It was an electric night in Reynolds Coliseum for the NC State women’s basketball team, taking on No. 18 Ole Miss in the ACC/SEC Challenge. Despite holding a double-digit lead for most of the game, the Wolfpack struggled late in the game. After nearly allowing the Rebels to come back, the Pack made enough plays down the stretch for a 68-61 win.
NC State (5-3) came into the matchup with a chip on its shoulder after dropping out of the AP Top 25. The Pack entered the contest with the toughest strength of schedule of all Power 4 teams in the country with all of its losses coming against teams in the top 10. The game against Ole Miss (5-3) was the team’s fourth ranked matchup in just eight games this season.
Senior guard Aziaha James got the Wolfpack going in the first quarter, moving quickly down the court to sync up with the other half of the Pack’s dynamic duo in senior guard Saniya Rivers. Rivers sank a quick 3-point shot to give the red-and-white the lead, and soon after she scored again to get the Pack up 5-0.
“I didn’t score a whole lot more after the first half, but I did other things,” Rivers said. “I’m playing both sides of the ball — rebounding, contributing where I can. I’m just glad I can help, contribute in whatever way to help with the win.”
It took five minutes into the first quarter for the Rebels to score, and by then the Pack was already up 9-0. The energy in the building was through the roof and elevated the team’s offensive play, with sophomore guard Zoe Brooks making two back-to-back hook shots.
Freshman center Lorena Awou and sophomore center Mallory Collier took a step forward in their development against the Rebels, making frequent appearances at the foul line. The two centers switched out frequently throughout the game and helped contribute to the Pack’s 45 rebounds.
“I’m really big on if you’re playing well, we’ll ride with you,” said head coach Wes Moore. “If you’re struggling, we’re going to try somebody else. But I thought [Collier] did a nice job. And then Lorena, I thought she did some good things for us as well.”
Defense was important in allowing NC State to build an 11-point lead in the first frame alone. The Pack’s defense suffocated Ole Miss, causing it to shoot late into the shot clock or take poor chances at the basket.
“We knew that they were going to come in attacking the offensive board, so I think we really emphasized boxing them out,” Rivers said. “We really just limited their second chance opportunities. Like you said, defense is going to win ball games at the end of the day, so I think we did a great job.”
The second frame saw the young guns on the team take over on offense, with freshman guard
Zamareya Jones and Brooks making quick impressions on the court. Jones finished the matchup 4-4 from 3 and 5-6 from the field. Brooks finished with a game-high 19 points.
“I really take this game seriously, and I really wanted to win today,” Brooks said. “I knew that we had to get a stop, so I was just doing all I could to just make sure that they turned the ball over.”
It was in the third frame that the Rebels woke up and started to put pressure on the Wolfpack. With Brooks and James taking control of the Pack’s offense, at one point holding a 22-point lead over Ole Miss, the red-and-white defense started to slack off, allowing the Rebels to head straight to the basket with easy layups in the post. This slow but present push from Ole Miss would catch up quickly to the Wolfpack in the final frame of the game.
With the Pack only needing to hold it together through the last 10 minutes of play, the Rebels slowly closed the gap. NC State’s defense let up multiple plays and the team was moving way too quickly on offense to make any promising shots. The Wolfpack didn’t score for five minutes of the frame and during that time the Rebels worked up to within two points of the red-and-white, keeping the fans on edge in their seats.
“Some coaches don’t like the challenge,” Moore said. “I like the challenge, I mean we’re going to play some people like that. … Hopefully, that makes you better, and you get used to that environment, you get used to that kind of pressure. And hopefully, it pays off when we get in ACC play and hopefully beyond.”
It was once again Brooks and James to keep the Pack floating, with a late 3-pointer from James and clutch free throws from Brooks that allowed the red-and-white to keep its game-long lead. As the clock ticked down, and more fouls were being dished out, NC State kept momentum up high. With the ball in James’ hands, she held onto the possession to keep the Pack steady and squeak out a 68-61 win. This was the team’s first win over a top-25 team this season.
NC State will stay in Raleigh to take on Old Dominion on Sunday at 2 p.m.
