Wolfpack Basketball

About NC State Basketball

NC State basketball might play second fiddle to its Triangle rivals Duke and North Carolina these days. But there was once a time in which the Wolfpack didn’t just rule the neighborhood. They are also among the best programs in the country. One that helped establish some of the most time-honored traditions and produced some of the most iconic moments in college basketball history.

The practice of pregame introductions and cutting down the nets to celebrate championships were both the brainchild of legendary coach Everett Case, whose name adorns the ACC Tournament MVP trophy to this day. 

In 1974, David “Skywalker” Thompson and his teammates ended UCLA’s reign of 8 straight NCAA championships by knocking off the Bruins in the national semifinals before going on to beat Marquette for the national championship. Eleven years later, brash coach Jim Valvano and his Cardiac Pack pulled off the most stunning upset in NCAA Tournament history by upsetting heavily favored Houston for the national title on a buzzer-beating dunk by Lorenzo Charles.

NC State’s tradition of improbable victories continued in 2024 when an underdog team led by Kevin Keatts won 5 games in as many nights to end a 37-year ACC Tournament title drought before going on an even more surprising run to the Final Four.