The North Carolina State Wolfpack (6-3) head play the Florida State Seminoles (5-2) at 9:30pm ET on January 13
This will be the first game the Seminoles have played in 2021 due to COVID-19 complications
See the odds, spread, analysis, and best bet, below
The Florida State Seminoles will play their first game of 2021 when they host the North Carolina Wolfpack Wednesday night. The Seminoles last played on December 29th when they were beaten 77-67 by the Clemson Tigers. Meanwhile, the Wolfpack are to get back on track after having lost their last two games to Clemson and the Miami Hurricanes.
Florida State has owned the series winning five of the last six meetings between the schools including a 67-61 win as 1.5-point favorites last February. The Seminoles are favored by four points in this matchup.
North Carolina State vs Florida State Odds
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Carolina State Wolfpack | +4 (-106) | +150 | Over 142.5 (-115) |
| Florida State Seminoles | -4 (-114) | -178 | Under 142.5 (-105) |
Odds as of January 12th at FanDuel.
NC State Needs To Get Back On Track
The North Carolina State Wolfpack are not a bad team. Despite losing their last two games, they currently rank 49th in the nation according to KenPom. They are the 58th best team in the country in effective field goal percentage, but for whatever reason, they couldn’t get anything to fall in their last game against Miami. They closed as 6.5-point favorites and ended up losing to the Hurricanes 64-59.
The Miami game didn’t start all bad for North Carolina State. They led the game at the end of the first half 32-31. Their troubles really didn’t begin until the last five minutes of the game, which has been a problem so far in conference play. In the first four ACC games, the Wolfpack have been beaten 49-25 in the final five minutes of the games. If they are to be taken seriously, that will have to change.
Florida State Could Be Rusty
COVID-19 has run through the Seminoles’ basketball program, causing them to postpone their last three games. All appears to be on the up and up as this game will move forward as scheduled. The last time the Seminoles took the floor they got smoked by Clemson 77-67 on December 29th. Although, the fact that they were able to hang 67 on the nation’s top-ranked defense in terms of efficiency should be viewed as a positive.
The Clemson game was really a tale of two halves for Florida State. They came out on fire in the early stages and even led by six points at the half. But rebounding was an issue as it has been all season for the Seminoles, who rank 212th in the country in defensive rebounding percentage. Clemson won the rebounding battle 46-34 which led to the double-digit victory.
Best Betting Angle
Florida State seems to be the better side in this one but the long layoff could cause problems for the Seminoles. They haven’t played in over two weeks and the last time out they were beaten by 10 points. Granted, that was on the road against a very good Clemson team but still a double-digit loss nonetheless.
North Carolina State may have lost their last two, but both were against teams that shake out a bit better than Florida State in terms of defensive efficiency. They were still able to hang 70 points on Clemson as well as 79 in a victory over North Carolina. They shoot the three-ball well, hitting 36.6% on the season which is 62nd best in the country. If the Seminoles have any ill effect whatsoever, the Wolfpack have the firepower to not only cover but win straight up.
Pick: NC State +4 (-110)