Elite 8 Set: "Survive and Advance" 1983 NC State Beats Dunk City Florida Gulf Coast

Dereck Whittenburg was well beyond the range for a game-winning shot when he launched that famous shot for NC State’s “Survive and Advance” moment — and with seven seconds still left, the Wolfpack technically didn’t need a last-second miracle and time was left for Lorenzo Charles to grab the offensive rebounds and put it in for the win. In the ESPN production he complains a teammate is holding him too tight moments after his game-winner. (Click here for the 87 second preview of the show pictured.)

In our Value Add Basketball Game, NC State didn’t need one either, advancing to the Elite 8 of our new-teams tournament without relying on a buzzer-beater.

The Cinderella 2013 Florida Gulf Coast “Dunk City” team led 37–34 early in the second half, but the inside-outside defensive pairing of Thurl Bailey and Sidney Lowe completely flipped the game..

Bailey (19 points, 4 blocked shots, and an incredible 4 steals for a center) scored inside to pull NC State within 37–36 with 16:51 remaining — 28 possessions left. On the next two FGCU trips, Lowe came up with steals both times, igniting fast breaks and feeding Ernie Myers, who scored on consecutive possessions to give NC State a 40–37 lead.

They would never trail again. Bernard Thompson and Sherwood Brown both put up double figures in a losing effort for the team whose Sweet 16 run of dunks was almost as exciting as the 1983 NC State team's run to the national title in 1983.

NC State moved up to #9 and now advances to face Cooper Flagg's 2025 Duke team (now #21) in one Elite 8 matchup. And there’s an ironic twist on the other side of the bracket: if Jeff Ruland's 1980 Iona team (now #80) defeats Chandler Thompson's 1990 Ball State (now #64) , the Final Four would feature Jim Valvano vs. Jim Valvano — as Iona was Valvano’s team three years before he coached NC State to its stunning national title.

The other Elite 8 matchups feature the high-octane Ed Ratleff's 1972 Long Beach State (now #55) squad coached by Jerry Tarkanian — before his legendary UNLV run — taking on Floyd Lane's 1950 City College of New York (CCNY, now #28) team, the only program ever to win both the NIT and NCAA Tournament in the same year.

The winner of that game will face either Johni Broome's 2025 Auburn team (now #26) or the original powerhouse in our field, Irv Torgoff's 1939 Long Island University dynasty (now #15), setting up a fascinating collision of eras.

We’ll post the updated rankings of our 300 all-time great teams after adjusting for the Sweet 16 results.

 

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