Ernest Ross made a late layup and a free throw in overtime and NC State upset No. 16 Miami with an 83-81 victory Saturday afternoon in Atlantic Coast Conference action in Raleigh, N.C.
Ross had 17 points on 8-of-10 shooting and his crucial bucket in the paint with 30 seconds left gave the Wolfpack (14-4, 4-3 ACC) the lead for good.
After a miss by Miami (14-3, 5-2), Ross sank 1-of-2 free throws to account for the final score. The Hurricanes had possession with 12 seconds left but NC State's Jarkel Joiner stole the ball from Isaiah Wong.
Terquavion Smith scored 20 points to lead the Wolfpack and DJ Burns Jr. had 13 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Joiner added 11 points and Ross grabbed nine rebounds.
Wong led Miami with 25 points, while Norchad Omier had 13 points, 13 boards and five blocks. Jordan Miller had 13 points and Bensley Joseph added 11.
The Hurricanes lost despite shooting 56.9 percent from the field and 40 percent (6 of 15) from behind the arc. The Wolfpack shot 44.0 percent overall and 25 percent (5 of 20) from deep.
Perhaps the most telling stat was the turnover differential. Miami coughed the ball up 17 times while NC State squandered just four possessions. The Wolfpack turned those takeaways into 23 points.
Miami opened the game with a 9-4 lead, but NC State clawed back to tie the score at 28-28.
The Wolfpack ended the first half with a 14-4 run to take a 42-32 lead into intermission.
The Hurricanes used a 21-9 run in the second half to surge ahead 63-59 with 8:20 remaining.
Miami and NC State exchanged leads with under three minutes to play in regulation. With 27 seconds left, Miller sank a 3-pointer for Miami to tie the game. NC State's response -- a 3-pointer from Joiner at the buzzer -- missed the mark, sending the game into overtime.
The Wolfpack made only 1 of 11 shots from behind the arc in the second half.
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