NC State fends off feisty Florida International for home win
N.C. State had its complete lineup for the first time this season.
The Wolfpack needed it to beat Florida International on Wednesday in front of a sparse late-night crowd at PNC Arena.
Six players scored in double-figures with forward D.J. Funderburk adding 11 points and seven rebounds in his first game of the season for an 86-77 win over the feisty Panthers.
“He did an amazing job coming off the bench and contributing on the offensive end and defensive end,” senior guard C.J. Bryce said of Funderburk. “He was great.”
Funderburk was suspended for the first two games and guard Markell Johnson missed the opener with an ankle injury. With a full lineup for the first time, it took the Wolfpack (2-1) some time to put all the parts together. Bryce led the way with 16 points and Devon Daniels added 14.
“We’ve had so many combinations in the last couple of games that haven’t had a chance to work out together,” N.C. State coach Kevin Keatts said.
FIU (1-2) led by 10 points early and got 21 points from senior forward Devon Andrews and 19 from junior guard Tevin Brewer to challenge the Wolfpack.
The Panthers finished the game 10 of 23 from the 3-point line with Andrews making four. They pressed and forced N.C. State’s offense to get out of sorts and frustrated Johnson, who missed six of his first seven shots.
“They remind me a lot of my Wilmington teams, where they’re smaller but they can press and they can get after you,” Keatts said of FIU.
N.C. State got 14 points in the first half from forward Pat Andree, who made four 3-pointers, but didn’t get much help from the rest of the lineup. Andree’s flurry of 3s, his first came at 11:28, and last at 8:34, saw N.C. State pull even at 24 after trailing 20-10.
The teams were tied at 37 at the break and the Panthers scored the first five points of the second half before Daniels and Bryce started to breathe some life into the Wolfpack offense.
N.C. State led 57-55 at the 12:18 mark of the second half before Bryce and Daniels led a 13-5 surge. Funderburk’s jumper, to beat the shot clock at 1:41, gave N.C. State an 80-72 lead and held off FIU’s last charge.
And one
With Funderburk back in the lineup, freshman forward Manny Bates was able to be more effective in spurts. He had 10 points, six rebounds and two blocks in 19 minutes.
Lane violation
N.C. State struggled against FIU’s press in the first half. The Wolfpack turned the ball over four times, which led to eight points for the Panthers.
ICYMI
Graduate transfer forward Danny Dixon didn’t play because of a foot injury and junior college transfer A.J. Taylor didn’t dress because of a lingering knee injury.
Making sense of the numbers
With both Funderburk and Bates in the lineup, N.C. State had an 18 to 6 advantage on the offensive glass and 20 to 7 advantage in second-chance points.
This story was originally published November 13, 2019 at 11:07 PM.
