The force was with the NC State men’s basketball team as it defeated Appalachian State 72-60 on Star Wars Night in PNC Arena.
Redshirt junior forward D.J. Funderburk led the way for the Wolfpack (10-3) with the big man scoring a career-high 22 points. The Mountaineers (8-5) kept it close until late in the second half, but the combination of Funderburk and a pair of double-doubles from senior guard Markell Johnson and junior guard Devon Daniels proved to be too much for the visitors.
“It just proved it can be anybody’s day,” Funderburk said. “Everybody on our team is really talented, and just to show almost four of us had double-doubles. Two of us did have double-doubles. It just shows you that everybody on our team can play hard. We belong in ACC, and we belong to be talked about this season.”
While Daniels, Johnson and Funderburk were great on the day, junior guard Braxton Beverly was the opposite. The game started well for Beverly after the guard drilled his first two shots from beyond the arc, but he went cold as Hoth, missing his next nine 3s.
While Beverly was the biggest struggler from beyond the arc, neither team was able to get anything going as the two teams combined to go 9 for 47 from deep.
Daniels was one of only two players in the game to shoot above 25% from beyond the arc as he went 2 for 2 from deep en route to his 18-point, 11-rebound double-double.
Johnson earned his third double-double in a row with 12 points and 11 rebounds, he finished the game just four assists shy of his second triple-double. With Johnson’s assists, he now has the fourth most assists in NC State men’s basketball history with 479.
Redshirt freshman Manny Bates also impressed with six points, nine rebounds and five blocks. Head coach Kevin Keatts played Funderburk and Bates together for a lot of the game, which pushed Funderburk to the power forward position, a spot that he feels very comfortable in.
“I just never felt like I was a back to the basket basketball player,” Funderburk said. “But I’ll play anywhere coach to put me on the court. He put me at the four so I tried to prove I could play the four.”
While the pair playing together was likely due in large part to redshirt senior guard C.J. Bryce missing the game due to concussion protocol after he took a knock from Bates during the shootaround prior to the game, fans should expect the pair to see more time on the court together during ACC play.
“I’m sure our fans and you guys are gonna love it a lot more than me but he’s fine,” Keatts said. “He’s not, right now, defensively where I need him to be because he hasn’t played a position where we switch 1 through 4. He will see a lot of time, hopefully in the ACC because of our roster, at the four position. I’ve got to give him a little bit more extra time to practice at that place, but I thought the big lineup was great with those two guys rebounding the basketball.”
Despite Johnson, Daniel, Funderburk and Bates all playing incredibly well, the game was by no means a cakewalk, and throughout the second half there was an odd feeling similar to the Georgia Tech game, where despite leading for most, if not all of the game, the Pack just couldn’t put it away.
Unlike Georgia Tech, however, the Wolfpack was able to see this one out as it extended the lead to 12 by the end of the game. It also helped that the Mountaineers bested the Wolfpack’s own poor shooting as they shot just 36.9% from the field, compared to the Pack’s 45.2%, which improved greatly in the second half as it shot 50% from the field after the break.
“I thought it was a really good game for us because there were highs and lows in the game,” Keatts said. “We knew coming in the only game I could compare this with to is, they played Michigan early in the year, and Michigan was up about 25 to 30 points, and then they came back and made an eight-point game. But we knew it’s going to be a tough game.”
The Wolfpack will be back in action on Jan. 4 at Clemson as it jumps into the heart of ACC play. The game at Clemson will tip off at noon and be broadcast on the ACC Network.
Redshirt junior guard Devon Daniels passes against Appalachian State guard/forward Donovan Gregory on Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019 at PNC Arena. Daniels recorded 18 points, 11 rebounds and four steals as the Wolfpack won 72-60.
