For the third time this season, No. 10 Virginia and NC State will meet on the hardwood — and this time with the ACC Tournament semifinals on the line. The No. 2-seed Cavaliers (27-4, 15-3 ACC) and the No. 7-seed Wolfpack (20-12, 10-8 ACC) tip off at noon Thursday at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C.
The last time Virginia and NC State faced off in the ACC Tournament, it was the Wolfpack who came out on top — a 73-65 overtime thriller in the 2024 semifinals in Washington, D.C., where Michael O'Connell banked in a three-pointer at the buzzer to force the extra period.
The heartbreaking loss was indicative of a larger pattern — Virginia is just 3-15 all-time against the Wolfpack in the ACC Tournament, including a 3-9 mark in quarterfinal matchups and a 1-3 record in Charlotte — the Cavaliers are also just 3-22 against NC State at neutral sites.
Virginia closed the regular season with two wins, entering the tournament with a double-bye and giving Coach Ryan Odom’s side extra rest heading into the quarterfinal matchup — Odom has emphasized the value of that downtime at this point in the season.
“You just want your guys at this time of year to have really fresh legs, clear minds,” Odom said. “At this point, you know how you have to play in order to compete, to win.”
Graduate guard Dallin Hall echoed the excitement of playing on a big stage, noting the team's familiarity with the Spectrum Center from its early-season matchup against Dayton.
“I'm stoked,” Hall said. “It's at the same place we played the Dayton game, right? The Hornets arena. Super cool court, cool arena … Let's go leave it all on the floor. It's winning time. It's March. We're excited.”
The Cavaliers have been dominant in the season series against the Wolfpack. In the first matchup Jan. 3 in Raleigh, N.C., junior guard Sam Lewis erupted for 20 first-half points as Virginia cruised to a 76-61 victory, holding NC State to just 8-for-26 shooting in the opening frame.
The Feb. 25 rematch at John Paul Jones Arena was even more lopsided — freshman center Johann Grünloh blocked eight shots and the Cavaliers rode a dominant second half to a 90-61 rout, with freshman forward Thijs De Ridder pouring on 15 second-half points.
In both games, Virginia’s interior size proved the decisive factor. The Cavaliers were able to smother NC State’s perimeter-oriented attacks and force contested looks at the rim, repeatedly disrupting the Wolfpack’s offense and mitigating scoring runs.
But NC State seems to have arrived in Charlotte a different team than the one that limped through the final stretch of the regular season. The Wolfpack lost four straight — and six of their last seven — to close ACC play, putting their NCAA Tournament hopes on shaky ground.
Wednesday, though, Coach Will Wade’s squad delivered its best performance in weeks, shooting a season-high 61 percent from the field in a 98-88 second-round win over Pitt. Senior guard Quadir Copeland led the charge with 24 points and eight assists, while senior forward Ven-Allen Lubin added 18.
The Wolfpack’s calling card all season has been their three-point shooting — NC State has set a program record with over 300 made three-pointers this year. Sophomore guard Paul McNeil Jr. — who led all scorers with 22 in the February meeting against Virginia — has knocked down 96 threes on the season and is capable of catching fire from deep.
The question for NC State is whether it can sustain that shooting against Virginia’s suffocating defense, which held the Wolfpack under 30 percent from the field in the first half of both regular-season meetings.
History — at least in the ACC Tournament — favors the Wolfpack. But for Odom and the Cavaliers, the mindset heading into the postseason is simple.
“You're not in the tournament until you win a game,” Odom said. “And so that's the first thing we say. You win the first game, then you're in the tournament. You don't win one, you weren't in the tournament. It's a little bit of pressure there. But I've always taken that mindset going in [to the postseason].”
The victor advances to face the winner of No. 3-seed Miami and No. 6-seed Louisville in Friday's semifinal at 7 p.m. On the other side of the bracket, No. 1-seed Duke takes on No. 8-seed Florida State and No. 4-seed North Carolina faces No. 5-seed Clemson.
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