Freshman guard Shakeel Moore finished the game on a personal 4-0 run to help NC State slip past Boston College 79-76 in ACC action Wednesday night inside PNC Arena.
NC State improves to 6-1 overall (2-0 ACC) while the Eagles fall to 2-6 overall (0-2 ACC). The Wolfpack finished the contest shooting 51% from the floor (28-54) while Boston College shot 47% going 27-57 from the floor.
DJ Funderburk led the Wolfpack with 21 points off the bench. Junior Cole Hellems followed with 20 points and 6 rebounds. Moore and senior Devon Daniels followed with 12 points. Wynston Tabbs led four Eagles in double figures with 18 points.
Things started well for the Wolfpack as they forced Boston College into an early timeout with 18:06 left in the first half with three straight baskets inside. The post dominance continued as the NC State lead grew to 12-2 at the 15:24 break. The Eagles answered with an 8-2 run to cut the Wolfpack lead to 15-10 at the 12:53 mark.
BC stayed closed trailing 20-16 before back-to-back baskets from DJ Funderburk and junior Thomas Allen pushed the State lead back up to eight at 24-16. Funderburk who made his first appearance since December 3, finished the first half in double-digit scoring. Another Wolfpack run pushed their lead to 30-18 with 7:42 left before halftime. BC could get no closer than seven before NC State took a 45-35 lead into halftime.
A hot start from Boston College cut the NC State lead to 47-42 with 15:55 left in the second half. The Eagles later cut the Wolfpack lead four on two different occasions before Devon Daniels hit a three with 12:07 remaining giving NC State a 57-50 lead. Funderburk left the game with his fourth foul with 10:56 remaining with the Wolfpack holding a slim 57-54 lead. Fellow big man Manny Bates was injured midway through the first half and did not return forcing the Wolfpack into a small lineup.
Both teams traded three-point baskets resulting in a 62-58 NC State lead with 7:59 left. BC would remain hot from three and take a 68-66 lead with 5:23 left. A Cole Hellems three-point play gave NC State a 74-73 lead with under four minutes left. Boston College took a 76-75 lead with 1:20 left. Freshman Shakeel Moore hit a jumper inside the arc to shift the lead back over to the Wolfpack at 77-76 with 26 seconds left.
Boston College followed with a crucial turnover with 14 seconds left which led to another basket from Moore with two seconds left to seal the 79-76 win for the Wolfpack.
NC State is back in action January 5 at Clemson. Tipoff is slated for 7 pm.
