Miami vs NC State Prediction 3/8/25 College Basketball Picks Today

The NC State Wolfpack and the Miami Hurricanes meet Saturday in college basketball action from BankUnited Center. Here’s a Miami vs NC State prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Miami vs NC State pick.

NC State Wolfpack Betting Preview

The Wolfpack got started on a nice run this year but since November it’s been a very choppy stretch. NC State managed wins in their first five games, then fell to Purdue, BYU and Texas. A 4-3 run came next with wins over Florida State, Coppin State, Rider and Notre Dame alongside losses to Kansas, Virginia and Wake Forest. Since then however, NC State has only beaten Boston College, Wake Forest and Pitt. The losses otherwise have been versus North Carolina, Virginia Tech, Cal, SMU, Duke, Clemson, California again, Stanford, Louisville, North Carolina, Syracuse and Georgia Tech. That gives the Wolfpack a 12-18 overall run through 30 games.

In their home matchup versus Pitt back on Wednesday, the Wolfpack opened the game with a 34-30 advantage. NC State kept it up in the second with a 37-33 run and took the win in the end 71-63. Michael O’Connell was the team’s leading scorer with 15 points, five rebounds and eight assists. Breon Pass added 14 points with three rebounds and three assists, while Dontrez Styles had 13 points with 13 rebounds in 36 minutes for a double-double. Marcus Hill topped the bench scoring with 10 points and two rebounds in 17 minutes of work.

Miami Hurricanes Betting Preview

Over on the Miami side, they similarly opened well but it’s been a long stretch of futility since then. The Hurricanes won their first three games, then fell to Drake, Oklahoma State, VCU, Charleston Southern, Arkansas, Clemson and Tennessee before another win over Presbyterian. Miami lost to Mount St. Mary’s, Boston College, Virginia Tech, Florida State, Wake Forest, Duke, SMU, Stanford, California and Virginia after that, then won two of the next three games versus Notre Dame and Syracuse. Since then it’s been losses to Pitt, Florida State, Virginia Tech, Duke, North Carolina and Georgia Tech. In total that gives the Hurricanes a 6-24 run across 30 games so far this year.

Matched up against Georgia Tech in their Tuesday outing, the Hurricanes were outscored 46-30 in the first half. Miami got better from there on a 44-43 advantage but took the loss in the end 89-74. Matthew Cleveland led the way with his 29 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. Brandon Johnson chipped in a double-double on 16 points with 10 boards, four assists and three steals. Austin Swartz was also in double-figures with 14 points, two rebounds and one assist in 35 minutes of action on the floor.

Why the Miami Hurricanes will win

• NC State has lost each of its last nine road games against the Atlantic Coast Conference.
• The home team has won each of NC State’s last six games.
• The home team has won the first half in each of NC State’s last six games.

Why the NC State Wolfpack will win

• Miami (FL) has lost each of its last 11 day games against the Atlantic Coast Conference.
• NC State has won the first half in each of its last seven games against Miami (FL).

Miami vs NC State Prediction

I’ll lean toward NC State. Probably not touching this one though, as there’s not a lot to get excited about if you’re not a fan of either team. That said, NC State is coming off a decent win despite shooting just 40.7 percent from the field with 11 turnovers. The Wolfpack did pretty well defensively against Pitt, turning their 14 turnovers into 15 points. The 71-point total was also nice after a combined 122 scored across their previous two outings.

As for Miami, they were quite permissive to Georgia Tech in their latest loss, giving up 54.5 percent shooting and getting outmuscled on the boards 43-27. The Hurricanes didn’t shoot terribly themselves though (44.3 percent) and had 19 points off 15 Yellow Jackets turnovers. Still, that makes six straight losses for the Hurricanes, with 74 or more points surrendered in each one—and 81 or more in four straight. NC State should have plenty of offensive opportunities in this one, and if they can take advantage (and control the turnovers) the Wolfpack should be in a good position down the stretch.