The NC State women’s basketball team has heated things up after a slow start to ACC play. Overall, the team has a good record 15-5, 4-3 ACC. But out of seven conference games, the Wolfpack has only managed to win four. It was a surprising turn from the team’s solid performance prior to facing teams within the ACC.

The team won its first ACC game but then went on a losing streak of three games. It didn’t look good for the Pack as with each game lost, a larger point gap was seen.

The Pack found its footing again, starting games off by taking early leads since playing Georgia Tech. The momentum from the fourth conference game was seen in the Pack’s following games against Syracuse and UNC-Chapel Hill.

The team has done a great job keeping clear leads in the final quarter of games but Syracuse was an exciting, close four point win for the Wolfpack before heading out to UNC-Chapel Hill.

Redshirt sophomore Kaila Ealey has played a large part in the team’s success. Offensively, Ealey scored 11 and 22 points against the Orange and the Tar Heels, respectively. Her points from the match against the Tar Heels were from field goals; Ealey making eight of 11. Ealey also made three of four 3-pointers and all three of her foul shots. Ealey has grown confident in her position as guard.

Seniors Chelsea Nelson and Akela Maize continue to be a solid foundation for the team both offensively and defensively. Nelson has had 33 total rebounds within her past three games; 14 of her rebounds were against Georgia Tech alone.

When playing the Orange, Nelson made 7 of 8 foul shots out of her 11 points. Maize made 5 of 9 field goals out of her 11 points and had three steals. And against the Tar Heels, Maize had 13 points and four blocks. Nelson herself had three blocks.

Even though Maize had a lot of foul trouble in the past few games, the UNC game marked her first match since Louisville where she wasn’t in foul trouble or completely fouled out. In fact, Maize had no fouls, which is impressive for a center.

A surprising underdog stepped up on the court. Junior DD Rogers may not be a scoring star but she has stepped into the role of rebounder, obtaining 20 rebounds in the past three matches. She may not have reached Nelson’s rebounding high but Rogers is a promising player to step up to NC State’s reputation for rebounding. Rogers also had three steals against the Tar Heels, but her shining moment was against Syracuse with her made foul shots that kept the Pack in the lead and a last second block to stop the Orange’s offense.

Overall, the turnovers have been cut down slightly in the past few games. Shooting percentage for shots on the free throw line, the perimeter and inside have all improved over the past few games which is a big positive for the Wolfpack, which sometimes struggles to knock down shots.

In the game against Georgia Tech, the Pack’s shooting percentage for field goals increased from 33.3 percent to 45.6 percent, an advantageous change for the Pack’s offense.

It’s reasonable to believe that the Wolfpack can maintain its momentum going into its next match away at Wake Forest this Thursday at 7 p.m.