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RALEIGH — The N.C. State Wolfpack failed to score 70 points in its first five games, a rare achievement in an era of 340 Division I teams and a 35-second shot clock. Nobody noticed, of course, because the Pack won all five. (And, yeah, that combo is even more rare.)

On Tuesday night, however, the opponent was considerably better, and State's issues went unresolved in a 65-53 loss to Northwestern in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge.

The Wolfpack went 2-for-18 from the 3-point line against a trapping, 1-3-1 zone that featured long-armed guys on the wings and a 5-foot-10 guard down low. Tracy Smith delivered 23 points for State, but four of his second-half field goals were in transition.

When compelled to play a half-court game, the Pack was unable to feed the post, it was forced to shoot 3-pointers and it left dejected when the long-range attempts didn't fall.

"We didn't shoot the ball well in either half," State coach Sidney Lowe said. "I'm proud of how this young team fought; we just couldn't make enough shots in the second half."

The Wildcats (6-1) have now beaten Notre Dame, Iowa State and N.C. State in the past week. Asked if he imagined such developments, coach Bill Carmody opined, "Probably not."

Carmody even admitted he caught State on a substandard night.

"I'll watch that tape and I'll know they'll have their good shooters and they'll be open," he said. "And they will miss. On other night, they might not miss them."

Northwestern gets whatever notice it receives for its Princeton-style offense rather than the trapping zone it threw at N.C. State. But 6-5 swing man Drew Crawford, 6-8 forward John Shurna and 6-4 guard Jeremy Nash were distracting Tuesday with a propensity to get hands in passing lanes and keep the ball off the block.

The arrangement leaves Michael "Juice" Thompson, the aforementioned 5-10 guard, along the back, a spot he curiously doesn't seem to mind.

"I'm pretty much the quickest guy on the team, and (Carmody) puts me in there to get from corner to corner and close out on guys," Thompson said.

State was coming off a solid 3-point shooting performance, but then again, the opponent was New Orleans, which has announced its intentions to leave Division I and play at a lower NCAA level in the coming years.

The Pack wouldn't have had to set the RBC Center ablaze to beat the Wildcats, but it didn't come particularly close to warmth.

It gave itself a chance with aggressive defense of its own that exposed Northwestern's relative dearth of ball-handlers, and when Julius Mays made a layup off a steal with 1:59 left, it trailed 57-52 — a far better position than earlier 14-point deficits.

But if you can't create turnovers against the Wildcats, you'll have a hard time coming back against them. Their generally patient, motion-oriented offense can sap 30 seconds off the shot clock at a time, and when the opponent tries for a steal and fails, Thompson is giddy.

On this occasion, he found a spread floor, took the ball to the lane and made a layup as Smith, seeking to draw a charge, arrived a hair too late. The three-point play effectively squelched any comeback bid.

"Coach told me to run plays in which I could get the ball back," Thompson said.

NORTHWESTERN (6-1) — Crawford 1-3 0-0 2, Thompson 8-15 4-5 22, Nash 3-5 4-4 12, Shurna 5-12 1-2 11, Rowley 2-3 1-2 5, Mirkovic 2-3 1-2 5, Peljusic 0-0 0-1 0, Curletti 0-0 0-0 0, Marcotullio 3-8 0-0 8. Totals 24-49 11-16 65.

N.C. STATE (5-1) — Gonzalez 3-12 2-4 10, Wood 0-6 0-0 0, Williams 0-3 0-0 0, T.Smith 9-18 5-7 23, Horner 3-5 5-6 11, Painter 2-4 0-0 4, Vandenberg 0-2 0-0 0, Davis 0-0 0-0 0, Mays 2-6 1-2 5. Totals 19-56 13-19 53.

Halftime—Northwestern 34-24.
3-point goals—Northwestern 6-14 (Nash 2-2, Marcotullio 2-5, Thompson 2-5, Shurna 0-2), N.C. State 2-18 (Gonzalez 2-6, Williams 0-3, Mays 0-3, Wood 0-6).
Fouled out—None.
Rebounds—Northwestern 38 (Nash 8), N.C. State 31 (T.Smith 7).
Assists—Northwestern 11 (Nash 4), N.C. State 10 (Gonzalez 6).
Total fouls—Northwestern 16, N.C. State 15.
Technical—Marcotullio.
A—11,913.