The NC State women’s basketball team has always played a team style of basketball. Rarely does it have a scorer head and shoulders above the rest of the team or a go-to scorer in clutch moments down the stretch.
That’s not the case anymore.
Time and time again, junior guard Kai Crutchfield is there when the Wolfpack needs a bucket. The cold-blooded Raleigh native has shown repeatedly she has ice in her veins, and in the Pack’s biggest nonconference game of the season, she came through.
In No. 13 NC State’s 66-59 win over No. 9 Maryland, Crutchfield scored 19 points on 7-for-12 shooting. But she saved her best for last; the 5-foot-9 guard scored eight points and hit two huge 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.
The first 3-pointer, with NC State clinging to a one-point lead after Maryland opened the fourth quarter on a 10-4 run, gave NC State a two-possession 53-49 lead and a slim bit of breathing room in what was a breathtaking nonconference battle.
“I was just trying to take what the defense gave me,” Crutchfield said. “Of course I’ve got to give credit to my teammates for setting me up, going off of their screens and looking for those opportunities.”
The second and most important 3 gave NC State a seven-point lead. After an offensive rebound by sophomore center Elissa Cunane and with the shot clock winding down, Crutchfield danced around a screen with the ball on a string. As her defender bit hard over the top, Crutchfield stepped back and let a 3-pointer fly, finding nothing but net and sending the raucous Reynolds Coliseum crowd into an absolute frenzy as she jumped and hollered down the court.
“I try not to get too big-headed,” Crutchfield said. “Coach says not to celebrate after a possession … We might need to work on that a little bit.”
But Crutchfield wasn’t done yet. On the defensive end, freshman wing Jakia Brown-Turner corralled a rebound and found Crutchfield streaking down the left wing. The Pack’s new closer hauled in the pass on the fly and laid it in for a layup and a 62-53 lead to ice the game away.
“She just has a knack for hitting big shots,” said NC State coach Wes Moore. “I just think she steps up at game time. I’m proud of her.”
Crutchfield’s late-game heroics aren’t just a product of her taking a game over or putting it away. They’re also aided by a pretty simple fact: Her teammates like to give her the ball when the shot clock is winding down and a shot needs to be taken.
“Especially when the shot clock is going down,” said junior forward Kayla Jones about when they like to get Crutchfield the ball. “‘Kai, go! You got it.’”
As NC State approaches ACC play and eyes a shot at the ACC championship, it’s going to need someone to give the ball to in late-game situations and let her go to work. If there’s anything Kai Crutchfield has shown so far this season, it’s that Crutch is clutch.
