Lady Wolfpack defeat Clemson 65-53

The N.C. State Wolfpack (15-5), (5-2) women basketball team took on the Clemson Tigers (11-9), (0-7) in Reynolds Coliseum on Sunday at 2 pm. The Lady Wolfpack came into the game boasting a national ranking of 21st in the country. The game featured many back and forth moments and four ties, but in the end, Clemson was still left searching for their first conference win since their sole victory in the 2015 season as N.C. State would prevail 65-53.

N.C. State opened up the game with two big 3-pointers, but struggled on both defensively and on the offensive end for most of the game, shooting just 28% from the floor in the first half. Clemson remained strong, scoring 42 points in the paint, holding the Pack to just 14, but the turnover game worked in N.C. State’s favor as they capitalized off of 17 turnovers and turned them into 19 points.

The game remained close even with States’ poor shooting as Clemson tied the game 47-47 with 8:30 left in the 4th quarter. Senior Guard, Miah Spencer, hit two free throws with 8:11 remaining in the game and the Lady Pack never looked back, holding Clemson to just two points after an almost eight minute scoring drought and racking up nine points in the meantime. NC State head coach, Wes Moore, took advantage of the momentum and changed up his game plan in the final minutes. “We made them settle for jump shots,” he said. “We got destroyed in the paint so we changed defenses to make them score outside a little more.”

After a lackluster performance in the first three quarters, Moore recognized the need for improvement, but complimented his players’ drive to win. “We’re a blue collar team. We have to work for everything we get. We gave up too many (points) in the paint and we’ve probably played more zone today than we have all year.”

Miah Spencer also recognized her teams’ final effort to win. “It came down to rebounding and  who wants to win more. We had to dig down deep and get the win.’

The Lady Wolfpack will look to keep their national ranking alive as they take on Pittsburgh at home in Reynolds Coliseum on Thursday, Jan. 26th at 7 pm.