NC State women’s basketball completed its nonconference slate with a spotless record at 13-0 after defeating Davidson 75-45 at Reynolds Coliseum Sunday.
The No. 9 Wolfpack was able to clean out the Wildcats (6-7) with a margin of 30 points but the Pack didn’t see such a lead until the second half of the game.
The first two quarters of the game were a battle of momentum. The Pack was able to take a good lead in the first quarter but the Wildcats quickly responded in the second quarter to place both teams on an even playing field for the second half.
The Wolfpack game out stronger in the second half, scoring 15 more points than the Wildcats. NC State kept the pace for the rest of the game to soundly defeat Davidson.
The first quarter started off quick with a steal from graduate guard Kiara Leslie that did not lead to any early points but did set the tone of the Pack’s speed for later in the game. The Pack did manage to start the game with a 6-0 lead.
Leslie was one of the Pack’s top scorers with 13 points and seven defensive rebounds of the Pack’s 51 total rebounds. Redshirt junior guard Grace Hunter was the Pack’s top rebounder with 10 total rebounds, six defensively and four offensively.
NC State kept the lead for the entirety of the first quarter with an average lead of seven points. The Pack’s largest lead was of nine points after a layup from freshman center Elissa Cunane at 17-8.
A final layup from the Wildcats’ senior Justine Lyon would finish the first 10 minutes 17-10. Lyon was the top scorer for Wildcats with 16 points.
The second quarter was a flip of the first with the Wildcats scoring 17 points while the Pack only managed to put up 10 to tie up the score at 27 thanks to a jump shot from Hunter, finishing out the first half.
Although the Wildcats took the lead in the opening of the third quarter with a 3-point shot, the Pack quickly rallied back with a 9-0 run to go up 36-30. The run ended after a layup from junior forward Erika Cassell off of a fast break.
The Pack never allowed the Wildcats to have the lead for the rest of the game. In fact, the Pack prevented the Wildcats from scoring double digits in both the third and fourth quarters. In turn, the Wildcats were unable to do the same as the Pack scored 24 points in each of the last two quarters.
Leslie sunk a 3-pointer with an assistance from Hunter to create a 19 point lead. The Pack finished the game with 18 assists, five blocks and faced no foul trouble.
The fourth quarter was similar as the third quarter in the Wolfpack’s dominance on the court.
Junior guard Aislinn Konig scored seven points throughout the fourth quarter. Konig was the lead scorer for the Pack with 17 points and a shooting percentage of 50 percent from the arc and 54 percent in the field.
NC State had a 46 shooting percent in the field and had 33 percent on the arc. Davidson’s shooting percentage was a low 28 percent in field goals and an even 30 percentage on the 3-point line.
With the Wildcats’ poor shooting combined with the Pack out-rebounding them by 15 total rebounds, it’s not hard to see how the score became a large margin in the second half.
The Wolfpack will return home to Reynolds Coliseum to open the ACC season against Duke Thursday at 7 p.m.
