Tag: DJ Horne

Jared McCain makes the South All-Region team after two 30-point games

Duke freshman Jared McCain scored 30 points in two of his four tournament games, and he was the only Blue Devil to make the all-region team.

Jared McCain was named to the South All-Region Team on Sunday evening after he scored 32 points against NC State in the Elite Eight.

McCain averaged 21.0 points per game in Duke’s four-game tournament run, including a 30-point game against James Madison in the second round when he made a program record eight 3-pointers in one NCAA Tournament game.

He also averaged 5.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game, and the freshman finished 50% from beyond the 3-point line.

No other Duke player finished with even a 20-point game, much less two 30-point performances over the course of March Madness. McCain’s 32-point performance against the Wolfpack is tied for the fourth-most in a single NCAA Tournament game in Duke history.

NC State stars DJ Burns and DJ Horne led the five-man squad, and Marquette’s Tyler Kolek and Houston’s Jamal Shead also made the all-region team.

NC State storms back in second half to eliminate Duke in Elite Eight

The Wolfpack couldn’t make a shot in the first half, but they couldn’t miss in the second as they stormed back to win the South region.

For the second time in the 2024 postseason, underdog NC State stunned Duke. The Wolfpack dominated the final 20 minutes to storm back for a 76-64 victory on Sunday, clinching a spot in the Final Four.

The in-state rivals battled for the third time in the month of March on Sunday, just weeks after NC State bounced Duke from the ACC Tournament quarterfinals. Neither of the first two contests held the same stakes as this Elite Eight matchup, however.

The two North Carolina teams combined for an inefficient, mistake-prone first half from the floor. Neither team finished above 31% from the floor, and the Wolfpack and the Blue Devils went a combined 3/14 (21.4%) from behind the 3-point line. Duke coughed up the ball five times in the first 20 minutes.

Despite the inefficiency, freshman Jared McCain found a way to shine through once again. He helped take the lid off of the basket early with a transition 3-pointer, stopping on a dime with the NC State defense still not settled around him. The bucket gave Duke the lead back five minutes into the game, and his five free throws over the next two minutes extended the advantage to three points.

He couldn’t match his torrid early pace from the James Madison game in the second round, when he buried six first-half triples en route to a 30-point game, but he did score 13 points before the break.

The Blue Devils fought through their offensive struggles to take a 27-21 lead into the locker room. The Wolfpack fared even worse, making just one of their 11 layup attempts and one of their seven 3-point efforts.

Sophomore 7-footer Kyle Filipowski, who scored just two points on five shots in the first half, laid in an easy bucket a minute and a half into the second half, and Duke led 29-23.

The Wolfpack kept themselves alive, however. The two DJs, forward DJ Burns and guard DJ Horne, traded baskets as NC State went on a run. Horne made a layup, Burns made a bucket, and the lead shrank to four. Horne fed teammate Mohamed Diarra for a dunk before burying a 3-pointer to pull within one.

Horne, an All-ACC Third Team member, drew a foul on the next possession, and his two ensuing free throws pushed the Wolfpack in front for the first time since the opening minutes. After a three-point play from Filipowski, Burns and Horne traded three more baskets between them.

All told, the two DJs combined to score or assist on 21 of NC State’s points during the 25-11 run, and the Wolfpack led 48-40 with eight minutes to play.

When NC State’s Michael O’Connell buried a triple to balloon the lead to nine with seven minutes on the clock, the game felt officially out of hand.

The Wolfpack run officially slowed down at 35-15, and they outscored Duke 55-37 in the second half for the 12-point victory. Burns and Horne teamed for 49 combined points, and the duo shot 14/18 from the floor over the final 20 minutes. Duke, as a team, shot just 11/33.

NC State advances to play Purdue in the Final Four.

Duke Wire staff predictions for Monday’s game against NC State

Duke plays its last road game of the season against the Wolfpack on Monday. Check out our staff’s thoughts on how the game will go.

With the calendar officially turned to college basketball’s most important month, each and every game carries weight from here on out for Duke.

