 4 of 12 in the first eight minutes. Five minutes later, it was 6 of 19, and 0 of 5 from 3-point range. Keatts said he didn’t like that six-, seven-minute stretch, but wanted to see his team play through a challenge.
It did exactly that.
Though the Tribe pressed, trapped and played fearlessly, N.C. State never gave up its advantage and played tough enough to evade a scare, outscoring the visitors 21-6 in the final five and a half minutes.
“I think the biggest thing is we’re active, because we emphasize deflections and everything else. It’s hard to play against us for 40 minutes, the way we’re in your face,” Keatts said. “I think our guys are doing a good job executing the defensive game plan. Right now, we’re wearing teams down. I think we’re in better shape; even at the end of this game, I felt like we got stronger the last five minutes of the game.”
Guard Marcus Hill led the team with 19 points, a season high, on 7 of 13 shooting. His performance came one game after a 17-point night against Colgate, his previous season high. Forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield added 10 points, including a 3 at the top of the key, and a team-high nine rebounds.
Here are three takeaways from the Pack’s final game in its season-opening homestand:
Pack turns defense into points
With 8:38 remaining in the first half, Huntley-Hatfield punched the ball away for the steal. He scored the tip-in on the other end after Jayden Taylor’s missed layup.
N.C. State’s defense looked lively from the jump and didn’t take long to disrupt the William & Mary offense. It forced a turnover on the Tribe’s first possession of the game.
The Wolfpack played with urgency as the game progressed, forcing 13 William & Mary turnovers in the first half. The Tribe committed a turnover on 36.1% of its first-half possessions.
Of those errors, N.C. State recorded six steals and scored 16 points.
It continued its aggressive defensive effort after the break. The Pack forced 21 total turnovers, including seven second-half steals, and scored 29 points.
Entering the season, there were concerns about N.C. State’s ability to stop opponents without DJ Burns, Mohamed Diarra, Casey Morsell and DJ Horne. Through its first five games, the Pack has held opponents to 63.6 points per game.
It held William & Mary to .859 points per possession on Friday. Three of the first five opponents were held under 1 point per possession.
“I don’t know why there was concern about our defense. I feel like, if anything, it would be better if you know what we have,” Taylor said. “Real basketball people know. But, no, it’s not no surprise to me. Honestly, it’s coach Keatts. You’re not gonna play if you don’t play defense.”
It’s raining 3s
Entering the game, William & Mary attempted 3-pointers on 57.5% of its field goal attempts — which ranks No. 2 in the nation, according to KenPom.com — and averaged 34.2 attempts per game. The Tribe made 11.8 3s per game, hitting 34.9% of its shots from downtown.
The Tribe continued its trend on Friday night. At halftime, William & Mary had taken 27 field goals, and 14 from 3-point range. Nick Collier made his first career 3 with 1:25 remaining in the first half.
N.C. State’s defense, however, held the Tribe to 3 of 14 (21.4%) from the arc. In the second half, it gave up three shots on 16 attempts. The Tribe finished 20% from the perimeter, far below its average.
The defensive success reflects one of the Pack’s strengths this season. It ranks No. 6 in the country for 3-point shooting defense, allowing opponents to shoot 22.5% from deep.
“That’s just our scout. That’s what we practice every day, and that’s what coach preaches,” O’Connell said. “Especially coming to some of these games with great shooters, you don’t want to let them get hot or get going early in the game, because it’ll be a long day.”
N.C. State is one of the weaker 3-point shooting teams in the nation and came into the game shooting 27.1%, or No. 306 in Division I. The Wolfpack didn’t let the low average deter it from making attempts behind the line.
It went 4-12 in the first half and 5 of 18 (27.8%) for the game. The Wolfpack might not be the hottest shooting 3-point team, but its ability to stop opponents makes up for it.
“Everybody’s like, ‘Man, you ain’t really shooting the 3 well,’” Keatts said. “And I’m saying, ‘We’re getting 46 points in the paint. Maybe we shouldn’t shoot the 3 well.”
“I think as the season goes, people will find their shot. It’s early still,” Taylor said. “We’ve been winning...as season goes, we’ll see, but I think shots will just start falling.”
Parker Jr. makes solid impact
Guard Dennis Parker Jr. missed the entire 2024 postseason due to illness and has not practiced consistently due to injuries on his left and right ankles. On Friday, the sophomore had his best performance of the season.
Parker Jr. was active on defense, getting in the faces of William & Mary players and forcing them out of their normal offensive rotation. His movement on one possession led to a steal, while his activity on the glass meant five rebounds and a block. He scored five points with a corner 3, as well.
“I feel like this game was a pretty good game for me,” Parker Jr. said. “I’m kind of getting my flow back. I was out there really trying to do everything defensively, and I got two good shots offensively. I feel like everything moved smoothly; looking forward to keep going up from here.”
The young guard might not pad the stat sheet, nor is he expected to start right now, but his ability to get back into the rotation and contribute positively continues to be an asset for the Wolfpack. Keatts hopes Parker Jr. will become a bigger contributor if he can get fully healthy.
“Honestly, it’s not surprising. In practice, he’s all over the place,” O’Connell added. “He flies around, steals, fast break, dunks, can shoot 3s, like the one he hit in the corner. I feel like we’ve connected on that before in practice. It’s pretty cool to see him continue to get better. He’s my roommate this year, so I love to see him thriving and just getting better every day.”
This story was originally published November 22, 2024 at 9:07 PM with the headline "Defense does the trick: 3 takeaways from NC State basketball’s win over William & Mary."
