Unable to stop the star backcourt combo of Nausia Woolfolk and Nicki Ekhomu, the No. 9 NC State women’s basketball team fell on the road to No. 24 Florida State, 75-70, at the Donald L. Tucker Center.
Woolfolk (22 points) and Ekhomu (20 points) combined for 42 points and nine assists, and terrorized the Wolfpack (21-2, 8-2 ACC) on defense, nabbing four steals.
After a scorching 18-6 run to start the game, the Wolfpack overcame an eight-point second quarter to tie the game up heading into the fourth quarter.
The two teams went back and forth early in the fourth quarter, exchanging lead changes three times in the first two-and-a-half minutes.
With 3:27 remaining in the fourth quarter, freshman center Elissa Cunane got a layup to go, giving the Pack a 65-62 lead. In a span of just two minutes, the Seminoles (20-3, 8-2 ACC) answered with a 10-0 run to go up 72-65 and ice the game.
Cunane hit 10 of 19 shots to lead the Pack with 25 points, and paced the team with eight rebounds. Senior forward DD Rogers, graduate guard Kiara Leslie and sophomore guard Kai Crutchfield rounded out the double-digit scorers for the Pack with 11, 11 and 10, respectively.
Turnovers plagued the Wolfpack all game long, as junior guard Aislinn Konig gave the ball away six times, and Leslie and Crutchfield each gave it away three times apiece.
The Pack shot 43 percent from the field and 42 percent from the 3-point line, but turnovers were the key, as the Seminoles scored 23 points off of the Pack’s 16 turnovers.
For the second game in a row Leslie and Konig, the Wolfpack’s two leading scorers entering the game, were held to below 42 percent shooting, with Leslie hitting 5 of her 12 shots (1 for 4 from beyond the arc), and Konig nailing just 3 of her 10 attempts (3 for 8 from 3).
After starting off the season 21-0, the Wolfpack has now dropped back-to-back conference matchups. The loss drops NC State into a four-way tie for second place with Miami, Florida State and Notre Dame.
The Pack will need to put its two-game skid in the rearview mirror quickly, as it faces four current AP Top 25 teams in the next month of the season.
NC State will return to action on Wednesday, February 13, when it takes on No. 15 Syracuse at the Carrier Dome in New York.
