DJ Burns helps fuel NC State basketball crash March Madness party again: 'Final Four Baby!'

To quote CBS broadcaster Bill Raftery, Jim Valvano is celebrating up above as his NC State Wolfpack return to the Final Four.

And Jimmy V has DJ Burns to thank in part for that. The Wolfpack big man was once again a force to be reckoned with on Sunday, as he posted 29 points on 13-of-19 shooting to help NC State pull off yet another March Madness upset, this time over ACC foe and 4 seed Duke to advance to the program's first Final Four in 41 years.

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Burns, who transferred from Winthrop College in 2022 and returned this season on his COVID-19 extra year of eligibility, is averaging 18.3 points, five rebounds and 3.5 assists per game in the NCAA Tournament. And he's become a March Madness celebrity while doing so.

"I'd say it like I've been saying the whole tournament, when I stop having fun with basketball I'll stop playing," Burns told CBS' Tracy Wolfson after the game. "I'm very thankful to be here. The guys behind us are ready."

Call it house money or call it a team gelling at the right time — both could be true when referencing the run that Kevin Keatts and his Wolfpack have been on the last 19 days. It includes nine straight wins, the program's first ACC Tournament title since 1987, an Elite Eight appearance for the first 1986 and now the first Final Four since 1983 — but Burns would side with the latter.

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"It's been a total switch in our commitment," Burns said. "Nobody is being late to things. Nobody is being a problem on the court. Everybody has come together, I don't know what it is but everyone is handling it on and off the court well. ... Final Four baby."

NC State will now take on 1 seed Purdue on Saturday in the Final Four at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.