Jay Bilas on NC State run to the Final Four: 'It's the most amazing thing I've ever seen in basketball'
The NC State Wolfpack men’s basketball team is still riding the wave of one of the most improbable runs in college basketball history. Just a few weeks ago leading up to the ACC Tournament, the Wolfpack sat at 17-14 overall. Then in the ACC Tournament semifinals, Virginia’s Isaac McKneely missed a free throw in the final seconds of regulation, and Michael O’Connell banked in an absolute prayer at the buzzer to send that game to overtime.
NC State went on to win that one and eventually win the 2024 ACC Tournament Championship, miraculously punching their tickets to the NCAA Tournament in the process.
It was five wins in five days, which is remarkable in itself. Then in the big dance, the Wolfpack have rattled off four more wins, including another win over Duke, who they also defeated in the ACC Tournament. In the past few weeks, they’ve rattled off nine straight wins in one of the wildest runs the sport has ever seen. NC State also punched their tickets to the Final Four for the first time since 1983. No matter what they do the rest of the way, it’ll go down as one of the most incredible runs in college sports history.
ESPN’s Jay Bilas on NC State and their magical run to the Final Four: ‘The wildest ride I’ve ever seen in basketball’
ESPN’s Jay Bilas is blown away by the Wolfpack’s magical march of destiny. And quite frankly, he’s never seen anything like it in his lifetime. He dropped a brief video sharing his thoughts on their magical run on Sunday night, shortly after NC State defeated Duke to punch their tickets to the Final Four.
“NC State going to the Final Four this year is the most amazing thing I have ever seen in basketball. I was a freshman in 1983 when NC State won the national championship. But that wasn’t as amazing as this is,” Bilas began.
“NC State this year was 17-14 heading into the ACC Tournament. And they were playing on Tuesday. And they had to win five games. And it wasn’t even a thought of any rational basketball person that the Wolfpack would win the ACC Tournament. And they did it. Mike O’Connell hits what a 40-footer with time expiring against Virginia after a missed free throw. They’re down three and he banks it in. And they go to overtime and end up winning the game. And that was in the semifinals,” Bilas continued.
“Then they beat North Carolina. And move onto the tournament. You’re thinking, they’re gonna be emotionally and physically drained. Nobody can do that and just bounce back. And then they got a Thursday game [in the first round of the NCAA Tournament]. And they beat Texas Tech. You know, they get to the Sweet Sixteen. Then they’re in the Elite Eight. And they’re playing Duke, a team they had beaten in the ACC Tournament,” Bilas said.
“You’re thinking, well, it’s gotta end sometime. And it never ends. They had lost seven of nine heading into that Tuesday of the ACC Tournament. What Kevin Keatts and his team have done is absolutely remarkable. It’s the wildest ride I’ve ever seen in basketball and I’m enjoying every minute of it,” the college basketball analyst noted.