Bracketology Winners: NC State, Kentucky land resume-building wins

NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 08: Myles Cale #22 and Myles Powell #13 of the Seton Hall Pirates reacts after Powell's basket putting Seton Hall ahead of the Kentucky Wildcats in the final seconds of regulation of a college basketball game at Madison Square Garden on December 8, 2018 in New York City. Seton Hall defeated Kentucky 84-83 in overtime. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

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MIAMI, FL – DECEMBER 01: Johnson #11 of the North Carolina State Wolfpack talks. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

NC State Wolfpack

NC State played one of the easiest schedules in the nation through six games. Ever since then, though, it is important that we shift the narrative and discuss how the Wolfpack navigated the rigorous portion f their non-conference schedule. In just the last few weeks, NC State has taken on four top-100 teams, landing three big wins along the way. The most important of these, of course, occurred this past week when head coach Kevin Keatts’ team landed the home win of the year by taking down Auburn.

Now with a resume-defining win on the resume, NC State looks like the real deal. The Wolfpack might not be on the same level as Duke or Virginia in regards to ACC title contenders but they should be in the group just behind those teams. NC State’s pace (13th-fastest in the nation) causes problems for a ton of teams in the nation and they have the ability to be absolutely deadly from beyond the arc if left open (41.2% from three, 8th nationally).

Looking ahead, NC State should easily handle Loyola (MD) to finish their non-conference schedule at 12-1 before tackling ACC play. NC State should be a top-5 team in the conference and therefore they will be in play for an incredibly high seed. This is a darn good team and it is time for the nation to take notice.

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