DJ Burns Jr. scored 19 points and North Carolina State kept its postseason hopes alive Saturday with an 81-70 win against Boston College in Atlantic Coast Conference action in Raleigh, N.C.
The Wolfpack (17-10, 9-7) shook off Tuesday’s tough home loss to Syracuse with a businesslike approach against the Eagles (15-12, 6-10), who have dropped six of their last 10 games.
NC State was never seriously troubled in the game, building a 51-34 lead with 14:36 left on Casey Morsell jumper.
Jayden Taylor got the home crowd on its feet by breaking loose for a dunk, and 30 seconds later, knocking down a 3-pointer from the wing with 11:16 left for a 60-42 lead.
NC State got 15 points from Taylor and 13 from Morsell. DJ Horne picked up his fourth foul with 9:30 left and his streak of six straight games of 24-plus points ended as he finished with 13.
Mason Madsen scored a game-high 21 points for Boston College, which got 12 from Prince Aligbe and 11 from Donald Hand Jr.
NC State scored eight points off 11 Eagles turnovers to take a 38-26 lead during a sloppy first half.
In the half, Boston College held the Wolfpack to just 25 percent 3-point shooting (3 of 12), while the Eagles got the bulk of their scoring by going 11 of 11 from the free throw line.
Meanwhile, Morsell of NC State and Boston College’s Claudell Harris Jr., double-digit scorers on the season, were both held scoreless before halftime.
NC State never trailed and now leads the series between the schools 18-13.
–Field Level Media