‘He changed it a lot’: How Trey Parker’s career night nearly lifted NC State past Duke
Duke had multiple players circled on its scouting report for N.C. State. It knew Marcus Hill and Jayden Taylor led the scoring. Head coach Jon Scheyer called Ben Middlebrooks “a handful.”
The Blue Devils, however, did not have Trey Parker as a potential threat.
The N.C. State freshman scored a career-high 15 points on 6 of 9 field goal shooting and 3 of 4 3-point shooting in the team’s 74-64 loss at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Monday. He also added a rebound, an assist and a steal.
Parker started a perfect 6 for 6 from the field, including 3 of 3 from the perimeter, and didn’t miss a shot until 37 minutes had elapsed in the game.
“He didn’t change (N.C. State’s scoring) a little bit. He changed it a lot,” Scheyer said. “He is, holy smokes, man. He was quick. The way he was shooting it, it’s a little bit different. … I was really impressed with what he did tonight. Very good player.”
Entering the game, Parker had scored 14 combined points in the past 11 games, and hadn’t scored double figures since the Wolfpack’s win against Coastal Carolina on Nov. 13.
Parker, from Fayetteville, North Carolina, was the X-factor in the Wolfpack’s ability to lead Duke by as many as 12 points and remain competitive in the second half.
He scored the Wolfpack’s first basket after the break, ending N.C. State’s 0-for-9 start to the second half. Parker also scored a 3-pointer with 9:35 remaining in the game, cutting Duke’s lead to 51-50.
Nearly four minutes later, Taylor nabbed a steal and Parker recorded the layup, no fear or hesitation against the No. 2 team in the nation. His basket cut Duke’s lead back down to two.
“Everything was going through my mind for real,” Parker said. “But at the same time, it was just like, ‘Go hard for my team. As many minutes as I get, just go hard.’”
Parker was a three-star prospect as a high school recruit. He earned the nickname “Showtime Trey” after his first dunk in middle school. He was in seventh grade when he rammed in the one-handed transition play. Parker — who dunked over Mr. Wuf, Brandon Huntley-Hatfield and Ismael Diouf during the team’s preseason showcase event — has embraced a big-time role ever since.
He helped Cape Fear High School win its first playoff game in 15 years during the 2019-20 season, then played at New Life Christian Academy and Overtime Elite (Georgia).
Parker’s freshman season with the Pack has been relatively quiet — until now.
“It was great. I see him work every single day,” teammate Dontrez Styles said. “He’s been very focused lately, and his work showed tonight. He’s got to keep building on it. I’m proud of him.”
Parker wasn’t the only player to contribute to the Wolfpack’s offense. Styles was the leading scorer on a night when several of his teammates couldn’t find the iron.
The graduate student scored 18 points, pulled down three rebounds and blocked a pair of shots in 24 minutes played. Styles picked up four second-half fouls and left the game with more than four minutes remaining. He made 7 of 12 attempts from the field and 4 of 6 from 3 in his limited appearance. Thirteen of Styles’ points came in the first half.
Despite a somewhat slow shooting start, the Wolfpack was shooting 51.7% from the field late in the first and entered the locker room with a 48.4% shooting percentage. Ten of the team’s 15 assists took place before the break.
“We didn’t want the game to get away from us. We relied on our defense. I thought our defense was really good again,” N.C. State head coach Kevin Keach said. “I’m proud of our guys. We scored a little bit better. We shot the ball better than we’ve done in the in the last few games.”
Brandon Huntley-Hatfield scored four points in the first half. He added another six in the second. Hill, the team’s leading scorer, went 1-for-10 from the field, but finished with four points after a layup and pair of free throws.
“You know, their strength has been attacking the basket and playing in the paint, mid range, pull ups and all that,” Scheyer said. “Tonight, they’re banging in 3s. Then, we got too spread (out) and they started driving again.”
Styles and Parker led the Pack to a 24-of-59 shooting performance (40.4%) and scored 17 points off turnovers. The team finished with its best 3-point shooting of the season (10-22, 45.5%), as well. N.C. State has now shot 40% from the arc three times this season. The other two also came on the road: at Kansas and Virginia Tech.
“We haven’t shot it good this year, but I feel like we’re a good shooting team,” Styles said. “I know we haven’t shown it. Tonight was an example (that) we can shoot the ball. We just haven’t shot it well at home for some hard reason. We just gonna continue to get better and keep working in the gym.”
