NC State looks to be tougher against Notre Dame in NCAA tournament Sweet 16 matchup
When N.C. State head coach Wes Moore and players Elissa Cunane and Jakia Brown-Turner met with the media on Friday, one word kept coming up: Toughness.
If the Wolfpack (31-3) hope to advance to the Elite Eight, they have to show a lot of toughness, Moore said.
Moments later, Cunane and Brown-Turner threw the word around several times as they answered questions.
This season, N.C. State has shown off its depth, its talent and especially its experience. If the team finally wants to get that Sweet 16 monkey off its back, it’s going to take the little things. It’s going to take toughness.
The Wolfpack tip off with Notre Dame (24-8) in the Sweet 16 at 11:30 a.m. Saturday on ESPN. It’s a rematch from February 1, when the Irish knocked off N.C. State, 69-66, in South Bend.
Moore said his team has gotten better in some areas since that game — transition offense and defense in particular — but this time of the year it’s about the intangibles.
“We’re going to have to — it’s win or go home now,” Moore said. “We’ve got to really bring it, I think, every possession of every game.”
Notre Dame was the last team to beat the Wolfpack. Since that game, N.C. State has won 12 straight, including a third consecutive ACC tournament title. Of those 12 wins, 10 were by double-digits. Four times, the Pack won by 30 or more. During that 12-game span, its average margin of victory was 20.5 points per game.
The winning streak set them up for a fourth straight trip to the Sweet 16. Last year, as a No. 1 seed, they fell to Indiana in San Antonio.
“I thought Indiana was tougher than us a year ago, just to be real honest,” Moore said. “I just thought they took it to us and they had a veteran team and they were hungry.”
Now Moore has the veteran team, with three graduate students and a fourth-year senior in the lineup. The fifth starter is Brown-Turner, a junior who has started all but one game since she’s been in Raleigh.
What does toughness look like?
On the surface ”toughness” starts with the Wolfpack’s best player, Cunane.
Known as ‘Big Smile’ because of her infectious ear-to-ear grin, Cunane has played with more fire and intensity this season. She still flashes a smile on the court, but is just as likely to have a scowl after a tough possession.
Cunane explained what a tougher N.C. State team should look like against the Irish.
“I think it starts on defense for sure, box-outs, rebounding, the little things, going for 50/50 balls,” Cunane said. “Starting the game just strong, even if our shots aren’t falling, attacking, trying to get to the rim or trying to force stops on defense. It’s all the little things that make up a toughness game.”
In the first matchup with Notre Dame, the Irish won the rebounding battle 45-38. The 45 rebounds by Notre Dame were the most N.C. State allowed this season. The Pack also had a season-low in assists (6) and steals (3). They shot just 5-for-20 from 3.
Meanwhile, the Irish scored 108 points in their second-round win over Oklahoma.
“We’d better guard better than Oklahoma did or we’re going to be in for a long night,” Moore quipped.
Jokes aside, the N.C. State defense has improved down the stretch, holding four of its past five opponents to fewer than 60 points.
“You are playing against great teams at this time of year. Sometimes it is a struggle to score offensively,” Moore said. “And that’s why playing defense and rebounding are so critical, because the scores may be a little lower. And you (have) to make sure that you’re not putting so much pressure on your offense. So I do think this time of year, you have to have a lot of energy, you have to have a lot of urgency, buy into the scout and go out and execute it. But I think we have gotten better and hopefully we’ll continue to get better.”
At this point in the season, Moore knows it’ll take a complete effort, toughness from everyone, to advance.
“At this level, one or two players getting it is not going to be enough,” Moore said. “Just being on edge, ready to pounce, ready to make a play when the opportunity presents itself. Just physically, mentally being able to rise to the occasion.”
Scouting the Irish
The last time the two teams played, Notre Dame scored 50 points in the paint.
Irish forward Maya Dodson finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
“Dodson is a great player and she really had her way with us last time,” Moore said. “Mainly you’ve just got to — your players have to really have a lot of energy, a lot of urgency, trying to help in, close out, recover, maybe dig, whatever, pressure the ball a little bit more so the feed is a little bit tougher. But then keep her off the glass. Like I said, seven offensive rebounds against us last time. Most of those result in points when she gets those rebounds. Got to do a better job there and just battle. “
Notre Dame has the all-time edge over N.C. State, leading the series 8-2. Saturday will be the teams’ first ever meeting in the NCAA tournament. Twice, the Pack has been the higher ranked team against the Irish. Notre Dame won both times.
“I just think they’re all playing better collectively and hitting on all cylinders ,” Moore said. “You’re going to have to defensively be really locked in on strengths, and they’ve got a lot of strengths so that’s a big challenge.”
This story was originally published March 25, 2022 at 1:30 PM.
