# 1980–81 NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team

The 1980–81 NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team represented North Carolina State University during the 1980–81 men's college basketball season. It was Jim Valvano's 1st season as head coach.

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| November 29* | | UNC Wilmington | W 83–59 | 1–0 | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Dec 1, 1980* | | Davidson | W 89–72 | 2–0 | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Dec 5, 1980* | | vs. Wake Forest Big Four Tournament | L 57–87 | 2–1 | Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, North Carolina |
| Dec 6, 1980* | | vs. Duke Big Four Tournament | W 74–60 | 3–1 | Greensboro Coliseum (15,333) Greensboro, North Carolina |
| Dec 13, 1980* | | Campbell | W 82–56 | 4–1 | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Dec 17, 1980* | | Appalachian State | W 71–47 | 5–1 | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Dec 20, 1980 | | at No. 9 Maryland | L 75–82 | 5–2 (0–1) | Cole Fieldhouse College Park, Maryland |
| Dec 26, 1980* | | vs. Iona ECAC Holiday Festival Semifinal | W 61–58 | 6–2 | Madison Square Garden New York, New York |
| Dec 27, 1980* | | at St. John's ECAC Holiday Festival Championship | W 64–55 | 7–2 | Madison Square Garden New York, New York |
| Jan 3, 1981 | | at Clemson | L 68–76 | 7–3 (0–2) | Littlejohn Coliseum Clemson, South Carolina |
| Jan 7, 1981 | | at No. 3 Virginia | L 55–63 | 7–4 (0–3) | University Hall (5,100) Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Jan 10, 1981 | | Georgia Tech | W 93–68 | 8–4 (1–3) | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Jan 14, 1981 | | at No. 17 North Carolina | L 70–73 | 8–5 (1–4) | Carmichael Auditorium Chapel Hill, North Carolina |
| Jan 17, 1981 | | at No. 5 Wake Forest | L 52–60 | 8–6 (1–5) | Winston-Salem Memorial Coliseum Winston-Salem, North Carolina |
| Jan 21, 1981* | | Duke | L 47–56 | 8–7 (1–6) | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Jan 24, 1981* | | East Carolina | W 77–52 | 9–7 | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Jan 28, 1981 | | at Georgia Tech | W 70–55 | 10–7 (2–6) | Alexander Memorial Coliseum Atlanta, Georgia |
| Jan 31, 1981 | | No. 12 North Carolina | L 54–57 | 10–8 (2–7) | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Feb 4, 1981 | | Clemson | L 76–82 | 10–9 (2–8) | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Feb 6, 1981* | | Furman | W 77–60 | 11–9 | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Feb 7, 1981* | | Saint Joseph's | W 47–42 | 12–9 | Reynolds Coliseum (11,198) Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Feb 11, 1981 | | No. 1 Virginia | L 46–51 | 12–10 (2–9) | Reynolds Coliseum (12,400) Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Feb 14, 1981* | | No. 12 Notre Dame | L 55–71 | 12–11 | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Feb 19, 1981 | | at Duke | W 52–51 | 13–11 (3–9) | Cameron Indoor Stadium Durham, North Carolina |
| Feb 25, 1981 | | No. 17 Maryland | L 72–76 | 13–12 (3–10) | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Feb 28, 1981 | | No. 12 Wake Forest | W 66–65 | 14–12 (4–10) | Reynolds Coliseum Raleigh, North Carolina |
| ACC Tournament ||||||
| March 5* | (7) | vs. (2) No. 12 North Carolina Quarterfinals | L 54–69 | 14–13 | Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. ||||||