NC State basketball completes miracle ACC Tournament run, downs rival UNC in final
With the flick of DJ Horne’s wrist on a jumper and DJ Burns’ brute strength, N.C. State shoved aside nearly four decades of frustration to reclaim what had begun to feel like an unachievable prize.
The indefatigable Wolfpack, an unheralded No. 10 seed entering the ACC Tournament, won its fifth game in five nights Saturday, slaying top-seeded bitter rival North Carolina, 84-76, for the program’s first ACC championship since 1987.
A Raleigh native who used the transfer portal to return home and play his final college season for N.C. State (22-14), Horne scored 29 points against the Tar Heels. Burns, the hulking but nimble 6-9 big man, maneuvered in the paint to add 20 points to send the Wolfpack to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season under head coach Kevin Keatts.
“I’m proud, man,” Keatts said of winning the school’s 11th ACC men’s basketball championship. “I’m emotional. I’m proud. I’m excited.
“Our players deserve this. We’ve got a tight group that sticks together with everything, and we’ve been through some adversity. We’ve fought a little bit. We’ve argued a little bit. At the end of the day we found a way to come together for a common goal. This means a lot.”
It’s N.C. State’s first time going to the tournament in consecutive seasons since it went four years in a row from 2012-15 under Mark Gottfried — Keatts’ ousted predecessor.
No. 4-ranked UNC (27-7) will head to the NCAA Tournament as well. After shockingly missing the field a season ago, the Tar Heels could still be a No. 1 seed when the bracket is announced Sunday.
But they missed out on winning the school’s 19th ACC championship.
“For us to be the best that we can be, especially in games like this, you’re just going to have to defend, rebound and take care of the basketball,” UNC coach Hubert Davis said. “We’ll go back to work when we get back home and prepare and practice, and wherever they send us and whomever we play, we’ll be prepared to be the best that we can be when we get out there on the floor next week.”
ACC player of the year RJ Davis scored 30 points for the Tar Heels, who shot just 37.3% from the field, including making only 3 of 18 3-point attempts in the second half.
The Wolfpack showed no signs of any tired legs despite the hectic week. N.C. State shot 54.9% overall, including 50% in the second half to prevent the Tar Heels from leading over the game’s final 18:51 of play.
“I think we were really desperate,” Horne said. “You kind of felt that energy with just like every timeout we had coming back to the huddle. Everybody was locked in, on their P’s and Q’s and everything, and that’s what you need if you’re going to win championships like this.”
After UNC took a 40-39 halftime lead, the Wolfpack moved back in front, 45-43, on a Burns basket with 18:16 left and stretched its lead to 52-46 when Casey Morsell hit a jumper with 15:32 to play.
Davis willed the Tar Heels closer with a driving layup and, at 10:30, a free throw to leave UNC down 56-53.
But Michael O’Connell sank a jump shot and Horne added a 3-pointer, giving N.C. State its largest lead of the second half, 61-53 with 8:57 to play.
Again Davis fought back for UNC, hitting a 3-pointer before a quick jumper that left the Heels trailing 58-55 with 8:02 to play.
But Mo Diarra rebounded his own miss to score before Horne scored, drew a foul and hit a free throw at 7:04, giving the Wolfpack a 70-62 lead.
When Horne hit two free throws at 4:05, the Wolfpack was up 72-62, regaining the 10-point lead it had built in the game’s early minutes.
The Wolfpack were in such control late that Keatts was able to clear his bench to get seldom-used reserve players, including his son, KJ, into the game.
“This says a lot,” Kevin Keatts said. “We’ve been getting crushed — when I say we, NC State — by not delivering any championships in 37 years. Well, they can’t say that now because we got one tonight.”
The Tar Heels led for just 16 seconds of the first half but still carried a 40-39 lead to halftime.
UNC survived N.C. State’s torrid start, which saw the Wolfpack make five of its first six shots while building a 14-4 lead. The Wolfpack lead was still 10 points when Davis scored his first points of the game, a 3-pointer with 13:52 left in the half that cut the N.C. State lead to 16-9.
That started a Davis-fueled surge for the Tar Heels that lasted the remainder of the half.
When Davis hit his third 3-pointer of the night, the Wolfpack lead was gone and the score was tied at 28. He added two free throws at the 4:53 mark to put UNC up 30-28 — the first time the Tar Heels led.
Burns responded with something unusual, his first career 3-pointer on his 11th attempt, and something conventional, a basket in the lane, to put the Wolfpack up 34-31 with 2:17 left in the half.
When Burns drew a UNC double-team, he zipped a pass under the basket to Ernest Ross, who scored with 31 seconds left for a 39-37 N.C. State lead.
UNC held for the half’s final shot, which Ryan swished from the left corner to put the Tar Heels up 40-39.
The Heels shot 50% in the first half, heating up dramatically after their slow start as Davis scored 13 points.
The Wolfpack shot 58.6% in the first half, with Horne scoring 13 points and Burns 11.
This story was originally published March 16, 2024 at 7:53 PM with the headline "NC State basketball completes miracle ACC Tournament run, downs rival UNC in final."