12/21/2021

RALEIGH, NC – The Wright State men’s basketball team closed out its non-conference schedule with an 84-70 road victory over North Carolina State as four Raiders scored in double digits, paced by Grant Basile’s double-double with 23 points and 16 rebounds.
 
The Raiders now have a pair of victories over power conference opponents under head Coach Scott Nagy, coming in their last two meetings with ACC foes. Tuesday night’s win over NC State was one day shy of Wright State’s road win at Georgia Tech on December 22, 2017.
 
Wright State (4-7) trailed by one at the half before opening the final 20 minutes with a 16-6 scoring run over nearly five minutes and never looked back. A Basile steal at the 18-minute mark led to a Tim Finke dunk on the other end to give the Raiders the lead for good at 41-40.
 
The Raiders were within a possession throughout the first half, with North Carolina State’s (7-5) largest lead of the night only three – at 38-35 in the closing seconds of the first 20 minutes – before Wright State answered with a Calvin layup to sit one point back at the break.

Basile turned in 12 points in the back-and-forth opening half on the way to the night’s only double-double, finishing the night shooting 9-of-16 from the floor as he filled his stat line with a pair of three-pointers, four assists, a block and a steal in addition to his game-high 14 rebounds over 35 minutes of action.
 
Trey Calvin finished with 19 points, 13 of which came in the second half, while Tanner Holden added 18 points and five rebounds. AJ Braun was the final Raider in double-figures, turning in 13 points and seven rebounds, including six points in the first five minutes of the second half as the Raiders cemented control of the night. Finke had a stuffed stat line with seven points, four assists, three steals and a pair of rebounds.
 
Wright State ended the night shooting 52.5 percent (31-of-59) from the floor while holding NC State to 38 percent shooting (29-of-76). The Raiders were 7-of-18 from three-point range, including hitting five in the second half, but the difference in the night was their 94 percent mark (15-of-16) from the free throw stripe while limiting NC State to a 5-of-9 mark that included just two second half free throws (both misses).
 
The Raiders outrebounded NC State, 39-36, pulling down 31 rebounds on the defensive glass, but their eight offensive rebounds led to 14 second chance points. Behind Basile and Braun, Wright State tallied 46 points in the paint, while that duo combined for three of the Raiders’ five blocks.  
 
NC State had three players finish in double figures in the loss, led by Terquavion Smith’s game-high 27 points, while Jericole Hellems added 14 points and Dereon Seabron had 10 points.
 
Wright State now readies for the remainder of Horizon League play to close the final 20 games of the regular season, with the Raiders hosting their next four contests against League foes. That stretch begins next Thursday night, December 30, as Wright State welcomes Milwaukee to town before hosting Green Bay two days later to ring in the new year.

COURTESY WSU ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS