Halftime Report
Only one more half stands between North Carolina State and the win they were favored to collect coming into this evening. After one quarter their offense has really been able to impose its will, dominating William & Mary 43-24.
North Carolina State entered the matchup having won four straight and they're just one half away from another. Will they make it five, or will William & Mary step up and spoil it? We'll know soon.
Who's Playing
William & Mary Tribe @ North Carolina State Wolfpack
Current Records: William & Mary 3-3, North Carolina State 4-0
How To WatchWhen: Friday, November 22, 2024 at 7 p.m. ETWhere: Lenovo Center -- Raleigh, North CarolinaTV: ESPN PlusFollow: CBS Sports AppOnline Streaming: Catch select College Basketball matches on Fubo (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)Ticket Cost: $5.00What to Know
The William & Mary Tribe's road trip will continue as they head out to face the North Carolina State Wolfpack at 7:00 p.m. ET on Friday at Lenovo Center. The Tribe are strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 84.7 points per game this season.
William & Mary is headed into Friday's contest after beating the impressive 162-point over/under the oddsmakers set for their last match against Georgia Southern. William & Mary strolled past Georgia Southern with points to spare on Sunday, taking the game 102-87. Having run the score up that high, both teams might be doing some extra defensive drills very soon.
William & Mary's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Noah Collier, who made all 7 shots he took racking up 19 points plus seven rebounds, and Chase Lowe, who dropped a double-double on 11 points and ten rebounds. The dominant performance also gave Collier a new career-high in assists (three). Another player making a difference was Isaiah Mbeng, who posted 11 points.
William & Mary was working as a unit and finished the game with 18 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Georgia Southern only posted seven.
Meanwhile, North Carolina State waltzed into their game on Monday with three straight wins... but they left with four. They put the hurt on the Raiders with a sharp 72-49 win.
North Carolina State can attribute much of their success to Ben Middlebrooks, who went 5 for 8 en route to 19 points plus three blocks and two steals. Middlebrooks' performance made up for a slower matchup against Coastal Carolina last Wednesday. Marcus Hill was another key player, going 6 for 10 en route to 17 points plus five rebounds.
The victory got William & Mary back to even at 3-3. As for North Carolina State, they pushed their record up to 4-0 with the win, which was their fourth straight at home.
Some high-performance offense is likely on the agenda as the two teams are some of the highest scoring teams in the league. William & Mary hasn't had any problem running up the score this season, having averaged 84.7 points per game. However, it's not like North Carolina State struggles in that department as they've been averaging 83. With both teams so easily able to put up points, the only question left is who can run the score up higher.
William & Mary is hoping to beat the odds on Friday, as the experts think they're headed for a loss. They might be worth a quick bet since they've covered the spread the last four times they've played.
Odds
North Carolina State is a big 15-point favorite against William & Mary, according to the latest college basketball odds.
The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Wolfpack as a 15.5-point favorite.
The oddsmakers are expecting fireworks from the offense and set the over/under at a high 160 points.
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Series History
North Carolina State and William & Mary both have 1 win in their last 2 games.
Nov 29, 2022 - North Carolina State 85 vs. William & Mary 64Nov 13, 2015 - William & Mary 85 vs. North Carolina State 68