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December 11, 2024
Final: NC State 59 Davidson 57
Raleigh, NC– Wednesday night the #22 NC State Wolfpack (7-3, 0-0) women’s basketball team returned to action for their last non-conference game of the season. The visiting Davidson Wildcats (3-7,0-0) made the trip up I-85 to visit the host Wolfpack in Raleigh for the 9th time series history. Their previous 8 trips all ended with losses and the Wildcats were looking to end their losing streak against the Pack. The Wildcats were picked 4th in the Atlantic 10 earning 1 first place vote. NC State holds the nation’s toughest schedule as all 3 of their losses are to teams now in the top 15 overall.
1st Quarter: NC State 19 Davidson 19
Both teams got off to a strong start shooting the basketball as Aziaha James rattled off 7 quick points for the Wolfpack to kick start the offense giving NC State an early 9-5 advantage. The Wildcats were quick to respond with a 5-0 run to take the early 10-9 lead. Aziaha James stayed hot as she scored 5 more in a row giving her 12 of the first 14 Wolfpack points at the first media timeout. Charlise Dunn led the Wildcats with 7 early points of her own as the Wildcats carried a 17-14 lead into the timeout.
The two teams would end the quarter all square at 19 as each team brought an early intensity to the floor. The Wildcats finished the quarter 3-9 from 3 and 8-19 from the floor which was good for 42.1% shooting overall. The Wildcats were led by Charlise Dunn and Issy Morgan. Morgan led her team with 10 points. NC State was led by Aziaha James’ 14 points on 6-7 shooting. The Wildcats won the battle of the boards 12-7 as the Wildcats used 7 offensive rebounds to keep pace with the Wolfpack.
2nd Quarter: NC State 28 Davidson 27
Aziaha James continued her hot streak as her fiery shooting continued over into the second quarter. Even though James was scorching from the field, both teams began the quarter ice cold. Davidson started 0-4 and went scoreless for over 3 minutes early in the quarter. The teams combined for just 7 points before the first media timeout as the Wolfpack took a 24-21 lead. After the timeout, Charlise Dunn and Issy Morgan continued to pace the Wildcats who continued to pester the Wolfpack on the defensive end of the floor. The combination of Morgan and Dunn combined for 25 of the Wildcats first 27 points. The Wolfpack would carry a slight 1-point 28-27 lead at the half.
The Wildcats would continue to hold the advantage on the boards holding a 26-21 advantage over the Wolfpack at the half. 8 of those were of the offensive variety leading to 7 second chance points for the Wildcats. Davidson shot 29% from the field in the first half as the Wolfpack defense also forced a lot of tough shots in the quarter. The Wolfpack found it tough to penetrate the armor of the Davidson defense as well shooting just 34% for the half on 11-32 shooting.
3rd Quarter: Davidson 44 NC State 40
Davidson came out of the locker room with some real fire as they quickly erased their halftime deficit as they took the lead 37-32 at the first media timeout. The Wildcats used several careless turnovers from the Wolfpack to begin the quarter, and were able to earn the edge in points off turnovers. Davidson continued to stifle the Wolfpack offense as the Wolfpack began the quarter just 1-7 from the field. Madison Hayes led the Wolfpack with 6 points in the quarter as the Wolfpack kept the game from getting away. Davidson would carry a 44-40 lead into the 4th quarter despite the efforts of Saniya Rivers and Madison Hayes who each had 6 points in the quarter.
Issy Morgan and Charlise Dunn continued to lead the Wildcats as they scored 12 of the Wildcat 17 points in the 3rd quarter. The Wolfpack were unable to contain the dynamic duo through 3 quarters.
4th Quarter: NC State 59 Davidson 57
After cooling off in the third quarter, Aziaha James got going again to start the 3rd as she tried to will the Wolfpack to the win. The Wildcats would be forced to take a quick timeout to thwart the early push from the Wolfpack as the lead was cut to 1 at 45-44 with 8:33 left in the game. NC State would regain the lead at the under 5 media timeout at 51-50 as Zoe Brooks earned a 3-point play opportunity as the game enter its final minutes. That is when Saniya Rivers just took the game over in the final 5 minutes. Rivers had 12 points and 6 rebounds in the fourth quarter alone to lead the Wolfpack. She would finish with 25 points and 11 rebounds to earn the double double.
NC State would need to navigate some gut-wrenching moments in the final seconds in order to pick up their 7th win of the season. A late free throw by Aziaha James sealed the win as the Wildcats last second shot fell short and the Wolfpack would earn a much-needed win heading into ACC play on Sunday.
Next up for the Wolfpack is a Sunday matchup with Louisville on Sunday at 1PM at the Yum Center.
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