Elissa Cunane NC State women's basketball
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NC State Women’s Basketball Ousts UNC From the Paint

Landon Bost

Raleigh, N.C. – For the past two years, the winner of the NC State Wolfpack vs. North Carolina Tar Heels women’s basketball game came down to who won the battle in the post – NC. State’s sophomore center Elissa Cunane or UNC’s junior center Janelle Bailey. 

The Wolfpack made a concretive effort from tipoff to get the ball inside after relying too much on the 3-point-shot in their prior meeting. Bailey got in early foul trouble. NC State sparked a 13-2 run to start the game which Carolina never recovered from.  

The 28 points in the paint for each team is deceiving. NC State led North Carolina 17-5 in second-chance points; 17-7 in offensive rebounds and defeated the Tar Heels 76-68.  

“Rebounding was obviously a big part of this game,” Wolfpack head coach Wes Moore said. “We knew that they had some really good big-time rebounders and our kids did a great job. … Cunane was a warrior down there.”

Cunane shot 4-12 from the field, 14-16 from the charity stripe. for 22 points. She drew 11 fouls and finished with 17 rebounds. Senior guard Aislinn Koning made four 3-pointers and finished the game with 16 points.

Game Commentary 

  • North Carolina senior guard Janelle picked up her first foul of the within 8:58 left in the first period. 
  • UNC senior guards Taylor Koenen and Shayla Bennett led the Tar Heels with five and four points at the end of the first period as Carolina fought back and trailed 17-11. 
  • Wolfpack senior guard Aislinn Konig heated up at the beginning of the second, and scored five points in the period after being scoreless in the first.  
  • The foul trouble woes continued for the Tar Heels in the second period, Bailey and freshman forward Malu Tshitenge each sat on the bench with three fouls with 2:51 left in the game. North Carolina went to a five-guard lineup with six-foot-one-inch senior guard Taylor Koenen as the tallest player on the court. 
  • UNC brought the game within one, 28-27, with just over two minutes left in the game, but some questionable calls and a North Carolina bench technical sparked a 10-3 run for the Wolfpack to increase their scoring margin to 37-30 at the end of the first half. 
  • A back-to-back 3-pointers for North Carolina and NC
  • State sparked efficient offensive scoring for both teams. The Wolfpack led the Tar Heels 48-43 at the third-period media timeout with 4:35 left. 
  • The Wolfpack went on a 13-2 run after the media timeout and held their largest lead of the game at 58-45. 
  • Over the run, the Wolfpack rammed the Tar Heels on the board, who were passive due to their lack of depth and foul trouble. NC State outscored North Carolina 9-0 in second-chance points during the third period.  
  • A 3-pointer by UNC senior guard Shayla Bennett with 8:25 left in the game brought the score to 62-58. 
  • The Wolfpack held off Carolina in the fourth quarter. Cunane received a standing ovation with 2:28 when she checked out of the game with 2:28 left in the game. She 

Quick Hits 

  • Koenen led the game in scoring at the end of the first half with 16 points from 6-9 shooting from the floor. 
  • Cunane shot 7-8 from the free-throw line in the first half. 
  • Bailey fouled out 3:12 left in the game. 
  • Bennett finished as the game’s leading scorer with 24 points and Koenen finished 21.
  • The Wolfpack finished with four players in double-figures; and North Carolina, who have five players averaging in double-figures, only had 2 players with more than ten points today.

Firsthand Perspective 

“As for the game, I have a bunch of fighters and I should probably stop there,” said UNC head coach Courtney Banghart.

“Last game I really faded away and didn’t go through contact,” Cunane said. “So I really tried to do that tonight.”

“I definitely want us as a team to succeed,” Konig said when asked about her big shots in the fourth period. “So I tried to take open and good shots. … And today we came together in the end and played good defense.

What’s Next 

NC State (19-1, 8-1 ACC) travels to South Carolina to play the Clemson Tigers (7-13, 3-6 ACC) Thursday, Jan. 30, at 7 p.m. 

North Carolina (14-6, 5-4 ACC) returns to Carmichael Arena Thursday to play the Virginia Cavaliers (8-12, 3-6 ACC)at 6 p.m. Their next five games are in The Triangle. 

Feature image courtesy of Lawrence Davis III