RALEIGH, N.C. — A former Wolfpack point guard takes the bench for real on Monday night. Justin Gainey coaches his first official game as NC State’s head coach when the Pack opens the season against Campbell at Lenovo Center, with tipoff at 7:30 p.m. on ACC Network Extra.
NC State hired Gainey on March 31, roughly five days after Will Wade left, without using a search firm, and trustees signed off on the move in an emergency meeting. He becomes the program’s 22nd head coach and is a familiar name to longtime fans: he started 103 of the 128 games he played for the Wolfpack, and his 190 steals still rank fifth in school history. He arrives after five seasons at Tennessee, the last four as associate head coach to Rick Barnes.
The roster is almost entirely new. Only three players return, and as many as 11 could make their NC State debut Monday. The two returnees who played last season both set program marks: guard Paul McNeil Jr. tied the school record with 105 made 3-pointers and led the ACC at 42.7% from deep, and forward Ven-Allen Lubin led the league by shooting 66.8% from the floor.
The exhibitions were encouraging. NC State beat Mississippi State 77-73 in Greensboro and then routed Lenoir-Rhyne 130-66, a game in which McNeil hit seven 3-pointers on the way to 23 points and Lubin added 22 points and nine rebounds.
Campbell is also starting over with a new coach. NC State leads the series 12-1, every meeting has been in Raleigh, and against nonconference visitors the Pack has lost only once in its last 32 home openers. The last meeting, in November 2022, ended 73-67.
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