GREENSBORO, N.C. — For the third year in a row, the No. 3 NC State women’s basketball team is heading to the ACC Tournament Championship.
Despite a sloppy start, the Wolfpack (28-3, 17-1 ACC) dominated the second half to down the Hokies (23-9, 13-5 ACC) 70-55 inside Greensboro Coliseum on Saturday, March 5.
“Glad to get by that one,” said head coach Wes Moore. “I told them afterwards, ‘Get healthy, get those kids healed up, and let’s go make a run in the NCAAs and represent the ACC.’ I’m confident they’ll do that. Proud of our players. Again, it wasn’t always easy or pretty. I thought we did a much better job on the offensive boards today. That’s been something we’ve been trying to emphasize.”
Junior forward Jada Boyd turned in perhaps her best performance of the season when it mattered most, finishing with 16 points, four rebounds and shooting 70% from the floor.
“Jada Boyd, I think the last month or so has been playing at a whole ‘nother level,” Moore said. “She makes a big difference for us when she is because she can help us on both ends of the floor and just did a great job today, as well.”
2021’s ACC Co-Sixth Player of the Year, Boyd’s importance off the bench in NC State’s last two ACC title runs can’t be overstated. In the last two ACC Tournaments combined, Boyd has scored 29 points and added 14 rebounds against the Hokies.
“Just coming in with a dominant mindset, knowing that I know what I’m going to do and hoping to get to the championship,” Boyd said. “Just playing for another goal gives me confidence, and moving towards the goal feels good.”
The Wolfpack couldn’t buy a bucket in the first half, connecting at just a 35.1% clip from the field, but it completely turned it around, shooting 53.6% in the second half and outrebounding the Hokies 49-23 in the game.
Senior center Elissa Cunane was the poster child of the game’s turnaround, shooting just 3 for 11 in the first half for seven points but ending the game with 20 points, 13 boards and hitting 2 3-pointers.
“I just had to slow down a little bit more,” Cunane said. “I think I got out of control a couple times and didn’t finish as strong. So I just had to slow down and just go up through the contact and just finish better. I knew they were going to fall in the second quarter and beyond, so just be patient with that.”
With Virginia Tech missing ACC Player of the Year Elizabeth Kitley, NC State dominated Virginia Tech on the boards, snatching 11 offensive and 26 total rebounds in the first half. However, the Wolfpack poor first-half shooting didn’t allow it to take advantage.
“It was just different,” Cunane said of Kitley’s absence. “They were trying to draw fouls inside, so you couldn’t really attack as much with Kitley there. You had to be a little bit more gentle with them. But I think also on the offensive end they were able to attack more, so being like a five player, we had to guard the four players a little bit more, like them attacking, shooting 3s.”
In fact, the Pack had double the amount of rebounds as it did made field goals in the first half. Cunane and graduate forward Kayla Jones got off to a poor start, going just 2 for their first 10 from the field and ending the half shooting a combined 4 for 16 from the floor despite Kitley’s absence on the interior.
Sophomore guard Diamond Johnson, graduate guard Kai Crutchfield and junior wing Jakia Brown-Turner were also victims of slow starts, shooting a combined 3 for 11 in the first half from the floor.
One bright spot, however, was Boyd, who led the team in scoring in the half with eight points, while also collecting four boards and a block.
NC State developed a bit of breathing room in the third quarter, collecting itself to shoot 56.3% from the field in the period, with Boyd continuing her dominant streak with six points in the quarter alone.
“No matter when [Boyd] gets her minutes she’s going to come in and dominate,” Cunane said. “So it’s just what we need her to do, whenever she comes in, she’s going to get rebounds and dominate points.”
Third quarters are where the Wolfpack shines all season, owning a plus-217 differential in third quarters, and it did the same in Saturday’s matchup.
The Hokies stayed within striking distance, but Cunane scored eight of her 20 points in the fourth quarter to put the game away and end any hopes of a miracle comeback for the battered Hokies.
Next up, the Wolfpack plays the winner of Saturday afternoon’s semifinal matchup between Notre Dame and Miami in the ACC Championship on Sunday, March 6. The Wolfpack’s shot at an ACC Tournament three-peat begins at noon and can be viewed on ESPN.
“We’re still excited to be back,” Cunane said. “It feels a little different because we’ve had experience now. We’ve been in the big game, I guess, three times now, won it twice. But we still have to come out there with the same mentality. We have to dominate and we have to take it every game at a time. So we can’t look past it and say, we’ve won it before so we’re going to win it. No, we have to respect who we’re playing and really study the scout and be ready.”
