North Carolina State 81, Pittsburgh 70: Anthony Barber scored 21 of his career-high 34 points in the first half as the Wolfpack prevailed in the second round of the ACC tournament in Greensboro, N.C.

Barber shot 9-of-13 from the field, hit four 3-pointers and sank all 12 of his free-throw attempts for No. 7 seed North Carolina State (20-12), which advances to face second-seeded and No. 2 ranked Duke in Thursday’s quarterfinals. Trevor Lacey scored 14 of his 21 points in the second half for the Wolfpack, who shot 53.1 percent from the field and 23-of-29 from the free-throw line.

Cameron Wright scored 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting to lead the 10th-seed Panthers (19-14), who lost their fourth in a row. Michael Young added 13 points and leading scorer Jamel Artis finished with 12 points on 3-of-13 shooting for Pittsburgh, which remains one victory short of a 14th consecutive 20-win season.

Barber scored eight consecutive points early in the first half – on a 3-pointer, three free throws and a layup – to put the Wolfpack ahead 16-8, and his fourth 3 of the half with 2:31 to go gave N.C. State a 33-21 advantage. Barber added two free throws and a basket to send the Wolfpack into intermission leading 37-23.

Young scored eight of Pittsburgh’s 10 points in a three-minute span of the second half, with his 3-pointer drawing the Panthers within 50-43 with 11:24 to play. Lacey scored five points during a 7-0 burst to double the lead and, after Pittsburgh got within 70-62 on Artis’ basket with 2:24 remaining, Barber converted a three-point play on the ensuing possession.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The Wolfpack improved to 7-3 in the ACC tournament and 16-8 in March overall under fourth-year coach Mark Gottfried. … N.C. State shot 63.6 percent from the field in the second half. … Wright fell one point shy of matching his career high.