Star NC State women’s basketball player will miss the first months of the season
Wes Moore’s N.C. State women’s basketball team is supposed to be stacked with depth this season.
Good thing, because it’s already being tested.
At the ACC Tip-Off event in Charlotte on Wednesday, Moore said the Wolfpack will be without junior forward Jada Boyd for “a couple of months” to start the season. Boyd, who was named to the Mercado Region All-NCAA Tournament Team, tore a tendon in her right, shooting hand.
Boyd was expected to make a jump this season, possibly starting for the two-time defending ACC champions. What complicates the situation is graduate forward Kayla Jones is still not back to 100% after undergoing knee surgery in the offseason. Boyd filled in for Jones in the NCAA tournament and was expected to do so again until Jones returns.
“We still have some hurdles,” Moore said. “Kayla had surgery and is still trying to come back from it. We’re starting out already having to overcome some adversity.”
Jones is back at practice, but not back to her usual form. Moore expected Boyd to step in after she scored 18 points in three straight NCAA tournament games in March. As a sophomore, Boyd averaged 11.5 points and five rebounds with five starts. She saved her best for late in the season.
She scored 16 points and pulled down 10 rebounds in the regular-season finale at Syracuse and had 13 and 10 in the ACC Tournament quarterfinal.
She didn’t slow down on the big stage, scoring 18 points off the bench versus North Carolina A&T in the first round of the NCAA tournament. She scored 18 again in the next two games versus South Florida and Indiana. Boyd, who was named the ACC Co-Sixth Player of the Year, started the final two NCAA tournament games for the Wolfpack.
She was named the ACC all-rookie team after her freshman season when she averaged 7.5 points, playing in all 31 games.
N.C. State opens the season versus South Carolina on Nov. 9. Boyd missed the game versus the Gamecocks last year with a leg injury.
This story was originally published October 13, 2021 at 11:40 AM.
