The Wolfpack ran out of gas in South Bend, Indiana as it struggled to create any sort of offense in overtime against Notre Dame, losing 96-90.

The usual barrage of triples wasn’t there for NC State men’s basketball (19-10, 10-6 ACC), as one of the ACC’s hottest 3-point shooting teams couldn’t keep up with the firepower from the Fighting Irish (13-6, 4-12 ACC). The Irish buried 12 3-pointers with three coming in overtime to ruin the Wolfpack’s outing.

NC State was solid in the opening frame, as it held a narrow 44-38 lead at halftime, looking to extend its lead and secure the 20th win of the season’s campaign. The second-half was much more intense, with significant runs coming from both teams, and a massive cold streak from the Wolfpack shooting allowed for Notre Dame to climb back into the game with less than three minutes in regulation.

The Pack held a nine-point lead over the Irish with 4:46 left to play in the second half; but it was another blown lead for the Wolfpack, and another disappointing “die-by-the-three” shooting performance.

The Pack unloaded 22 3-pointers in the second half and overtime, only for three of them to connect, and by the final minutes of regulation, it seemed like every trip down the floor would result in a “chuck-up” 3-point attempt from the Pack.

On the other side, Irish guard Cole Certa was a sniper, dropping 32 points with six 3-pointers, leading the Irish in overtime with 12 points. He was an unstoppable force, and the Pack tried to reckon him with threes of its own, but to no avail.

The Wolfpack had kept the game very competitive, with senior forward Ven-Allen Lubin leading the way. Lubin was a big presence in the paint, and the Notre Dame forwards couldn’t deal with Lubin’s physicality. He got to the rim whenever he wanted, to have a very efficient 8-for-10 shooting performance, finishing the day with 24 points. Lubin was excellent at the charity stripe, going 8-for-9.

Senior guard Quadir Copeland put on another impressive performance, as he orchestrated the offense most trips down the court for head coach Will Wade. When the ball wasn’t in Copeland’s hands, the Wolfpack looked sloppy, and forced 3-pointers rather than waiting for plays to develop. Copeland had 17 points on 5-for-8 shooting; and typical for his game, did not attempt a 3-pointer, at which he is shooting 41% on the season. There were smart shots only for Copeland today which is something the Pack can learn from.

The Wolfpack was outrebounded again — troublesome as it is undefeated when it outrebounds its opponent. Notre Dame had better presence on the boards late in the second half, which led to 10 huge second chance points for the game. The depth from the Irish was also a major issue for the Pack as the Irish scored 38 points off the bench compared to 15 for NC State.

The Pack likely played itself out of a double-bye in the ACC tournament as it needed to be top four in the conference, but after the loss, it moved down to 6th. Furthermore, NC State is yet to face No. 1 Duke, a juggernaut of an opponent, in one of two remaining games.

The Pack will host the top-ranked Blue Devils in the Lenovo Center on Monday, March 2. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.