NC State women’s basketball stays perfect, hands Vanderbilt first loss of the season

N.C. State women’s basketball head coach Wes Moore has reached his share of milestones at the helm of the No. 5 Wolfpack, particularly over the past four years.

That doesn’t mean it gets old for the veteran coach, now in his 11th year leading N.C. State.

Moore recorded his 250th victory in a game that also saw a “first,” as well: The Pack won its inaugural ACC/SEC Challenge matchup against previously unbeaten Vanderbilt, 70-62.

N.C. State (8-0) began the season unranked, a handful of points shy of making the AP Top 25. But wins over top-5 UConn and Colorado have vaulted the Pack into the top 5 itself, and it backed that up Wednesday with a win.

Saniya Rivers, who finished with a game-high 22 points, led N.C. State, while Aziaha James, River Baldwin and Zoe Brooks also finished in double figures with 14, 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Baldwin also collected a team-best 10 rebounds, securing her first double-double of the season.

The Pack held early edges of 15-11 and 18-14, while Vanderbilt never led by more than a single point. But N.C. State used a 17-7 run to close the period and establish a lead it never relinquished. The Wolfpack stretched its advantage to as many as 11 points late in the second and carried a 35-26 lead into halftime.

A James 3-pointer keyed an early third-quarter run for the Pack and by the fourth quarter, the home team stretched its lead to 26, at 62-36.

The Commodores trimmed N.C. State’s lead to single digits with 2:13 to play before the Pack clamped down and secured the win

N.C. State returns to action at home Sunday, hosting Illinois State at 2 p.m.

This story was originally published November 30, 2023 at 12:03 AM.