N.C. State (4-0) continued its dominance Monday night, crushing Morgan State (0-2) at Reynolds Coliseum, 94-52. This marks the second consecutive win by more than 40 points for the Wolfpack.
“We were anxious to get this game over with and move on,” head coach Wes Moore said. “We knew that it was a game that we should take care of business quickly.”
Senior forward Kody Burke led the team with 23 points and nine rebounds. Prior to the game, she only averaged 7.6 points per game.
“Kody is very hard on herself,” Moore said. “She’s a two-time Academic All-American and hopefully will be for a third time. She’s a perfectionist, so she’s hard on herself. It was good that she hit her shots and gained confidence. When she does that, she’s going to have nights like this. She knew she was going to knock them down.”
Senior center Markeisha Gatling followed with14 points and eight rebounds. Senior forward Lakeesa Daniel and junior guard Breezy Williams added 13 points each off the bench.
“We practiced on finding areas where we will be open, and I took that to heart,” Burke said. “Overall, it was a great team effort. Markeisha and I have a great chemistry. She can catch any pass, and she’s an efficient scorer. I always look for her when I get the ball.”
The Pack’s depth has played a large role in the team’s success. State’s bench scored 44 points against the Bears’ nine. The Pack has outscored its opponents in every game thus far.
“I’ve just tried to get in where I fit in,” Barrett said. “Obviously, Kody can knock down her shots and Markeisha is an offensive threat. I focus on getting my points off of rebounds and steals. I don’t try to score and knock down shots like Kody Burke, so I pick up their slack and try to help them out.”
State attacked the Bears’ defense with 18 baskets in each half, tying the season high from the second half in Saturday’s contest against Presbyterian.
“They liked to do a lot of trapping out of the zone,” Moore said. “We worked on that in practice, and we handled that really well, so they got out of that and didn’t do it as much after.”
The Pack has yet to trail in any of its four games this season. State has outscored all of its opponents, 318-190.
After a minute without a basket for either side, the Pack jumped on a 12-3 run to start the game. Burke surpassed her previous season-high, 11 points, within the first 14 minutes of the game. She left the half with 13 points and the team ahead, 37-19.
The Bears failed to come within 23 points for the remainder of the game as State pulled ahead on a 23-9 run. The Pack led as high as 45 points and cruised away with the 42-point win.
State’s defense forced 18 Morgan State turnovers that translated into 28 points on the opposite side of the court. The Pack only turned the ball over 16 times, but the team recorded 23 assists.
Gatling led with five assists followed by senior guard Myisha Goodwin-Coleman and redshirt junior guard Len’Nique Brown with four apiece.
“Our defense leads to offense,” Burke said. “We had a lot of steals tonight, and getting rebounds and going for fast breaks led to points. We play as efficient as we can when we’re out there.”
State will return to action on Sunday at Reynolds Coliseum against Tulane. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m.
