NC State Defeats Texas Tech In First Round Of NCAA Tournament

Mohamed Diarra #23 of the North Carolina State Wolfpack and Kerwin Walton #24 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders go up for the rebound during the second half in the first round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at PPG PAINTS Arena on March 21, 2024 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Photo: Joe Sargent / Getty Images Sport / Getty Images

NC State remained red-hot with an 80-67 win over Texas Tech in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The 11th-seeded ACC tournament champions led by four at halftime and went on to outscore the sixth-seeded Red Raiders 43-34 in the second half. Ben Middlebrooks came off the bench to pace the Wolfpack with 21 points. Mohamed Diarra posted a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds, while DJ Burns Jr. and DJ Horne scored 16 points apiece. The Wolfpack will play 14-seed Oakland in the second round on Saturday. Joe Toussaint led the Red Raiders with 16 points in the setback. Texas Tech finishes the year 23-and-11 overall.