Paul McNeil Jr. helps NC State rout Florida State
Jan 10, 2026; Tallahassee, Florida, USA; North Carolina State Wolfpack forward Darrion Williams (1) drives to the net past Florida State Seminoles guard Martin Somerville (1) during the first half at Donald L. Tucker Center. Mandatory Credit: Melina Myers-Imagn Images Paul McNeil Jr. led six players in double figures to help North Carolina State deliver a resounding 113-69 win over Florida State on Saturday afternoon in an Atlantic Coast Conference game in Tallahassee, Fla.
McNeil tallied 21 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field -- 5 of 10 from 3-point range -- and had six rebounds. Darrion Williams Jr. added 20 points and 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.
Ven-Allen Lubin scored 19, Matt Able had 15 points on five 3-pointers, Terrance Arceneaux added 13 points, and Quadir Copeland tallied 10.
It's the first time the Wolfpack (12-5, 3-1) have scored 100 points in an ACC road game since Jan. 26, 1991, against Maryland. NC State tied its season high with 19 3-point baskets on 35 attempts (54.3%) and dominated in rebounding, 44-25.
After entering the week having lost 15 straight road games, the Wolfpack ended the brief trek 2-0.
Freshman Thomas Bassong led Florida State (7-9, 0-3) with a career-high 14 points. Robert McCray, Lajae Jones and Kobe MaGee added 10 apiece.
The loss was the third this season by 30-plus points for the Seminoles.
The Wolfpack made their presence felt from the jump, leading 11-0 five minutes in. The Seminoles were held scoreless for the opening 5:17, and MaGee scored the team's only points in the opening nine minutes on a pair of threes.
NC State didn't initially take advantage of Florida State's slow start, leading just 15-6 nine minutes in thanks to a slow shooting start. But the Wolfpack awakened in a major way, scoring their next 21 points on seven consecutive 3-pointers without a miss to open a 36-13 lead with 6:46 left in the half.
The Wolfpack shot 48.6% from the floor and 52.4% (11 of 21) from 3-point range -- led by a 4-of-5 performance from Able -- and scored a season high in first-half points with a 56-31 halftime advantage.
Florida State was 34.6% overall from the floor and 2 of 12 from 3-point range. Magee led the way with nine points on 2-of-8 shooting from the field.
The Seminoles opened the second half with an 8-0 run to cut the deficit to 17 points, but NC State quickly responded, rattling off a 17-0 run to take an insurmountable 81-44 lead with 12:49 left.
NC State shot even better in the second half, going 21 of 34 (61.8%) from the floor.
--Field Level Media
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