3/30/2020 basketball Edit

NC State women's basketball 2019-20 season awards

Justin H. Williams

The Wolfpacker contributor

Without question, it was a season to remember for NC State women’s basketball.

The Pack entered the AP Top 10 on Dec. 9, 2019 and never looked back. After winning 28 of its 32 games this season, the Wolfpack won its first ACC Tournament Championship since 1991.

No matter what happened in the NCAA Tournament, where NC State was expected to earn a No. 2 seed, it was going to be a historic season in Raleigh.

But then COVID-19 put the world on pause.

Without knowing it at the time, the 71-66 victory over Florida State in the ACC Championship would be the last game of the season for the Pack.

It would mark the last time seniors Aislinn Konig, Kaila Ealey, Grace Hunter, Erika Cassell and Katie Wadsworth would play in a Wolfpack uniform.

As disappointing as the abrupt ending to the season was, NC State is one of few teams in the country able to call themselves champions.

Undoubtedly the best team in the Wes Moore era and arguably the greatest of this century so far at NC State, we decided to break down who earned individual awards for their performance this season.

MVP

Elissa Cunane, the 6-foot-5 sophomore center from Guilford County, is quickly developing a legendary career at NC State.

Her first splash came as a freshman when she earned a starting role in the middle of ACC play due to a wave of injuries. She had shown flashes of potential early in the season as a role player, but shined once she was afforded the minutes of a starter. She went on to earn All-ACC Freshman Team honors that year.

Entering the 2019-20 season, expectations were high for Cunane. Somehow, she found a way to outperform those expectations.

The only player in the ACC to average a double-double, Cunane ended her sophomore campaign averaging 16.5 points and 10 rebounds per game. She was a unanimous pick for All-ACC and was selected as an Associated Press Third-Team All-American.

With two years remaining in Raleigh, Cunane has the potential to add to her existing laundry list of accolades. She will likely enter next season as one of the favorites for ACC Player of the Year.

Cunane's game of the season: the 76-69 win against Virginia Tech. She tied her career high with 28 points and added nine rebounds and three assists.

Team Leader

If Cunane didn’t have the All-American caliber year she had, senior guard Aislinn "Ace" Konig would’ve been the pick for MVP. While she wasn’t the statistical outlier in any column, she was clearly the captain of this team as the only senior in the starting lineup.

Averaging 11 points, 3.5 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game, Konig earned second-team All-ACC honors for the first and only of her collegiate career. Her nightly role was to spread the floor with her perimeter-shooting ability, defend the opponent’s best guard and to provide a voice of leadership on the court.

Without her strong postseason play, NC State would not have won the ACC Championship. She made a total of 10 three-pointers and averaged 16.7 points during the Pack’s three-game run in Greensboro. Konig was named MVP of the ACC Tournament.

Although her career ended early due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Konig leaves NC State both an MVP and a champion.

Konig's game of the season: the 71-66 win vs Florida State in the ACC Championship. She had 18 points and was 4-of-9 shooting on 3pt FGs, including the clutch game-tying shot with 2:25 remaining.

Most Improved

Forward Kayla Jones, a junior, was the only other Wolfpack player beside Cunane and Konig to average double figures in scoring.

In her first two years, Jones did not start a single game at NC State. This season, she started every game. After averaging just 3.4 minutes per game as a freshman, she found a supporting role off the bench the following year. As a sophomore, Jones averaged 4.7 points and 4.4 rebounds per game.

She nearly doubled those averages as a junior, which makes her the no-brainer for the most improved award. Jones contributed 10 points and 7.1 rebounds per game this season. She also had five double-doubles throughout the year.

If Jones continues this trajectory, expect big things from her next year.

Jones' game of the season: the 69-60 win vs Syracuse. She had 12 points and 14 boards in the victory.

Rookie Of The Year

Not many freshman can say they earned as many starts as guard Jakia Brown-Turner did her first season in Raleigh. Brown-Turner started in 31 of the first 32 games of her college career. The only exception was senior night, when Moore elected to start a lineup of seniors.

She had the most starts of any freshman in Moore’s seven seasons at NC State, and Brown-Turner averaged 9.4 points and 3.6 rebounds per game this season.

Her performance only improved during conference play. Against ACC opponents, she averaged 10.1 points per game and scored in double figures in 11 of the 18 conference games.

Brown-Tuner earned her first career double-double in the biggest game of her career. She scored 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the ACC Championship game against Florida State.

Her play earned her a selection on the All-ACC Freshman team.

Brown-Turner's game of the season: the 50-48 win at Miami. She scored 18 points, including the game-winning shot with 2.9 seconds left.

Most Valuable Role Player

Unlike Brown-Turner, freshman forward Jada Boyd was not able to start a single game in her debut season with the Wolfpack. However, similar to Brown-Turner, Boyd was the second first-year Wolfpack player to earn a spot on the All-ACC Freshman team.

Boyd led the Wolfpack bench in scoring with an average of 7.5 points per game. Scoring wasn’t the only way she was able to provide a spark off the bench.

Boyd led NC State in steals this season with 32, or roughly one per game. She was also the second-leading shot-blocker and third-leading rebounder on the team. The freshman averaged 5.1 rebounds and roughly 0.5 blocked shots per game.

Moore frequently mentioned that Boyd was further behind than other freshmen when she first arrived in Raleigh. The coach implied that she didn’t play in the most competitive high school classification, but that she was becoming more comfortable against elite competition as the season went on.

Boyd's game of the season: the 82-75 win vs Boston College in ACC semifinals. She had 16 points, eight boards and three steals.