The NC State women’s basketball team was able to secure victories over East Tennessee State, 73-58, and East Carolina, 69-65, to advance to round 16 of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament. Sophomore guard Miah Spencer led the Wolfpack offensively, combining for 49 points in the contests.
In the first round, both teams struggled from the floor in the first half, with NC State (18-14, 7-9 ACC) shooting 9-of-33 from the field and East Tennessee State (21-12, 11-3 SoCon) shooting 9-of-25, leading to a 25-25 tie at halftime.
The Wolfpack, however, caught fire during the second half, going on a 9-2 run over the first 3:18 of the second half to take a commanding 34-27 lead. The Bucs then went on a run of their own, closing the margin to just two points with 9:36 remaining. Soon after, the Pack ran away with it.
NC State immediately went on a 15-4 run to expand its lead to double digits with 3:10 left in the game. From then on, the Pack never led by fewer than 13 points and was able to secure the victory.
Spencer led all scorers with 23 points on 8-of-16 from the field, while adding four assists and four steals. Redshirt senior guard Len’Nique Brown-Hoskin and redshirt sophomore guard Dominique Wilson also scored in double digits, putting up 14 and 12 points, respectively. Head coach Wes Moore earned his 600th career win in the victory, according to NC State Athletics.
The second round was a slightly different story for the Wolfpack, with East Carolina (22-11, 11-7 AAC) leading 35-27 at the break. NC State shot 2-of-7 from beyond the arc and just 3-of-8 from the free throw line in the first half.
The Pack was able to spark some momentum at the beginning of the second half, tying the game at 40 just over four minutes into the half. However, the Pirates were able to regain the lead to gain a 51-43 advantage with 13:09 left in the game. The teams went back and forth, as the scoring margin remained constant with East Carolina leading 58-50 with 6:35 remaining in regulation.
NC State then went on an 8-0 run to tie the game at 58 with just 4:53 left and the teams fought tooth and nail to the very end. With only 12 seconds remaining, freshman forward Chelsea Nelson made a pivotal layup to give the Wolfpack a 67-65 lead. Wolfpack sophomore forward Jennifer Mathurin then stole the ball with two seconds left, forcing the Pirates to foul, and she made both free throws to seal the victory.
Spencer scored a career-high 26 points on 9-of-16 from the field and 5-of-7 from three-point range, while adding four assists and three rebounds. Mathurin skied for a career-high 14 rebounds in addition to scoring 10 points. Nelson garnered seven points and seven rebounds. Both teams combined for a total of 42 turnovers.
In the third round of the WNIT, the Wolfpack will travel to Temple with tip-off scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday.
