The ACC is a warzone in women’s college basketball. With six teams in the top 25, almost every conference game is a battle of the best. On any given night, there’s a chance for an upset or a statement win.
Such was nearly the case for No. 10 NC State women’s basketball. For weeks, emphasis has been placed on the back half of its schedule, specifically a three-week stretch where the red-and-white was slated to face five ranked opponents in six games. Yet, halfway through those three weeks, it was the unranked team that gave the Wolfpack the most trouble.
After downing two ranked teams last week — then-No. 10 Duke and then-No. 22 Florida State — the Wolfpack returned home for what was assumed to be an easier matchup against unranked Miami. Instead, NC State (20-4, 12-1 ACC) found itself in an intense battle as the Hurricanes (13-11, 3-10 ACC) shot the lights out.
Late in the fourth quarter, both teams struggled to score. The Wolfpack and the Hurricanes went nearly three minutes without scoring, locked in a 74-74 stalemate. NC State’s eight-game winning streak and undefeated home record hung in the balance.
With just 47 seconds left, sophomore guard Zoe Brooks stepped up. Up to this point, Brooks was playing one of her worst games of the season, making just three of her 10 shot attempts. Nonetheless, the Wolfpack exited the timeout and executed head coach Wes Moore’s play.
“We ran the horn set, so [Brooks] can either get downhill or throw it back to Madison,” Moore said. “She got downhill and did a good job of attacking.”
While Brooks sank the go-ahead layup, the Hurricanes had a chance to tie the game, putting the ball in the hands of star guard and leading scorer Haley Cavinder. Cavinder drove into a cluster of white jerseys and couldn’t sink the game-tying layup as time expired.
“You just keep going and hope that someone steps up and makes it,” Moore said. “Zoe made a good decision and was able to hit a big shot. I’ve got a lot of faith and confidence in Zoe to make things happen.”
Though Brooks made the game-winning layup, graduate guard Madison Hayes was the Wolfpack’s savior in the second half. Hayes scored 16 of the Wolfpack’s 34 second-half points, keeping the Wolfpack alive in the final 20 minutes. Time and time again, an outlet pass to Hayes led to a deep 3-pointer that Miami simply couldn’t stop.
“What a blessing,” Moore said. “She’s a glue player for us. She holds everything else together. She gets some rebounds, hits some big 3s, makes some plays on defense … kind of does it all.”
With her first bucket of the game — a buzzer-beating layup at the end of the first quarter — Hayes reached 1,000 career points.
“Going to a Final Four, not a lot of people can say that,” Hayes said. “And scoring my 1,000th point, not a lot of people can say that either. Scoring it at home, I think it’s just amazing.”
After being named Naismith Trophy National Player of the Week for her performances against Duke and Florida State, senior guard Aziaha James cooled down. Though James scored 15 points, nine of them came in the first quarter and James struggled to create any offense in the second half, scoring just four points in the final 20 minutes.
James wasn’t the only player that struggled. Outside of Hayes, no Wolfpack player scored more than four points in the second half. With a tough stretch of three ranked teams upcoming, the offense needs to find continuity fast.
“We want to be like McDonalds’ fries,” Moore said. “It doesn’t matter where you are in the U.S., it doesn’t matter if you’re in Germany and it doesn’t matter if you’re in Paris. When you walk in there, those french fries are going to be hot and salty, and that’s what we need to be, no matter where we are or who we’re playing. It’s about us.”
Next up, the Wolfpack travels to Chapel Hill to take on No. 12 UNC-Chapel Hill in another highly ranked conference bout on Sunday. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN.
