In its first game in three weeks, No. 2 NC State women's basketball defeated Virginia Tech 89-87 in Reynolds Coliseum Sunday in comeback fashion.
The Wolfpack (11-0, 7-0) trailed the Hokies (7-8, 2-8 ACC) by as much as 14 points in the fourth quarter but finished the game on a 19-6 run in the final 4:09 to remain undefeated this season.
Prior to the weekend, the Pack had five conference games postponed due to a COVID outbreak within the program.
Senior forward Kayla Jones scored 22 points and grabbed seven rebounds in NC State's 89-87 win over Virginia Tech on Sunday. (NC State)
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The Wolfpack was shorthanded too. Junior center Elissa Cunane, who leads NC State in scoring (16.2 PPG) and rebounding (7.5 RPG), was not available, and senior forward Kayla Jones came off of the bench because of a recent stint in the ACC's protocols according to head coach Wes Moore.
The team delivered nonetheless.
Jones made crucial shots down the stretch, including a three-pointer with 1:09 remaining to give the Pack a five-point lead and a pair of free throws with 14 seconds left to maintain a two-possession lead in the final seconds.
She finished the game with 22 points, four assists and a team-high seven rebounds.
Sophomore guard Jakia Brown-Turner led NC State with 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting, including a 4-of-8 mark from three. She also added four rebounds, two assists and one block.
Three Wolfpack players scored at least 20 points, including senior guard Kai Crutchfield, who had 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting, along with Jones and Brown-Turner.
What's next for the Pack?
NC State has a quick turnaround before once again facing Virginia Tech, this time in Blacksburg on Thursday at 4 p.m. on RSN.
Despite the Hokies' record, Virginia Tech is the second-highest ranked team remaining on the Pack's schedule according to the NCAA's NET rankings.
Va. Tech won its first six games of the season before losing eight of its last nine, five of which by five points or less.
The Hokies are the last remaining opponent before the Pack travels to No. 1 Louisville in arguably the biggest regular-season contest of the year. The Cardinals and Wolfpack are ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the AP Top 25 and are both tied for first in the ACC with an undefeated 7-0 conference record.
Quote of the week
"This team believes that they can get it done. We've had some big comebacks this year. We've had some games that we've pulled out at the end, so I think that helps your confidence.
"21 days is a long time without a game, and some of that time we had half the team in quarantine. They could come in individually and do some things, but then we'd have five that could actually practice. It was tough.
"I'm so proud of them for being able to overcome that. Obviously, we miss Elisaa Cunane. She's a geat player and our post presence inside, which would have helped us offensively and also defensively against someone like [Elizabeth] Kidley. But we found a way to get it done.
"It's going to be a really big challenge going on the road and playing these guys again. Hopefully after playing one, maybe we can get a little bit more back in rhythm," NC State head coach Wes Moore said.
Weekly NET report
These are the sorted rankings used by the NCAA Tournament committee (with sorted being the key word). What is most important is the quadrant rankings below them. This is the most recent standing of where the Pack compares to the opponents on its schedule:
*Through games as of Jan. 24, 2021
3. South Carolina — W (road)
6. Louisville – TBD (road)
9. NC State
21. Georgia Tech – W (road)
37. Virginia Tech – W (home), TBD (road)
39. North Carolina – TBD (home and away)
40. Syracuse – TBD (road)
46. Clemson – TBD (home)
48. Florida State – TBD (road)
49. Wake Forest – W (home), TBD (road)
53. Notre Dame – TBD (home)
55. Duke – Canceled (home and road)
58. Boston College – W (home), W (road)
78. – Miami – W (home)
131. Pittsburgh – TBD (home)
161. Elon – W (home)
233. Virginia – Canceled (home and road)
250. North Florida – W (home)
256. NC Central – W (home)
329. Coastal Carolina – W (home)
***Note: there are 353 teams in the NET.
Broken down by the quadrants the NCAA committee uses (quadrant four wins are disregarded by NCAA committee):
