GLENDALE, Ariz. — There's one final hurdle in Purdue basketball's chance to advance to the national championship game for the first time since 1969.
NC State and NCAA Tournament darling DJ Barnes Jr.
The Boilermakers are heavy favorites into Saturday's Final Four matchup with 9.5 points per BetMGM.
If that happens, the Boilers will face either Connecticut or Alabama for the title on Monday night.
But don't get ahead of yourself.
Follow the madness: NCAA Tournament brackets, scores, schedules, teams, and more.
more:Family ties make Final Four appearance special for Purdue basketball trio
the wolfpack is back
It was an unlikely development for North Carolina State University. The Wolfpack needed to win the conference tournament to qualify for the NCAA field.
Since losing to Pittsburgh in the regular season finale, NC State has won nine straight elimination games to keep the season alive.
It's the Wolfpack's first Final Four since winning in 1983 (with a dunk).
DJ Burns Jr. and others
Barnes averaged 18.3 points per game in the NCAA Tournament and scored 20 points in the ACC title game against North Carolina.
However, he is not NC State's leading scorer this season. That would be DJ Horn, who averages 16.8 points per game. Mohammad Diarra is averaging 7.8 rebounds per game, and Horn's North Carolina State team is shooting nearly 35 percent from 3-point range.
Purdue's historic breakthrough
Led by Zach Eady, the Boilermakers outscored their four NCAA Tournament opponents by a combined 85 points, with strong contributions from Trey Kaufman-Len, Braden Smith, Fletcher Royer and Lance Jones along the way. Ta. This is the third-highest total through four games in NCAA Tournament history, behind only this year's Connecticut team and the 1967 UCLA team.
Purdue was plus-71 in rebounds, the largest margin of victory over an opponent through four games in NCAA Tournament history.
more:In a new era of college basketball, Matt Painter and Purdue proved that the old school still works.
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NC State has been reluctant about plans to guard Eady.
That's fine. Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.
Give me the 7-foot-4 National Player of the Year again. Now, college basketball is Edy's world.
Purdue Basketball vs. NC State Prediction
Boilermakers have a mission.
The Wolfpack lives an impossible life. For some reason, the perennially improbable upsets in the NCAA Tournament tend to come at Purdue's expense.
Not this time.
prediction: Purdue 85, NC State 71
Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email Sking@jconline.com and follow him on Twitter and his Instagram @samultking.