What is the difference between the year?
NC State fired head basketball coach Kevin Keats on Sunday. It has only been one season since 1983 that has featured Wolfpack in its first Final Four.
This year, the Wolfpack finished 12-19 and 5-15 at the ACC, meaning they didn't even qualify for the conference tournament. This means another Cinderella run has no chance.
“The last eight years have come to fruition, and I always value my time being part of the Raleigh community,” Keats wrote in a statement posted to X. Before my first season, the NCAA informed us that we were being investigated for previous staff behaviour. We were able to guide the program through five years of research and penalty and came out on the other side in consecutive NCAA tournament appearances. We also had our first trip to the ACC Championship and Final 4 in 37 and 40 years.
“As we enter this new era of college sports, I truly believe that we are in a better position to be successful than when we first started, and that our basketball programs will continue to thrive when supported to the level that we need to compete.”
NC State ended the 2023-24 regular season with a four-game winning streak and entered the ACC tournament as a 10-seeded, but then won five games in the next five days, winning the tournament and winning the conference auto bid for the NCAA tournament.
It marked Wolfpack's first meeting title victory since 1987.
Keats then led the Wolfpack, beating Texas Tech, Oakland, Marquette and Duke, reaching the Final Four before losing to Purdue.
The 52-year-old Keatts has been in charge of eight seasons and has reached the NCAA tournament three times.
He finished his tenure in Raleigh, North Carolina, and released an overall record of 151-113 and a 69-84 record.
“I would like to thank Coach Keatts for his contributions to NC and for always representing the university in class,” said Boo Corrigan, NC State athletic director. “He will always have a valuable place in Wolfpack history for his team's achievements from 2023-24 years. I am grateful for the passion he has brought to this role. We hope he and his family are the best in the future.”
