Pack is Back

Fired-up fans and the red glow of the Belltower welcomed the Wolfpack men’s basketball back to campus Sunday night after a 66-63 victory over Georgetown.

Outside the Dail Basketball Center, Coach Mark Gottfried worked his way through the crowd, bullhorn in hand. His televised pregame speech, which included multiple mentions of a Sweet 16 spot waiting in St. Louis, had come true. NC State will take on No. 2 seed Kansas on Friday night.  The game is expected to begin at about 10:20 p.m. on TBS, following the UNC-Ohio game, which tips off  at 7:47 p.m. ET.

Ecstatic about the first Sweet 16 appearance since 2005, Wolfpack fans brandished signs proposing marriage to players (Scott Wood, were you watching?) and whooped and hollered for their team.

Friday’s game will mark the 12th meeting between NC State and Kansas, with the Jayhawks leading the all-time series 10-1. The teams last met during the 1996-97 season, when No. 1 Kansas downed the visiting Wolfpack, 84-56.