For the second time in four days, No. 2 NC State played a close game with Virginia Tech on Thursday evening. After squeezing by with a win on Sunday at home with a huge comeback, the Wolfpack (11-1, 6-1 ACC) fell in overtime on the road 83-71.
“Give Virginia Tech a lot of credit, obviously they came ready to play,” said NC State head coach Wes Moore. “I thought they did a great job defensively on us, and we struggled all day. We seemed to just stand around a lot.”
The Wolfpack were led offensively by sophomore center Camille Hobby, who had a career high in points and rebounds with 19 and nine, including a 3-pointer to send the game to overtime. Graduate guard Raina Perez and sophomore wing Jakia Brown-Turner were also in double digits for the Wolfpack with 16 and 15 points, respectively.
For the Hokies (8-7, 3-7 ACC), Aisha Sheppard led the way, scoring 28 points, which were all scored in the second half and overtime.
In the first quarter, NC State made it an emphasis to get the ball inside. Hobby went to work down low with eight points in the first 10 minutes of the game. She helped the team make five straight attempts from the field that gave the Wolfpack an early lead.
“We should have got [Hobby] more touches in there because that was working really well,” Moore said.
The Hokies countered that with three made 3-pointers that allowed them to only be down 19-15 going into the second quarter.
It was much of the same in the second quarter as NC State went into halftime with a 30-26 lead. In the first half, the Wolfpack shot 42.3% from the field while the Hokies shot just 33.3%.
NC State controlled the boards and outrebounded Virginia Tech 22-10 in the first 20 minutes. This includes six offensive rebounds to Virgnia Tech’s one. Similar to how it was on Sunday, the 3-point line kept the Hokies in the game. At the break, Virginia Tech made five from downtown while NC State just had one from senior forward Kayla Jones.
“In the first half, I thought we had better urgency and energy on defense,” Moore said. “I thought we did a better job on the boards. What did they have, 26 points at halftime? So I liked all that.”
Coming out in the third quarter, Virginia Tech was the aggressor. Making three more 3-pointers, the Hokies found themselves with a two-point lead. However, with 4.5 seconds left in the quarter, senior guard Kai Crutchfield took it to the basket and converted a layup while being fouled. She went on to make the free throw to give NC State a 45-44 lead going into the fourth quarter.
Despite going over four minutes without a made field goal in the fourth quarter, Virginia Tech found itself down by only two with one minute left. Sheppard then hit the big shot for the Hokies from behind the arc to give them a one-point lead.
After a missed 3-pointer from Hobby, the Hokies fed the ball inside to Elizabeth Kitley, who was fouled and made both free throws to give the Hokies a 57-54 lead with 22.3 second left to go. On the ensuing possession, Hobby redeemed herself with a 3-pointer from the top of the key as time expired to send the game to overtime.
“I just knew we needed a bucket, and I was pretty open, so I just felt like I could make it,” Hobby said.
In the extra period, it was all Hokies, who outscored the Wolfpack 26-14. What did not help NC State was that it missed three free-throw attempts early on in overtime, setting the tone for the rest of the period.
This was the second straight game the Wolfpack was without All-American junior center Elissa Cunane due to COVID-19 contact tracing protocols. The Pack’s leading scorer was in attendance at Cassell Coliseum, which is a good sign, but was not cleared to play. Moore said he thinks Cunane should be back for NC State’s next game.
The Wolfpack will be back in action when it travels to No. 1 Louisville on Monday, Feb. 1. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. with the game being televised on ESPN2. NC State will be looking to knock off the No. 1 team in the country for the second time this season after defeating then-No. 1 South Carolina in December.
North Carolina State's Raina Perez (2) is guarded by Virginia Tech's DÕasia Gregg (11) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Blacksburg Va. Thursday January 28 2021. (AP Photo / MATT GENRTY, The Roanoke Times, Pool)
