Women's Basketball
NC State Feasts on #2 Maryland, 78-60
Snuck in on Thanksgiving morning, State went down to the Bahamas and took care of business against undefeated and #2 ranked Maryland, 78-60.
And outside of an opening three by the Terrapins, State lead every. single. second.
Reviewing Keys to the Game
Rebounding – Maryland does work on the boards. Prior to the matchup with State, they had a +13 rebound advantage per game. State was as active as they’ve ever been, doing a 180 on Maryland and outrebounding them 47-34. More importantly, 72% of State’s rebounds were on the defensive end, forcing Maryland to plenty of one-and-done’s on offense. Cunane was fabulous in the first quarter, grabbing 6 boards with 6 points. Brown-Turner (11) and Johnson (8) were playing their part consistently. Eight Pack players in all, had multiple rebounds.
Controlled the Game Inside – Beyond State’s 34 defensive rebounds, they had 46 points in the paint (+16 over Maryland). Wolfpack was physical and played with intention. Clean cuts to the basket and finding open teammates for jumpers. It wasn’t an overwhelming offense output, but they put together the perfect game plan for Maryland.
Full Team Healthy – For the first time this year, Boyd played for State. With a little rust, there were moments when you stepped back and said, “This team healthy and settled is something else.” Brown-Turner and Cunane had double-doubles, as Perez added 11 points. Crutchfield and Jones had off days, but then Boyd and Johnson come off the bench for huge minutes and production. Even Hobby, James and Hayes had defensive moments in limited time. In all honesty, by the turn of the new year, Moore should have confidence in about a dozen players to put up minutes. That’s incredible.
The NC State women were a 7 seed, picked to move on over 10-seeded Princeton, but that’s not how it worked out.
The Pack women were plagued by turnovers (20) and Princeton capitalized with a late 3 to clinch the win. Highlight above.
Sad day for NC State all around.
The NC State Women’s Basketball (16-5) team moved up 5 spots in the Week 13 AP Poll, after defeating Notre Dame 69-65 yesterday, who was ranked 7th then, and ranked 9th now.
(ESPN)
ACC Teams in the Week 13 AP Poll
9. Notre Dame
11. UNC
13. Virginia Tech
15. NC State
16. Duke
23. FSU
The Wolfpack’s next game will be on Thursday night on the road at Georgia Tech at 8pm on ACC Network.
#20 NC State picked up a much needed win last night against Miami, defeating the Hurricanes 71-61 in PNC Arena, avoiding a 3-game skid.
Sophomore Guard Saniya Rivers led the pack with 14 points, 6 steals, 3 rebounds and 3 assists.
As long as she keeps working, @PackWomensBball Saniya Rivers ( @Ihoop___22 ) is going to be a really fun @wnba player to cover in a few years.
(Until then, I’ll enjoy watching her, @haileyvanlith , NC State & @LouisvilleWBB on ABC Sunday at 1pm et.)— Rebecca Lobo (@RebeccaLobo) January 19, 2023
Seniors Camille Hobby and Mimi Collins both had 11 points.
Sophomore Guard Aziaha James had 10 points, and led the Pack with 6 rebounds.
The Wolfpack was without Jada Boyd and Jessica Timmons last night, and River Baldwin went down with an injury, and will have an MRI tomorrow.
NC State is now 14-5 overall, and 4-4 in ACC play, and will play at Louisville on Sunday at 1pm on ABC.