NC State’s Improbable Run Evokes Memories of 1983

NC State is headed back to the Elite Eight for the first time since 1986. But this edition of the team is actually evoking memories of the magical 1983 squad

The Wolfpack beat Marquette, 67-58, Friday night in the Sweet 16, relying on stingy defense and the leadership of their senior backcourt duo. NC State took command of the game in the first half, racing to a 37-24 lead at the break. Kevin Keatts’ squad held No. 2 seed Marquette to .706 points per possession in the opening 20 minutes as the Golden Eagles shot 34.5 percent from the field and 15.4 percent from three-point range.

Things didn’t improve much in the second half for Marquette. Overall, Shaka Smart’s team shot 33.3 percent from the field and finished 4-of-31 from beyond the arc. That’s a woeful 12.9 percent. Thanks to their defensive tenacity and 14 NC State turnovers, the Golden Eagles were able to keep things to a reasonable margin, but the Wolfpack controlled the game from the tip.

Senior guards DJ Horne and Casey Morsell were outstanding. Horne had 19 points, five rebounds and went 4-of-7 from deep, while Morsell had 15 points, two rebounds and two steals in 37 minutes. They went toe-to-toe with Marquette stars Tyler Kolek and Kam Jones, holding the duo to 14-of-31 from the field, and 4-of-17 from three-point range.

This win marked the Wolfpack’s eighth in a row after they finished the regular season losing their final four games and seven of their last nine. They weren’t even supposed to make the NCAA tournament, but they managed to win five games in five days to win the ACC tournament and earn an automatic berth.

This blitz to the Elite Eight is eerily similar to Jim Valvano’s “Cardiac Pack” squad from1983. That group won the ACC Tournament, earned a No. 6 seed, then marched its way to a national title, with four of its six wins coming by two points or fewer. If anything, the program’s current run is even more improbable.

The Wolfpack have made an incredible run to the Elite Eight after most left them for dead three weeks ago. There’s no reason to believe it can’t continue right into the program’s first Final Four since that miracle run in 1983. We all know how that ended.

Ryan Phillips is a senior writer for The Big Lead.