Field Level Media
22 Jan 2022, 00:49 GMT+10
This has been the year for Atlantic Coast Conference schools from the Tar Heel State to get their comeuppance against Virginia and coach Tony Bennett.
Two Saturdays ago, North Carolina ended its seven-game losing streak against Virginia. Last Saturday, Wake Forest snapped its nine-game skid against the Cavaliers. Now it's NC State with a chance to vanquish a dubious hex.
When NC State (9-10, 2-6) plays host to Virginia (11-7, 5-3) on Saturday afternoon, the Wolfpack will try to beat Bennett for the first time in Raleigh. All seven times the Cavaliers coach has come to PNC Arena, he's walked out a winner.
And he's not done it by beating up on weaklings. Three of those wins came over Wolfpack teams on their way to the NCAA Tournament. Two more came against teams that would finish with 20 or more victories.
On Saturday, with the Wolfpack having lost eight of their last 10 and under .500 for the first time this season, there will be urgency to get their season back on course and settle the score with Bennett.
"We're playing well enough to win," NC State coach Kevin Keats said after Wednesday's 62-59 loss to Virginia Tech. "We just have to clean some stuff up."
Dereon Seabron does everything for the Wolfpack, leading the team in points (19.3 per game), rebounds (9.5), assists (3.5) and steals (1.6).
In a season of fits and starts for the offense of Virginia, Wednesday's 66-61 victory at Pitt was encouraging as defensive wizard Reece Beekman continued his emergence as an offensive threat with 19 points and eight assists.
"Reece is a tremendous two-way player. He's confident with his shot. He's got his 3-ball down. He can get to the paint. He's a great assist man. And he defends at an elite level," said Virginia's top scorer and rebounder Jayden Gardner. "The sky's the limit for Reece and he just continues to get better, as we can see in ACC play."
--Field Level MediaGet a daily dose of Raleigh Times news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Raleigh Times.
More InformationSAN FRANCISCO, California: Grammarly is doubling down on AI-powered productivity tools with the acquisition of Superhuman, a sleek...
NEW YORK, New York -U.S. stock markets closed with broad gains on Thursday, led by strong performances in U.S. tech stocks, while European...
LONDON/STOCKHOLM: The Persson family is ramping up its investment in the H&M fashion empire, fueling renewed speculation about a potential...
PARIS, France: L'Oréal is making a fresh play in the booming premium haircare segment with a new acquisition. The French beauty conglomerate...
MENLO PARK, California: Robinhood is giving European investors a new way to tap into America's most prominent tech names — without...
NEW YORK, New York - U.S. stocks diverged on Wednesday for the second day in a row. The Standard and Poor's 500 hit a new all-time...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: In a significant ruling last week, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a Texas law requiring age verification for users...
The U.S. mega-bill would add about 3.3 trillion dollars of deficit in the next decade, higher than the 2.8 trillion dollars of deficit...
Washington [US], July 1 (ANI): US President Donald Trump on Tuesday (local time) reiterated his opposition to electric vehicle (EV)...
Birmingham [UK], July 1 (ANI): Ahead of England's second Test against India at Birmingham, England skipper Ben Stokes spoke on express...
Washington [US], June 30 (ANI): Tech billionaire Elon Musk strongly criticised President Trump's 'big, beautiful bill,' calling it...
GOP leaders are determined to advance Trump's signature agenda. But the bill's complexity, internal party fractures and Democratic...