Fresh off one of the most incredible conference tournament runs in college basketball history, Raleigh native and NC State star DJ Horne couldn’t contain his emotions Saturday night.
The Wolfpack became the lowest seed ever to win the ACC tournament title and the first team to accomplish the feat while playing five games in five days. Horne, who transferred to NC State for his final season of collegiate eligibility, was the leader amid his team’s wild run and was understandably overcome by emotion after Saturday’s 84–76 championship-sealing victory over North Carolina in Washington.
Speaking with ESPN after the game, Horne explained what the ACC title meant to him after returning to play for his hometown team this season. Horne previously played at Illinois State and Arizona State.
“Man, I’m at a loss for words right now. I came home with a mission and to just see this, all the confetti all over the place, red and white. This [is] for the city, this [is] for 919,” Horne said, offering a nod to Raleigh’s area code.
Horne then made an emphatic statement that resonates for a Wolfpack team and fan base that’s been the third wheel of college basketball relevance in the Research Triangle for much of the past 40 years.
“I just want to say, shout out Wolfpack nation. The job’s not done. And like I said from the jump, why not us?” Horne stated.
NC State lost 14 games this year. They haven’t won a ACC Championship in 37 years. They went on to win 5 games in 5 days, never been done before in ACC Conference tourney history.
— Josh Reynolds (@JoshReynolds24) March 17, 2024
Here’s DJ Horne emotional post game
This is everything we love about Marchpic.twitter.com/h1AOeANKPq
NC State, the No. 10 seed in the ACC after regular-season play, wasn’t even considered a bubble team by most experts at the start of tournament play. The improbable title run featured Wolfpack victories over intrastate rivals Duke and North Carolina, along with Louisville, Syracuse and Virginia.
It’s the Wolfpack’s first ACC tournament championship since 1987.
