ACC Roundup - State Wins Again, But It Wasn't Easy This Time

State has rolled so far this season, but Mercer proved a tougher nut to crack.

The Pack had a big lead but nearly gave it all up in the second half as the lead fell from 21 to just two.

Dimitrijevic Djordje led the Bears with 19 in the second half and 25 overall.

For State, it was probably a valuable game: the team got game pressure from a tough opponent, as Duke fans will remember, and overcame their own bad play to win. That’ll come in handy against Wisconsin.

So did State’s pressure as the Pack forced 23 turnovers.

Granted it was DePaul, but Notre Dame scored a 25 point win over the Blue Demons.

Former Virginia coach Dave Leitao is on his second tour of duty for DePaul and in his fourth season, but he has yet to win more than 11 games which pretty much puts you on the hot seat until you prove otherwise.

Good news for the Irish as they head into Challenge play: Rex Pflueger finally got on track offensively, hitting 6-7 and finishing with 20.

TJ Gibbs had 18 and freshman big Nate Laszewski had 15. John Mooney picked up 10 boards.

Virginia Tech predictably crushed St. Francis, winning by 38 and holding St. Francis to 37. The Red Flash shot just 15-58 for 25.9%.

That’s pretty much dominance. Toss in 22 turnovers and there’s no way to get past that.

Only two games Sunday as the conference gets ready for the ACC-Big Ten Challenge but one should be good as Florida State takes on Villanova.

The second game features Miami vs. Seton Hall. Like Rutgers, Seton Hall has shown signs of life, but we’ll take the ‘Canes here.

• Wolfpack holds off Mercer comeback 78-74 for sixth win
• Stingy Virginia Tech holds St. Francis to 37 points
• Flash crash in 2nd half at Tech
• Rex Pflueger scores career-high 20 in Notre Dame’s win over DePaul
• Wolfpack holds off Mercer comback 78-74 for sixth win