Gameday Preview: NC State Takes On Stanford By The Bay – Sat Feb 8th 2025

Feb 8, 2025
BOTTOM LINE

NC State takes on Stanford after Marcus Hill scored 20 points in NC State’s 74-62 loss
to California this past Wednesday.

The Cardinal have gone 12-2 in home games. Stanford is eighth in the ACC scoring
75.8 points while shooting 44.1% from the field.

The Wolfpack are 2-9 against ACC opponents. NC State averages 69.5 points while
outscoring opponents by 1.8 points per game.

Stanford averages 8.3 made 3-pointers per game, 2.0 more made shots than the 6.3
per game NC State allows. NC State has shot at a 43.6% rate from the field this
season, 1.5 percentage points below the 45.1% shooting opponents of Stanford have
averaged.

The matchup Saturday is the first meeting this season for the two teams in conference
play.

TOP PERFORMERS: Maxime Raynaud is averaging 20.2 points and 11.7 rebounds for
the Cardinal. Oziyah Sellers is averaging 14.5 points over the last 10 games.

Marcus Hill is shooting 48.3% and averaging 12.9 points for the Wolfpack. Jayden
Taylor is averaging 11.5 points over the last 10 games.

Saturday Storylines

Saturday’s game marks the return of NC State grad guard Michael O’Connell to Maples
Pavilion. O’Connell played three seasons for Stanford from 2020-23. O’Connell
graduated from Stanford in three years with a degree in Economics.

One key for the Wolfpack is back to having a balanced offensive attack. The Cal game
marked the second consecutive game where only one NC State player scored in double
figures. NC State hasn’t won a game this season when its had only one or two players
in double figures. When the Pack has had a balanced scoring attack with four or more
players in double figures this season it is 7-0.

• Finish out close games. Wednesday’s game at Cal was the Pack’s 11th ACC game of
  the season and marked the 10th time in those 11 contests that NC State has held a
  second half lead. NC State has now led in the second half in eight of its nine conference
  losses this season.

Trey Parker has had an increased role lately as he has scored 30 points in the last three
games and is shooting 52 percent (13-of-25) from the field during that span.

One of NC State’s calling cards is turning opponent’s turnovers into points. In the Pack’s
nine wins this season, it is averaging 19.3 points per game off opponents turnovers and
has outscored the opponents in points off turnovers by 102 points. In the Pack’s 13
losses it averages just 10.9 points off opponent turnovers and has outscored its
opponents in points off turnovers by just seven points (142-to-135). NC State has only
scored nine points off opponent turnovers in the last two games.

Saturday will be the third all-time meeting between NC State and Stanford and the
all-time series is tied at one. The two programs played a non-conference
home-and-home series in the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons with Stanford winning at
home in the 2011-12 season and NC State winning at home in the 2012-13 season.
25th-ranked NC State beat Stanford, 88-79, behind 24 points from Lorenzo Brown in the
most recent meeting back on Dec 18, 2012.