LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Freshman Terquavion Smith scored 24 points, Jericole Hellems added 19 and the duo combined for 11 of N.C. State’s 12 3-pointers in a 79-63 victory over Louisville on Wednesday night.
N.C. State (9-8, 2-4 ACC), coached by former Louisville assistant coach Kevin Keatts, won just its third game at Louisville in 10 attempts. The Cardinals had won six of the last seven overall.
“If you watch, our guys just fight,” Keatts said. “That’s where we are. Our guys have been in every game and had a chance to win.
“Every win is important in this league. But road wins are special and this was a real special road win for us.”
Smith — coming off an 0-for-7 clunker at home against Clemson on Saturday — made three 3-pointers during a 16-0 run, including two on back-to-back possessions, for a 31-18 lead. N.C. State was 12 of 25 (48 percent) on 3-pointers.
“I knew what I needed to do and what I needed to work on,” Smith said. “The confidence was always there but to see it fall in makes it go through the roof.”
N.C. State opened the second half on a 8-0 run for a 16-point lead and Smith made their 10th 3-pointer for a 64-55 lead with 5:30 remaining. Hellems made his first 3-pointer of the second half, after making 4 of 6 before halftime, for a 69-58 lead.
Dereon Seabron had 15 points, seven rebounds and five assists for N.C. State.
“People are going to game plan against him but he’s got to do other things,” Keatts said of Seabron. “Passing the ball is one. Because of his ability to drive and draw defenders, we’re going to have some open guys and he has to make the right play.
“You become a really good player when you impact the game and it’s just not scoring, and I think that’s what he’s doing for us.”
Smith was 9 of 13 from the field, 6 of 9 behind the arc, to finish three points shy of his season high. Hellems was 7 of 10, going 5 for 7 from deep.
Seabron attempted N.C. State’s first free throw of the game with 4:13 remaining in the second half. The Cardinals attempted 18 free throws compared to six for N.C. State.
Sydney Curry, averaging 2.8 points per game and 7 minutes, scored 22 points in 24 minutes for Louisville (10-6, 4-2 ACC). Noah Locke and Dre Davis each added 13 points.
“Bad night for Louisville,” Cards coach Chris Mack said. “They came to play. Some of our guys didn’t.”
N.C. State is at No. 8 Duke on Saturday while Louisville plays at Pittsburgh.