RALEIGH — The sense of relief after N.C. State's surprising 68-54 win over Wake Forest on Saturday afternoon was palpable in the Wolfpack's locker room.

An onerous seven-game ACC losing streak is history, and for the first time in a month there were smiles and jokes by the Wolfpack basketball players.

A thorough defensive effort, which saw State force 23 turnovers and hold the 23rd-ranked Demon Deacons without a 3-pointer (0-for-12), and a hot second half from 3-point range will do that for a slumping team.

"Some relief? Absolutely," Wolfpack coach Sidney Lowe said. "Are you kidding?"

State went 5-of-7 from 3-point range in the second half, adding to a 10-point halftime lead for its first ACC win since Jan. 20. All three of State's ACC wins have come against teams ranked in the AP Top 25 at the time.

"We can play with anybody," said senior forward Dennis Horner, who finished with 10 points and 12 rebounds.

The Deacs (18-7, 8-5) left Raleigh with a familiar regret. All five of their ACC losses have come on the road, and they've lost five straight at the RBC Center, including an 0-4 mark against Lowe.

The second straight ACC loss also introduces doubt for the Deacs and the possibility of another end-of-season disappointment. In Dino Gaudio's first season, the Deacs finished 1-5 and missed the NCAA Tournament. Last season, they won the final four regular-season games but went 0-2 in the postseason, including a first-round NCAA Tournament loss to Cleveland State.

"I have no concerns about how these kids are going to play," Gaudio said.

Another performance like Saturday's and Gaudio might rethink the answer. The Deacs started 1-for-12 from the floor with eight turnovers in the game's first seven minutes. They finished 23-of-66 (34.8 percent) and with a season-low 54 points.

As usual, forward Tracy Smith led the Wolfpack with 14 points but unlike most of the ACC losses, he had plenty of help. The most unexpected source of offense coming from sophomore guard C.J. Williams, who equaled his season-best with 12 points.

Williams hadn't scored in double figures in ACC play this season and entered the game 2-of-17 from 3-point range since mid-December. On Saturday, Williams hit two 3s and blocked two shots, including one on Wake star Al-Farouq Aminu, to give the Pack a boost.

"I wasn't playing as well as I knew I could play," said Williams, who started the first 16 games but has seen his minutes and production wane. "Part of my confidence was gone because I haven't been hitting my 3s, but the coaches just told me to shoot the ball and not worry about anything else."

Williams' second 3-pointer at 12:53 gave State a 42-30 advantage. The Deacs got as close as 46-40 in the second half before a flurry of 3s from Farnold Degand (13 points) and Javier Gonzalez (11 points) put State in cruise control over the final five minutes.

"We made a couple of shots when a team was making a run," Lowe said. "We didn't settle today. We kept the ball moving, and we saw the results."

Degand's second 3 at 4:10 made it 57-43, and Wake never got it back to single digits.

L.D. Williams, who was a bright spot with 12 points and 11 rebounds in 39 minutes, shot an airball from the left corner with 63 seconds left to typify Wake's effort from the 3-point line. It was the first time since 1992, a span of 575 games, the Deacs did not make a 3-pointer.

While Wake, which will get a week to prepare for a visit from UNC, quietly exited, the Wolfpack exhaled.

"I was getting tired of losing," Horner said.

For the first time in a month, that wasn't the Wolfpack's problem.

N.C. State 68, Wake Forest 54

Three-point goals: 0-12, .000 (Aminu 0-1, Williams 0-1, Smith 0-2, Stewart 0-4, Harris 0-4). Team rebounds: 4. Blocked shots: 4 (Aminu 2, Woods, McFarland). Turnovers: 23 (McFarland 6, Aminu 6, Smith 5, Stewart 2, Harris, Woods, Williams, Clark). Steals: 7 (Aminu 2, Williams 2, Stewart, Smith, Clark). Technical fouls: none.

Three-point goals: 6-12, .500 (Williams 2-3, Degand 2-4, Wood 1-1, Gonzalez 1-3, Horner 0-1). Team rebounds: 1. Blocked shots: 6 (Horner 3, Williams 2, Wood). Turnovers: 15 (Williams 3, Degand 3, Wood 2, Gonzalez 2, T.Smith 2, Howell 2, Horner). Steals: 10 (Gonzalez 4, Horner 2, Degand 2, Wood, T.Smith). Technical fouls: none.

Att.-15,324. Officials-Bryan Kersey, Les Jones, Gary Maxwell.

jp.giglio@newsobserver.com or 919-829-8938