The women’s basketball team will play its regular season finale on Saturday against Miami in Coral Gables, Fla., at 3 p.m.
N.C. State has won seven of eight and its last two games, including an upset over then-No. 2 North Carolina last Friday night. Miami has lost 12 of its last 14 and is next to last place in the conference.
If the Wolfpack wins the game, the team can move into a tie for third place, and it would guarantee the No. 4 seed in the ACC Tournament, which would give the team a bye in the first round. If Maryland loses at Boston College on Sunday afternoon and State wins, the team can take third outright.
It’s a game coach Kay Yow said her team can’t overlook.
“We try to ensure that they know what’s at stake,” Yow said. “If we win this game, we can tie for third place in the conference. We can get the No. 4 seed. If we don’t win this game, we can move all the way to sixth. It’s a very important game.”
Sophomore guard Shayla Fields said the team is well aware of the importance of the game. It will be Miami’s senior night, and that’s something Fields said can change the attitude of a team.
“You always talk about not looking over a team, especially at home on a senior night,” Fields said. “You don’t want to overlook any team in the ACC. You never know what they are capable of on any given night.”
After defeating North Carolina on Friday night and then Virginia Tech on Sunday afternoon, Yow said having nearly an entire week off has really helped the team get some needed rest.
“It’s been good. It still seems that we’re a little tired, but I think we’re coming around,” Yow said. “Last weekend was a draining weekend for us, so it’s really good that we just have one game this week.”
The rest will help the team keep up with a Miami team that likes to get up and down the court, according to Yow.
Yow said while the Hurricanes don’t have too much size, they do have a quick team that likes to put up a lot of threes.
“They are very up-tempo. They probably push the ball harder than any team in the ACC,” Yow said. “They have a smaller team — they’re not dominant inside. They are a strong transition team, a strong penetrating team, and they shoot 20 to 30 threes a game.”
However, Miami’s lack of size is where Yow wants State to take over. She said 6-foot-7 senior center Gillian Goring will play a big role down low. Yow said Goring is healthy and expected to play.
“We have a chance to dominate inside,” Yow said. “They’re going to swarm. It’s not quite as easy as one might think. When it goes inside, they’re going to make our post throw it back out.”
The team practices today from noon – 2 p.m., and then will leave shortly before 5 p.m. for Coral Gables, Fla. Yow, who said she is feeling “pretty good” and said she is ready for her third road trip since returning, will make the trip to Miami, but not with the team.
She said she will take a private plane “a little earlier than the team.” She is flying with a few staff members and a team nurse, but Yow said she will fly back “on the charter with the team.”
