Before she entered her fourth ACC Tournament, women’s basketball head coach Kellie Harper was no stranger to the team playing at a higher level when its back is against the wall. She guided the Wolfpack to the tournament final her first season in Raleigh and defeated Duke last season to reach the semifinal round. The Wolfpack was considered underdogs in both contests.
But, the buck stopped with the Blue Devils this season. The Pack fell to them in the semifinals, 79-65, after it bounced Clemson in the opening round, 56-45.
“It hurts for us to come up short. Our team had an amazing mindset going into this game,” Harper said. “Not only did they think they were going to win this game. I’ll be honest with you, they thought they were going to win the tournament.”
State was able to complete a comeback in the second half and put Clemson away when it went on a 16-1 run in the final five minutes of the contest.
“During that stretch, the last thing I wanted our players to do was panic,” Harper said. “But we really had to start moving and put a press on. We got to the free throw line. I thought that was key. We played with some toughness, made a couple shots that were big.”
Friday’s contest had the makings of a similar result. State tied the game at 49 with more than 12 minutes remaining in the second half, but Duke ripped off a 26-8 run to finish the game.
Duke guard Tricia Liston torched the Pack for 26 points in the contest. Freshman guard Alexis Jones, who started in the place of co-ACC Player of the Year Chelsea Gray, also scored 17 points for the Blue Devils.
Senior guard Marissa Kastanek led the Pack in scoring in her final ACC Tournament appearance. She averaged 16 points in the two contests.
“We don’t really know what’s going to happen next as far as postseason play,” Kastanek said. “It was pretty much my last game in the ACC Tournament. We fought hard as a team. I’m proud of my teammates. We played really well together. We never quit, so I was proud of everybody.”
Junior center Markeisha Gatling also had a standout tournament for the Pack. She averaged a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds through the two games.
Following the conference tournament, State is staring down a 16-16 record on its resume and a bid to the NCAA Tournament is out of its sights.
Similar to last season’s result, the Wolfpack’s next postseason fate is pointing toward receiving an invitation to the Women’s National Invitational Tournament. Last season, it fell to Appalachian State, 66-62, in the second round of the WNIT.
Despite the possibility of Kastanek playing her last game, she said she does not walk into each game with that reality on her mind.
“You don’t want to go through it being nervous about when it’s going to end. I’m just living in the moment and relying on my teammates.”
