Taking care of business: 3 takeaways as NC State women’s basketball routs Wake Forest
Zoe Brooks looked up at the Jumbotron and watched the replay of Zamareya Jones’ swift drive to the basket with 7½ minutes remaining in the second quarter.
“Oh dang,” Brooks mouthed. Jones drew the foul and hit the and-1, putting the Pack up 16 points. That was part of an 11-0 run that gave N.C. State a 22-point advantage. Its advantage never dropped below 21 points.
No. 9 N.C. State defeated Wake Forest, 78-57, on Thursday in Reynolds Coliseum to close its home schedule and send its decorated seniors off in style. It finished the regular season undefeated at home.
If anyone had concerns there would be a dropoff after the team’s 104-point performance against Notre Dame on Sunday, those were put to rest within a couple of minutes.
“In coaching, there’s a saying about big game, next game,” head coach Wes Moore said. “You worry about how your team’s going to come out after a real emotional game on Sunday, but I was pleased for the most part the way we came out.”
It took the Wolfpack about four shot attempts to get going, but then N.C. State’s offense settled in with no problem. Moore said he thought the team went a little too one-on-one in the opening minutes.
N.C. State (23-5, 15-2 ACC) entered the game as a 22.5-point favorite. It took a 13-point lead 2½ minutes into the second quarter and extended that to 25 points shortly before halftime, thanks to an 18-3 run in the second.
Aziaha James scored 18 first-half points en route to the big lead and subsequent win, while Madison Hayes added eight first-half rebounds.
James finished the game with 21 points, including six threes, a trio of rebounds and four assists. The senior now ranks No. 8 in program history for 3-pointers made (169), surpassing now-assistant coach Ashley Williams. Additionally, she is two threes away from tying Kai Crutchfield for No. 7 all time.
Hayes finished with 14 points and nine boards. James said the team was hoping to get her one more rebound for a double-double.
“This probably won’t be our last time (in Reynolds), officially, just because we’re trying to host, but it is bittersweet,” Hayes said. “I’ve been here for four years, me and Zaza have, and (Saniya’s) been here for three. I’m really excited for this team and our journeys in the future.”
The start was far better than the one in Winston-Salem last month.
Wake Forest (9-19, 2-15) didn’t make things easy in the first rivalry matchup. The game featured one tie, four lead changes, and the Demon Deacons led by as many as 10 points early in the second quarter. In fact, N.C. State needed a 21-0 run split between the first and second halves to take the lead.
Rylie Theuerkauf, the Deacs’ leading scorer, shot 10-15 from the field. She started 8-8 and scored 21 of her 25 points in the first half. Theuerkauf was held to six points on 2-of-11 shooting.
N.C. State’s offense went cold in the second half, while the team substituted some of its veteran players for underclassmen. Additionally, foul trouble became an issue down the stretch. Six Wake Forest players had three personal fouls midway through the fourth quarter, while three N.C. State players had at least three.
N.C. State’s big lead and stalwart defense, however, provided plenty of cushion in crunch time.
The Wolfpack closes the season at Southern Methodist University on Sunday before playing in the ACC Tournament next week. It has clinched the double bye and is expected to be one of the top two seeds in Greensboro.
“I’m trying to figure out if I can hire a lawyer and get a lawsuit going to allow fifth years for players,” Moore said, joking about his three star guards. “We’re going to miss them, but right now we need to take full advantage and take it as far as we can. Extend those careers, as long as we can.
“I’m gonna keep pushing and until it’s over, until their careers are over. Then we can be best friends.”
Here are three takeaways from the Pack’s senior day victory.
Welcome back, defense
N.C. State’s defense has not been as sharp in recent games as it was earlier in the season, allowing five of its last seven opponents to score more than 70 points. Part of that can be attributed to higher competition — five of its last six games were against ranked opponents — but the team wasn’t particularly happy with its defensive efforts recently.
Such was not the case Thursday.
The Wolfpack looked determined to leave Reynolds Coliseum with a commanding victory. It held the Demon Deacons to 24 first-half points on a 9-of-35 (25.7%) shooting performance, outscoring Wake Forest 27-10 in the second quarter.
Going into the locker room, N.C. State had recorded five blocks, one steal and 21 defensive rebounds. N.C. State entered the game averaging just under 30 defensive rebounds per game.
Additionally, the Pack forced a three-second violation and 10-second backcourt violation on the Demon Deacons.
In the end, N.C. State held the Deacs to 32.1% shooting overall and 20% from the perimeter. Wake Forest’s 55 points were the fewest opponent points allowed since the Pack’s 85-57 win over Virginia Tech.
“Defense is something we have been struggling with this season,” Rivers said. “I think team defense is better than some individual defense. That’s what team defense is for. … I think that helped us this past Sunday. I think it helped us tonight.”
There were still breakdowns, and the team got beaten in the post, but it can’t complain too much.
“There’s still a lot of things that we can look at and say we got to do better,” Moore said. “But that’s kind of our goal: Hold the team under 60 points, you’ve had a heck of a night, and you’re usually going to win that game. From that standpoint, we met our goal, and hopefully we can continue to improve.”
Top-tier transition
N.C. State’s two favorite words: Defense and transition. With the Wolfpack’s strong defense against the Demon Deacons firing on all cylinders, it was able to get its transition game going, too.
The Wolfpack records 13.8 fast-break points per game, and it nearly matched the season average in the first half alone. N.C. State recorded 12 fast-break points, eight off James’ jumpers.
Meanwhile, James and Co. held the Demon Deacons scoreless in transition.
In the second half, the Pack continued its dominance in the full court. It finished with 20 fast-break points, topping its four previous performances.
“I feel like at the beginning of the season, some people felt like they had to just do it on their own. But we have so many pieces, and we’re so versatile,” Rivers said after the Pack’s win over Notre Dame. “I feel like when we play together, get out in transition, do what we’re supposed to do, we’re gonna win.”
Youngsters have big shoes to fill
N.C. State honored its seniors and graduate students in the annual ceremony. Though the team is expected to host games during the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament, Thursday served as the sendoff for James, Rivers, Hayes and Lizzy Williamson. It’ll be tough to replace the quartet, particularly the three guards.
They have been part of at least one ACC Championship, three NCAA Tournament appearances, two Sweet 16s, two Elite Eights and one Final Four. The trio all surpassed 1,000 career points this season as well.
But N.C. State has young players who are poised to fill those spots.
Zoe Brooks continues to be one of the team’s best scorers. She entered the game averaging 14.2 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. The sophomore had 14 points and six rebounds before the end of the third quarter.
She finished with 17 points on 5-of-8 shooting. She added four assists, one block and one steal.
Additionally, N.C. State once again received valuable minutes from Lorena Awou and Tilda Trygger. Though they didn’t score particularly well in the win, they provided defensive pressure and combined for seven rebounds, two blocks and two steals.
Devyn Quigley recovered a bobbled ball from Rivers and dished out an assist. Maddie Cox came into the game for size on defense. She pulled down a rebound. Laci Steele even knocked down a corner three and dropped in a layup.
Underclassmen played three of the final four minutes to help N.C. State close the victory.
There are question marks about how things will look next year, but the previews have been promising.
This story was originally published February 27, 2025 at 9:18 PM.
