NC State returns home, gets much-needed win over UNC Asheville

Ven-Allen Lubin scored 23 points with 12 rebounds and North Carolina State earned a 75-63 home victory against UNC Asheville on Saturday afternoon at Raleigh, N.C.

Quadir Copeland supplied 13 points and eight assists for the Wolfpack (6-3), while Matt Able also had 13 points off the bench.

NC State lost three of its previous four games before playing at home Saturday for the first time since Nov. 17.

Kameron Taylor scored 20 points for UNC Asheville (4-5), while Justin Wright added 16 points and DJ Patrick made five 3-point shots on the way to 15 points. Toyaz Solomon had 12 points for Bulldogs, who fell to 0-4 in road games.

NC State won with a 23-0 advantage in bench points.

Lubin finished 9 of 11 from the field and was good on all five free-throw attempts as part of his second double-double of the season.

NC State held a 35-33 halftime lead and began the second half with a 9-1 run to take a 44-34 lead with 15:44 remaining. Lubin notching six of those nine points along with a Copeland 3-pointer.

But UNC Asheville, which was up against an opponent from a power conference for the only time this season, pulled within 49-46 with more than 11:36 remaining on a 3-pointer from Patrick. Able had the next five points to spark a 7-0 NC State burst that was capped by a Lubin dunk.

The Bulldogs responded with Patrick connecting on two 3-pointers in a 65-second span before a three-point play from Lubin, who also had the Wolfpack's next two baskets. His putback and dunk gave NC State a 65-54 lead with 5:15 left.

A basket from Copeland basket gave the Wolfpack a 71-59 edge with 2:12 remaining.

NC State strung together a 13-0 run in the first half to wipe out a 16-7 deficit. The Wolfpack finished the first half shooting 35.5% from the field with eight turnovers. NC State used 11 players in the first half as first-year coach Will Wade tried various combinations.

--Field Level Media