NC State Wolfpack at Wake Forest Demon Deacons
· NCAA Men's Basketball
McNeil Jr.'s 28 lead NC State over Wake Forest 96-78
McNeil shot 8 of 12 from the field, went 6 of 8 from behind the arc, and was 6-for-6 from the free-throw line for the Wolfpack (16-6, 7-2 ACC). N.C. State shot 54% overall and 57% from 3-point range, building a 49-31 halftime lead in a game that was moved up more than two hours due to weather.
Wake Forest opened the second half with a brief surge, trimming the deficit to 52-40 on a 3-pointer by Myles Colvin at the 17:18 mark. Darrion Williams hit a 3-pointer less than a minute later, though, and McNeil followed with a deep 3 of his own to help push the lead back to 18.
The Demon Deacons cut it to 62-54 midway through the half after another 3 from Juke Harris, but McNeil answered again. He buried a 26-foot jumper with 9:48 remaining, then added free throws and a layup during a 12-3 run that ended any threat. N.C. State led by at least 13 the rest of the way.
Williams finished with 20 points, Ven-Allen Lubin added 12 points and eight rebounds, and Tre Holloman dished out 10 assists for the Wolfpack.
Harris scored 31 points for Wake Forest (11-11, 2-7) in the final Big Four matchup of the season for the Demon Deacons. Omaha Biliew scored 12 points.
Wake Forest hosts No. 20 Louisville next Saturday.
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Recent Plays
| 2nd 0:00 | End of Game | 96 - 78 |
| 2nd 0:00 | End of 2nd half | 96 - 78 |
| 2nd 0:02 | Matt Able Defensive Rebound. | 96 - 78 |
| 2nd 0:02 | Juke Harris misses 27-foot three point jumper | 96 - 78 |
| 2nd 0:09 | Paul McNeil Jr. makes 25-foot three point jumper (Tre Holloman assists) | 96 - 78 |
Statistics
 NCSU |
 WAKE |
|
|---|---|---|
| 33-61 | FG | 25-53 |
| 54 | Field Goal % | 47 |
| 16-28 | 3PT | 7-20 |
| 57 | Three Point % | 35 |
| 14-18 | FT | 21-24 |
| 78 | Free Throw % | 88 |
| 30 | Rebounds | 27 |
| 7 | Offensive Rebounds | 5 |
| 23 | Defensive Rebounds | 22 |
| 19 | Assists | 8 |
| 6 | Steals | 5 |
| 1 | Blocks | 3 |
| 8 | Turnovers | 9 |
| 0 | Team Turnovers | 1 |
| 8 | Total Turnovers | 9 |
| 0 | Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Total Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
| 15 | Points Off Turnovers | 6 |
| 3 | Fast Break Points | 8 |
| 28 | Points in Paint | 30 |
| 17 | Fouls | 14 |
| 19 | Largest Lead | 2 |
| 1 | Lead Change | 1 |
| 93 | Percent Led | 1 |
Game Information
Location: Winston-Salem, NC
Attendance: 5,821 | Capacity:
2025-26 Atlantic Coast Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duke | 17-1 | - | 35-3 |
| Virginia | 15-3 | 2 | 30-6 |
| Miami | 13-5 | 4 | 26-9 |
| North Carolina | 12-6 | 5 | 24-9 |
| Clemson | 12-6 | 5 | 24-11 |
| Louisville | 11-7 | 6 | 24-11 |
| NC State | 10-8 | 7 | 20-14 |
| Florida State | 10-8 | 7 | 18-15 |
| California | 9-9 | 8 | 22-12 |
| Stanford | 9-9 | 8 | 20-13 |
| Virginia Tech | 8-10 | 9 | 19-13 |
| SMU | 8-10 | 9 | 20-14 |
| Wake Forest | 7-11 | 10 | 18-17 |
| Syracuse | 6-12 | 11 | 15-17 |
| Pittsburgh | 5-13 | 12 | 13-20 |
| Notre Dame | 4-14 | 13 | 13-18 |
| Boston College | 4-14 | 13 | 11-20 |
| Georgia Tech | 2-16 | 15 | 11-20 |