NC State’s women’s basketball team has been on the road for the past week, but that has not stopped the Wolfpack’s momentum in the ACC. The team defeated UNC-Chapel Hill, Wake Forest and Clemson.
The Pack has yet to lose in the conference after its loss against Duke on Jan. 7, when the team was in a slump and having difficulties getting a quick start in games.
If anything, having away games has only helped the Wolfpack. Against the Tar Heels, the Pack won by 13 points. The Pack increased this to a 14-point win against Wake Forest, but this past Sunday the Pack defeated Clemson by 21 points. That large of a victory has not been seen by the Pack since its game against Tulane back in early December.
The victory against Clemson brought a milestone for senior Chelsea Nelson, as she scored her 1,000th point as a member of the Wolfpack. In the game against the Tigers, Nelson scored a total of 10 points.
Redshirt junior Kiara Leslie held the majority of the points though, scoring 22. Two free throws, two 3-point shots and nine field goals helped Leslie lead the way for the Wolfpack.
Leslie also almost led in total rebounds, but was out-rebounded by teammate junior DD Rogers who collected 12 rebounds, compared to Leslie’s 10.
Rogers has been a dark horse for the Pack who stepped up when former player Lucky Rudd left the team. Rogers has a steady performance in each game, making her a reliable player for the team. Her forte appears to be in rebounds as two out of the past three matchups, Rogers has held the top spot for most total rebounds.
Out of the three games on the road, the Pack dominated the defensive boards. In two of them, the Pack managed over 30 defensive rebounds.
Although the Wolfpack still averages 20 turnovers each game, no single player went over five personal turnovers during the past series of away games.
The team’s shooting has room to improve, but on average the Pack manages about 70 percent from the free-throw line which has proven to help the Pack come through some close games, namely Syracuse which was a four point game.
Despite a lower free-throw percentage against the Deacons, the majority of the Pack’s members made more than half of their foul shots. During its game against the Tigers, the Pack made 15 out of 20 foul shots.
Shots from the perimeter are comfortably in the 30 percent range and field goals are mostly in the 40 percent range. Even though room for growth is there, the numbers are not too bad for a team that is so strong in rebounds.
The Wolfpack will be facing high expectations coming home this Thursday to play against No. 8 Florida State.
