Sports

N.C. State Women’s Basketball Corrals Maine in NCAA Tournament First Round

Landon Bost

RALEIGH, N.C. – All of the No. 14 seed Maine University Black Bears’ chances of knocking off the No. 3 seed North Carolina State University Wolfpack in the first round of the NCAA Tournament got shot when their two scoring leaders went scoreless in the first half.

Black Bears (25-8) junior guard Blanca Millan, 14.5 PPG, shot 0-4 from the floor in the first half and scored her first basket with 5:29 left in the third quarter. Redshirt-senior guard Tanesha Sutton, 11.3 PPG, shot 0-8 in the from the floor in the first half and scored her first basket with 3:25 left in the third. To make matters worst, Black Bears head coach Amy Vachon plays a short bench; and that was no different today.

That, combined with the Wolfpack’s solid team play contributed to a 63-51 NC State (27-5) victory.

Impact Players

Kiara Leslie, Wolfpack graduate guard: Leslie came to play after underperforming in the ACC Tournament. she shot 8-15 from the floor, 3-7 3FG, for a game-high 20 points and grabbed six rebounds.

Elissa Cunane, Wolfpack freshman center: Cunane came alive in the third quarter. After scoring six points in the first half, she finished the third with 14 points. She finished with a game-high nine rebounds along with 16 points.

Kai Crutchfield, Wolfpack sophomore guard: Crutchfield shot 5-10, 3-5 3FG, from the floor for 14 points. Moreover, she grabbed five rebounds in the first half and converted a 4-point play, after being fouled on 3-pointer late in the second, that electrified Reynolds Coliseum.

N.C. State sophomore guard Kai Crutchfield
N.C. State sophomore guard Kai Crutchfield

Game Commentary

  • The Wolfpack dared Tanesha Sutton and Fanny Wadling to score from the outside. Wolfpack players guarded them from the free-throw line on defense.
  • N.C. State went on a 12-2 run to close the first quarter while Maine froze into a 3:19 cold spell. N.C. State led 19-10 at this point.
  • Leslie and Crutchfield carried the scoring load in the second quarter for N.C. State. Combined, they matched the 12 points that the Black Bears’ entire team scored in the second.
  • Maine won the third quarter and fourth quarter, 15-12 and 14-12 respectively, but couldn’t handle the physicality of N.C. State.

Quick Hits

  • The Wolfpack outrebounded the Black Bears 12-6 in the first quarter.
  • N.C. State went on 12-2 runs to end both quarters in the first half.
  • The 5’8″ Crutchfield grabbed five rebounds in the first half.
  • All active players for the Wolfpack played today.
  • Black Bears senior guard Parise Rossignol shot 7-13, 5-9 3FG, from the floor for a team-high of 19 points.

Firsthand Perspective

“Tanesh and Bianca have led us all year long,” Said Vachon, “and they had a tough shooting day today. It happens. If we played again, I would want them to shoot the shots they shot today, and I think our whole team feels the same way.”

“Well that means a lot coming from a great player like (Leslie),” Cunane said after the game about receiving high-praise from Leslie in yesterday’s pregame press conference. “And today, we take if for what it was. Just keep playing and look forward to Monday.”

Wolfpack graduate guard Kiara Leslie
Wolfpack graduate guard Kiara Leslie

“We got about two weeks of just practicing, and making sure our bodies felt a little bit better,” Leslie said. “And the rest definitely did me some justice, and I was ready to come out and compete today.”

“Kiara Leslie did a great job on Milan,” said Wolfpack head coach Wes Moore. “And it’s funny, this same thing happened the first time we played them. I thought DD (Rogers) did a great job on Sutton … So, I think you gotta give them a lot of credit, and the other players on the team. They recognized that those two are really good at attacking the rim. So, they did a really good job of getting in the gaps and building a wall. So, I think that’s the biggest thing, and sometimes maybe you get a break; the shots just didn’t go down.”

What’s Next

N.C. State plays the Kentucky Wildcats (25-7) Monday night in Reynolds Coliseum.

“For the little bit I saw,” Leslie said, ” I saw that they pressed the whole game. So, that’s something we’ve seen throughout this year, but they also play in a different conference. So, it’s probably a different of style than we’re used to, but we’re ready for it.”