RALEIGH — Devon Daniels is happy at his home away from home.
Daniels scored 23 points to help NC State beat Alcorn State 87-64 on Tuesday night at Reynolds Coliseum.
Markell Johnson added 16 points for the Wolfpack (4-1), who scored the game’s first 11 points on the way to their fourth consecutive win.
Daniels made 9 of 13 shots from the floor for his highest point total since he transferred to NC State after his freshman season at Utah. His previous high was 21, which he scored against Western Carolina last season at Reynolds.
“I love Reynolds,” Daniels said. “I like the atmosphere. I like the backdrop.”
Aside from a game or two each season, the Wolfpack play their regular-season home games at 19,722-seat PNC Arena. Tuesday was the second of two straight games at 5,500-seat Reynolds, where Daniels had 13 points in a 95-64 win over St. Francis Brooklyn on Saturday.
“It is a great place to play,” Daniels said. “The fans are more, I wouldn’t say involved, but they’re closer to you. The atmosphere is better, so I like it a lot.”
Jericole Hellems had 12 points and D.J. Funderburk had 10 for NC State. The Wolfpack shot 54 percent from the floor and scored more than 80 points for the fifth consecutive game to open the season.
Deshaw Andrews scored 17 points to lead Alcorn State (1-4), which made 8 of 15 3-point attempts. Corey Tillery added 15 points and Troymain Crosby had 11 for the Braves.
The Wolfpack led 44-32 at halftime and opened the second half with a 13-4 spurt to pull away.
Big Picture
Alcorn State: The Braves were short-handed with preseason All-Southwestern Athletic Conference pick Maurice Howard sidelined by injury for the second consecutive game. But they clawed back after trailing by 20 points in the first half, responding with a 12-1 spurt late in the half. “We just didn’t sustain it,” Alcorn State coach Montez Robinson said. “We have to sustain it a little bit more throughout the whole game. That’s a good team over there: ACC, Power Five. I thought my guys fought all the way through.”
NC State: It was another uneven performance for the Wolfpack, who still haven’t put together 40 minutes of consistent effort and efficiency this season. After scoring on 13 of 15 possessions during one stretch in the first half, NC State managed just six points in the final six minutes before halftime. “I thought we played good in stretches,” NC State coach Kevin Keatts said. “My team is a little tired.”
Star Watch
C.J. Bryce scored at least 16 points in each of NC State’s first four games, but he managed just seven points on 3-of-5 shooting against the Braves. On the positive side for the Wolfpack, Johnson snapped out of his shooting slump by scoring 16 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the floor. The Wolfpack’s starting point guard entered the game having made 8 of 35 field-goal attempts this season.
“I still don’t think he played great tonight,” Keatts said. “I thought he played good. But it was good to see him play better. It was good for him to see the ball go in the hole.”
Fast Starter
NC State guard Braxton Beverly began each half with a 3-pointer 20 seconds into the period. Those two shots accounted for his only six points of the game. He missed his other five attempts, all from 3-point range.
Up Next
Alcorn State: The Braves host NAIA member Our Lady of the Lake in their second home game of the season.
NC State: The Wolfpack return to PNC Arena on Saturday afternoon to host Little Rock and conclude their season-opening six-game homestand.
Grady scores 24 to carry Davidson past Nevada
DAVIDSON — Kellan Grady had 24 points as Davidson defeated Nevada 91-71 on Tuesday night.
Luka Brajkovic had 19 points and 11 rebounds for Davidson (2-2). Jon Axel Gudmundsson added 18 points. Luke Frampton had 12 points for the home team.
Lindsey Drew had 14 points for the Wolf Pack (2-3). Jalen Harris added 13 points and nine rebounds. Nisre Zouzoua also had 13 points.
Davidson takes on Wake Forest on Friday. Nevada faces Fordham on Friday.
UNC Wilmington beats North Carolina Wesleyan
WILMINGTON — Jaylen Sims had a career-high 26 points as UNC Wilmington easily beat North Carolina Wesleyan 113-53 on Tuesday night.
Sims hit 10 of 13 shots, including 6 of 9 on 3-pointers. In one stretch, he made three consecutive 3-pointers in just over a minute of playing time.
Jake Boggs added 20 points and eight rebounds for the Seahawks.
Shykeim Phillips had 19 points for UNC Wilmington (3-2). Mike Okauru added 14 points.
UNC Wilmington is undefeated (2-0) when scoring at least 100 points this season.
A.J. Frye had 18 points and nine rebounds for the Battling Bishops. Ricardo Bullock added 15 points.
UNCW made 17 3-pointers in 30 attempts and the Battling Bishops missed all 19 of their tries.
UNC Wilmington faces Cleveland St. on Friday.
Bohannon carries Youngstown St. over NC Central
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Darius Quisenberry’s layup with a minute-and-a-half to go put Youngstown State in front for good and Donel Cathcart III and Jelani Simmons each knocked down a pair of free throws in the final minute to seal a 66-60 win over North Carolina Central on Tuesday night.
Quisenberry scored 11 of his 17 points in the final 10 minutes of the game and Naz Bohannon had 19 points and 11 rebounds to lead Youngstown State (2-2). Geoff Hamperian added 14 points and Simmons had nine rebounds and three blocks for the hosts.
Randy Miller, Jr. had 20 points for the Eagles (1-4). Jibri Blount added 15 points and eight rebounds. Evan Clayborne had nine rebounds and three blocks.
Youngstown State plays Akron on the road on Thursday. NC Central takes on Bluefield State at home on Thursday.
Gibson scores 20 to lead North Texas past NC A&T
DENTON, Texas — Umoja Gibson had 20 points as North Texas routed North Carolina A&T 80-60 on Tuesday night.
James Reese and Jamion Hamlet had 13 points apiece for North Texas (2-3) and Deng Geu scored 11.
Ronald Jackson had 15 points for the Aggies (1-4) and Tyrone Lyons added 12 points.
North Texas plays Rhode Island on Friday. N.C. A&T plays Nicholls State on Friday.
