Instant observations: NC State blitzed by No. 9 Duke early, drops second straight

DURHAM — NC State stuck to Duke’s guards like glue. No matter what the Blue Devils tried to do on their second possession of the night, the Wolfpack had an answer to force passes to zip around the perimeter before a blocked 3-pointer failed to make it to the rim. That shot-clock violation appeared to be a positive sign for the Pack, which was blitzed in a 12-point loss in its last time out at Notre Dame over the weekend. But, in reality, that was the best defensive possession it was able to muster against the Blue Devils’ high-octane offense in the first half.  And despite a spirited third quarter to cut what was a 20-point deficit to as few as a half dozen via a 16-2 run, NC State didn’t have enough in the tank to complete the furious rally.  No. 9 Duke rolled to hand NC State an 83-65 loss on Thursday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Wolfpack has now dropped three of its last five in ACC play, including a pair of ranked losses (No. 25 UNC). The Blue Devils were able to reliably knock down shots against the Wolfpack’s defense, turning in a 49.2 percent clip from the field, while the visitors hit 42.9 percent of their own attempts.  Junior forward Khamil Pierre led NC State with 24 points, while junior guard Zoe Brooks added with 21 and junior forward Tilda Trygger chipped in with 6. Here are TheWolfpacker.com’s observations from the loss.