Irish seek tournament revenge at NC State

RALEIGH, N.C. — Notre Dame faced NC State twice last season. The first meeting was a high point for the year. The second was the opposite. The Wolfpack ended Notre Dame’s 2021-22 campaign last March, as a late Irish turnover allowed them to regain the lead in the final seconds and top Notre Dame, 66-63.

On Sunday, the two teams — both of which are ranked in the AP Poll — will meet again. 

NC State went 10-1 in non-conference play, the only loss coming at the hands of UConn. Since the ACC slate began, however, head coach Wes Moore’s team has gone 5-4 and fallen to Duke, Boston College, Florida State and UNC. They are most recently coming off a win over Louisville.

Junior Diamond Johnson is the only NC State player averaging in double-figures (12.8 points per game), but seven players are averaging at least 7 points each time they take the floor. Not unlike Notre Dame, balance is a key factor for Moore’s group. 

The Wolfpack do a great job on the boards; they have a rebounding margin of 7.4 and pull in 30.5 defensive rebounds per game. For context, the Irish lead the conference with a 31.5 mark. 

Notre Dame rides five consecutive victories into Raleigh and is seeking a fourth ranked win this year. The Irish used a dominant second half to top No. 24 Florida State on Thursday night. 

Karen and Kevin Keyes Family Head Coach Niele Ivey chose to go big with the lineup against the Seminoles. Lauren Ebo got her first start in an Irish uniform and posted her third double-double of the year (12 points and 10 rebounds). 

While she wasn’t out there for the tip, freshman guard KK Bransford will likely take up a large chunk of the minutes Mabrey would have played. She had a career-high 27 of them against the Seminoles and posted 15 points. Look for her to approach that time of playing time once again on Sunday.

Notre Dame-NC State will tip off at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN. The Irish are 8-2 all-time against the Wolfpack.