No. 15 NC State Outlasts Pitt, 86-80
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RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — DJ Funderburk scored 12 of his 18 points in the second half, and No. 15 North Carolina State beat Pittsburgh 86-80 on Saturday.
Devon Daniels scored 19 points, Eric Lockett added 12 of his 17 points after halftime and Torin Dorn finished with 12 for the Wolfpack (14-2, 2-1 Atlantic Coast Conference).
They bounced back from a tough loss to rival North Carolina and won their eighth in nine games despite losing two starters in the first half after big man Wyatt Walker was ejected and point guard Markell Johnson was injured.
Freshman Xavier Johnson had 20 of his season-high 25 points in the second half, Au'Diese Toney scored 17 and Terrell Brown added 10 for the Panthers (11-5, 1-2), who led by four points with less than 6½ minutes remaining but couldn't finish off a second straight conference victory.
Lockett hit two of the four 3-pointers and scored eight points during the Wolfpack's game-breaking 16-4 run, which C.J. Bryce capped with a jumper that made it 73-65 with just under 3 minutes left. Pitt didn't get closer than five the rest of the way.
BIG PICTURE
Pitt: The Panthers were coming off their first ACC victory since they upset No. 17 Florida State in February 2017. They were trying for their first winning streak in league play since earlier that month. They're clearly improved over last year's team that went 0-18 in the ACC but wound up with their 13th straight road loss in the conference.
N.C. State: The dominating issue for the Wolfpack was how they struggled at both ends without Walker, who was tossed 2 minutes in for grabbing the foot of Pitt's Johnson to bring him down. They also were missing Markell Johnson, who took a hard fall while trying to block a shot. N.C. State missed 13 consecutive shots in the second half before Funderburk and Lockett carried the team down the stretch.
UP NEXT
Pitt: Plays host to No. 13 Florida State on Monday night.
N.C. State: Visits Wake Forest on Tuesday night.
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