2023 March Madness 1st round bracket breakdown: South Region
No. 6 Creighton vs. No. 11 NC State听
Creighton was able to right the ship and get healthy towards the end of the season to finish 11-3 in its last 14 conference games. The Bluejays are well balanced and like to share the ball as they鈥檙e top 40 in the country in assists. Creighton also boasts five players who averaged double-digit points this season. The team has multiple players that can step up and center Ryan Kalkbrenner is playing well. The Bluejays will be tough to beat early on in the tournament.听
In two days, NC State showed its potential on both ends of the spectrum. On March 8, the Wolfpack beat Virginia Tech 97-77 while shooting 45.8% from three and guard Terquavion Smith led all scorers with 30 points. The next day, NC State lost to Clemson for the third time this season and the second time by more than 20 points. The Wolfpack only shot 25% from three in that game and 35% from the field. If NC State can get hot, watch out, but if they鈥檙e turning the ball over and missing shots, it鈥檚 hard to see them beating Creighton.
