NOTEBOOK: Pack Back In Action Tonight

NC State returns to action tonight in Las Vegas against Vanderbilt in the Vegas Showdown at 10pm EST on ESPN2. Here are some pregame notes on the Wolfpack.

PACK TRACKS

» NC State improved to 3-0 on the season with an 87-53 win over Charleston Southern last Friday. The victory marks the sixth time in seven seasons under head coach Kevin Keatts that the Pack has started 3-0.

» The 53 points are the fewest given up by NC State since the Pack defeated Austin Peay, 99-50, in last season’s opening game. NC State forced a season-high 22 turnovers which led to 29-6 points off turnovers advantage.

» Through two weeks of action, NC State leads the ACC in turnover margin at +8.0, ranks second in scoring defense (58.7), third in turnovers forced per game (15.67) and fourth in field goal percentage defense (38.0%)

» DJ Horne led NC State in scoring and rebounding in the win over CSU, scoring 18 points and grabbing six rebounds. In the last two games, Horne has shot 54.2% (13-of-24) from the field is averaging 16.5 points.

» For the third consecutive game, DJ Burns, Jr., was efficient from the field knocking down six of his eight field goal attempts and finishing with 16 points. The Rock Hill., S.C., has now made 20 of his 28 field goal attempts this season. Burns ranks second in the ACC currently in field goal percentage at 74.1 percent. He ranked fourth in the ACC in field goal percentage last season at 56.1 percent. In 37 career games in an NC State uniform, Burns has now shot better than 50 percent from the field 27 times.

» Through three games, NC State has had a diverse scoring attack. Seven different players have scored in double figures, while an eighth player (Ben Middlebrooks) has not scored in double figures yet, but did have nine points in the last game. DJ Burns is the only player to score in double figures in all three games.

» Grad guard Michael O’Connell has helped steer the Pack’s offensive attack. The Stanford transfer leads the Pack with 13 assists and his 6.5:1 assist-turnover ratio is the best in the ACC. He helps lead an NC State offense that has had single digit turnovers in every game this season and leads the ACC in turnovers, averaging just 7.67 per game.

Thursday Storylines

» Dating back to last season, NC State has won 13 of its last 14 non-conference regular season games. The only loss in that span is an 80-74 loss to #3 Kansas in the first round of the Battle 4 Atlantis last November.

» First half DJ: DJ Burns, Jr., has been nearly unstoppable in the first half of the first three games this season. The Pack big man is shooting 89.5 percent from the field (17-of-19) in the opening 20 minutes this season. One of Burns’ first half misses is the lone three-point attempt of his NC State career so Burns is shooting 94.4% (17-of-18) on two-point field goal attempts in the first half this season. The Rock Hill, S.C., native has scored in double figures in the first half of all three games.

» NC State held its first three opponents to below 40% shooting. The last time NC State held three consecutive opponents under 40% shooting was a stretch of games from Feb. 24, 2021 to March 3, 2021 when the Pack won three straight games at Virginia, vs. Pitt and at Notre Dame while holding all three under 40% shooting. The last time NC State held four straight opponents under 40% shooting was January 2020.

NC State Series with Vanderbilt

» Thursday will be the seventh all-time meeting between the two programs with the series tied at three.

» Las Vegas will be the seventh different location these two teams have met. They have previously played against each other in Greensboro, N.C., Nashville, Tenn., Orlando, Fla., East Rutherford, N.J., Miami, Fla., and Chicago, Ill.

» The most recent meeting was last season, Dec. 17, 2022, in Chicago. The Pack defeated the Commodores, 70-66. DJ Burns scored 14 of his 18 points in the second half. He was 4-of-5 from the field and 6-of-6 from the foul line in the final 20 minutes.

Vanderbilt led 46-38 early in the second half when NC State went on a 13-0 run to take a lead. The Commodores battled back to take a 64-63 lead with 1:59 to go, but Burns made two free throws on NC State’s ensuing possession and the Pack never trailed again. Casey Morsell added 15 points, scoring 12 of his 15 points in the second half.