On the first possession of the season, No. 9 NC State women’s basketball sophomore guard Zoe Brooks threw the ball out of bounds trying to find graduate center Lizzy Williamson under the basket. The next time down the court, Brooks turned the ball over again, this time on a travel.

Brooks’ two turnovers to start the game were a harbinger for the rest of the first half as NC State had more turnovers than made field goals in the opening two quarters. If there is such a thing as a Final Four hangover, the Wolfpack had it in the first 20 minutes. But the Pack’s three-headed monster of guards — seniors Saniya Rivers and Aziaha James and sophomore Zoe Brooks — weathered the storm in the second half to ensure banner night wasn’t remembered for the wrong reasons.

After combining for just five points in the first half, James and Rivers scored the Wolfpack’s first 12 points in the third quarter to extend its slim five-point halftime lead over East Tennessee State University. Later in the quarter, Brooks found her rhythm and scored seven points. It was a theme that continued for the last 20 minutes as the trio of guards combined to score 37 of NC State’s 51 second-half points in its 80-55 win over East Tennessee State University Tuesday night at Reynolds Coliseum.

“Our veteran guards have got to be really good,” said head coach Wes Moore. “We just can’t afford them to have off-nights. They’ve got to be ready to play and play extremely well and disciplined on both ends of the floor.”

Last season, NC State was 10th in the country in least turnovers per game, averaging just over 12 per game. But this year’s team is not last year’s team. The Wolfpack recorded 12 turnovers in the first half alone, which led to 10 of the Buccaneers’ 26 points.

“In the first half they had us on lock and they had us down pat,” Brooks said. “We have to do a better job of noticing how teams are playing us and adjusting.”

Brooks had three turnovers alone in the first half but refocused in the second half and recorded zero turnovers on the way to a career-high 21 points.

“Just staying confident and trusting my abilities,” Brooks said. “A bad first half doesn’t define the second half. It’s a whole new game.”

Along with Brooks, Rivers and James also protected the basketball as the Wolfpack only had two turnovers in the second half behind the steady play of the three guards.

“We were sharing the ball a lot more,” said graduate guard Madison Hayes. “You could tell the ball was moving around a lot more. I think that was the main thing, not just letting it stick in one person’s hand and try to do one-on-one all game because it doesn’t work and it showed in the first half.”

One of the biggest mysteries throughout the offseason was the state of the Wolfpack’s post players. With River Baldwin and Mimi Collins both graduating last year, NC State was left with a brand new big room, composed of Williamson, sophomore Mallory Collier and freshmen Tilda Trygger and Lorena Awou.

Though Moore started Williamson, he gave all of his bigs ample playing time to prove themselves but didn’t commit to one player in particular.

“It’s a lot of things,” Moore said. “If our guards are playing well, that takes a little pressure off our post. Lizzie has got experience. Mallory has a year under her belt. I think Lorena has a high ceiling, but she’s still a little bit raw.”

When facing a smaller ETSU lineup in the fourth quarter, Moore allowed Awou to go to work, and the freshman delivered. The 6-foot-5 center was fed the ball in the paint on numerous occasions, allowing her to score her first collegiate points and secure three offensive rebounds.

“I think with Lorena originally, the idea was that you bring her in and work with her for a year,” Moore said. “But now all of a sudden, we need her now. So break the glass and grab the fire hydrant.”

With just one game of preparation before facing No. 1 South Carolina, Moore has had little to no time to figure out his rotation, whether it’s leaning on the experience of Williamson and Collier or the high ceiling of Awou and Trygger. However, Moore hinted at one more idea to try and down the best team in the nation.

“I’m not ruling out completely going with five guards and just figuring it out,” Moore said. “We’ve just gotta figure it out. But I’m not one to just sit there and let it go.”

Tonight proved that NC State has a plethora of high-volume guards to lean on, so it doesn’t seem that radical of an option. But when playing a team the size of South Carolina, it will be crucial to have a reliable big to box out, play defense and secure rebounds.

No matter which lineup Moore chooses to start, the Wolfpack have a lot to work on in practice before facing the college basketball giant. It’s impossible to win against a high-caliber team such as South Carolina when playing the way NC State did in the first half. It will have to play as mistake-free as possible to have any chance at downing one of the most accomplished teams in college sports.

“[South Carolina] definitely watched us and I think the first half they were probably like ‘Oh, they’re not that good or what is this?’ Because we did look crazy I’m not going to lie,” Brooks said. “But I think we’re going to give them a good game and we can beat them.”

The Wolfpack will travel to Charlotte to face the same team that defeated it in the Final Four last season, facing off on Sunday, Nov. 10 in the Spectrum Center. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m on ESPN.