NC State basketball vs. Creighton in NCAA Tournament 2023: Our March Madness prediction is in
NC State basketball is in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018.
The Wolfpack (23-10) secured a ticket to March Madness with a 180-degree turnaround from an 11-win season in 2022. Now, State gets the chance to make some noise in the Big Dance.
The No. 11 seed in the South Region, NC State will be dancing in Denver with a first-round matchup against No. 6 Creighton (21-12) on Friday (4 p.m., TNT). The winner will face No. 3 Baylor (22-10) or No. 14 UC Santa Barbara (27-7) in Sunday's second round.
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Terquavion Smith and Co. will look to lead the program to its first tournament win since 2015. In 2018 – Kevin Keatts’ first season as coach – the Wolfpack lost to Seton Hall in the first round.
Here’s a look at some things to know and a score prediction ahead of NC State’s matchup with the Bluejays.
Getting to know Creighton
Creighton is making its 24th appearance in the Big Dance, including an eighth under coach Greg McDermott. The Bluejays, who advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in 2021, won a first-round game against San Diego State before losing 79-72 to reigning national champion Kansas in 2022. Despite a six-game losing streak earlier this year, Creighton finished third in the Big East. Its best wins came against Arkansas and UConn.
Balanced Bluejays
Creighton’s 7-foot-1 center Ryan Kalkbrenner (15.1 points per game, 6.3 rebounds per game, 2.2 blocks per game) is one of five players averaging at least 11.9 points per game this season for Creighton. Kalkbrenner is averaging 19.6 points over the last three games. Baylor Scheierman (12.7 PPG, 8.3 RPG) isn’t far behind as another versatile big for the Bluejays. In addition to its offensive prowess, Creighton has the 15th-best defensive efficiency in the nation, according to KenPom.com.
Jarkel Joiner and Terquavion Smith
NC State has one of the scariest backcourts in the country with Jarkel Joiner and Terquavion Smith. Both players are averaging just over 17 points per game, but Smith (4.2 assists per game) has the slight edge in assists. Joiner (12) and Smith (10) have combined to score 20 or more points in 22 games. If those two get going, watch out.
NC State score prediction vs. Creighton in March Madness
No. 6 Creighton 75, No. 11 NC State 71: Facing a team that ranks inside the top 30 in offensive and defensive efficiency isn’t a good matchup for the Pack, which hasn’t knocked off a team ranked inside of KenPom.com’s top 30 since beating Duke in early January. Creighton will get a few more stops than State to win a close one.
Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at rbaxley@fayobserver.com or @RoddBaxley on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: NC State basketball vs. Creighton in NCAA Tournament 2023: Prediction