Even Monday’s road battle with NC State, despite it being a regular-season game against a team not projected to make the NCAA Tournament, can drastically alter the Blue Devils’ expectations.

A win keeps them within a game of the ACC lead at worst, giving them a chance for at least a share of the regular-season crown in the finale, and pushes them closer to a No. 2 seed in the March Madness. After a valiant 7-1 run to stay alive in the conference, however, a loss to the in-state rivals could take all of the air out of Duke’s balloon at a crucial time.

Here is what our staff thinks you can expect from the road battle.

ACC men’s basketball leaders as of March 3

No Notre Dame players on this list.

Well, we finally have reached March. The spotlight will shine bright on every team from here on out. But nowhere where the spotlight shine brighter than on the players most expected to lead their teams. That includes the ACC’s major statistical leaders, and you can find those players below:

Scouting Report: Everything to know about the Wolfpack before Monday’s game

The Blue Devils looks for an eighth win in nine games on Monday against NC State. Here are the Wolfpack’s strengths and weaknesses to look for.

No matter how you slice it, the Blue Devils are riding some good current form.

Duke has won its past two games, seven of its past eight, 10 of its last 12, and 18 of its past 21. They hung 73 points on Virginia’s top-10 defense over the weekend, they split a home-and-away with tournament-hopeful Wake Forest, and they took down Clemson by a point in dramatic fashion back in January.

It won’t feel very satisfying if that form doesn’t include a win on Monday.

With a road battle against in-state rival NC State on deck, a loss would essentially hand the conference to North Carolina on a silver platter. Duke would need a Tar Heels loss to have any chance at even a share of the regular-season title.

With the stakes set, here’s a preview of what to expect from this year’s Wolfpack.

Duke Wire’s early All-ACC team

With five games left on the ACC calendar, we took an early look at what the All-ACC teams could end up looking like this season.

March draws closer every day, and while most of the excitement around that centers around the NCAA Tournament, there are also end-of-year awards to be handed out.

The Atlantic Coast Conference is one of the most traditionally successful conferences in men’s basketball with historic programs like Duke and North Carolina winning multiple championships over the past 25 years.

The ACC may not be as deep as its best years this season, with most bracket projections only including four teams in March Madness at the moment. There are still stars galore in the conference, however, and as per usual, there aren’t enough all-conference spots to go around.

Here is Duke Wire’s current projection for the All-ACC teams with five games left on the conference schedule.

ACC men’s basketball leaders as of Feb. 18

No Notre Dame players.

The ACC is in its final few weeks before its tournament. If any team lying in the weeds is going to make a move, now is the time to get moving. Otherwise, they might as well just sit back and let the teams that deserve it more grab the best positions. Speaking of the best, here are the best statistical players in the conference:

Arizona State’s DJ Horne picks NC State as his next destination

NC State’s backcourt got a big addition on Monday with a Pac-12 transfer announcing his decision.

North Carolina State added a quality piece to their backcourt on Monday morning when Arizona State transfer guard DJ Horne made his decision to join the Wolfpack. He announced the decision on Twitter.

Horne, a 6-foot-1-inch guard is returning home by picking NC State. Horne is a native of Raleigh, North Carolina, and played his high school basketball at Trinity Christian School in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

Horne will be playing now at the third college of his collegiate career. He originally signed with Illinois State out of high school, spending two years with the Redbirds including a sophomore season in which he averaged 15.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 2.7 assists. He would join Arizona State before the 2021-2022 season, where he spent each of the last two seasons, averaging 12.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists over 65 games which included 62 starts.

Now, he’ll return home and suit up for the Wolfpack who will be entering their seventh season under head coach Kevin Keatts. This past season, they made the NCAA Tournament for just the second time under Keatts as a No.11 seed, losing in the first round to Creighton.

Horne will look to help replace the hole left by guard Terquavion Smith In 2022-23, Smith averaged 17.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 4.1 assists before deciding to enter the NBA Draft as a projected first-round pick. The Wolfpack are also set to lose guard Jarkel Joiner who averaged 17.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.6 assists this season.