NC State Wolfpack women's basketball ACC Championship
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NC State Earns ACC Title in Blowout Over Syracuse

Thomas Tripp

RALEIGH, NC – The fourth-ranked NC State Wolfpack (24-3 overall, 15-3 ACC) made sure their Seniors had a happy ending during their final home game!

Graduate Student Forward Kayla Jones (Jamesville, NC) led the 4th-ranked Wolfpack with 18 points, as they cruised to a soothing victory over the Syracuse Orange (11-15 overall, 4-12 ACC) by the score of 95-53, in front of 5,500 fans at Reynolds Coliseum.

With the win, NC State clinched at least a share of the 2022 ACC regular-season title and can secure the outright win with a victory in its regular-season finale next week. It is the first regular-season championship for the program since 1990.

Coach Wes Moore, in his ninth year, was ecstatic. He asserted, “It’s a great day. A sellout crowd celebrating our seniors in all they’ve accomplished over the years was just very special and being able to clinch the ACC Regular Season Championship!” He added, “It was an unbelievable day and it was a moment where I could be happy that our players can have that experience.”

“It has been a goal for us to win the ACC Regular Season Championship since the Summertime,” Jones reflected on the occasion.

NC State controlled the game throughout the contest with almost all categories, except for three-point percentage, free throws, and fouls. Graduate Student Guard Raina Perez (Goodyear, AZ) hit a jumper at 9:52 in the first quarter, followed by a layup from Kayla Jones, with an assist from Jakia Brown-Turner at 9:22. The Wolfpack opened the game with an 11-0 run, where Syracuse obtained their first basket by a layup from Naje Murray, at 7:15.

The Wolfpack continued their dominance in the second quarter, thanks to a commanding 48-26 lead at halftime. This was highlighted by Senior Center Elissa Cunane (Summerfield, NC) dishing out an assist to Junior Guard Jakia Brown-Turner at 5:16, where the score was 34-20. Cunane received a pass from Brown-Turner, making a jumper at 1:25, which made the Pack’s lead 45-24.

The third quarter, started off when Cunane made a three-point play (a basket, then a free throw), when she was fouled by Graduate Student Forward Alaysia Styles (San Diego, California) at the 9:49 mark, making the score 51-26. Cunane, Jones, and Brown-Turner contributed the money the dominance by making baskets throughout the quarter, as the Wolfpack led 75-39. The last scoring drive occurred when Junior Forward Jada Boyd (Petersburg, VA) did a layup, receiving the assist from Sophomore Guard Diamond Johnson (Philadelphia, PA).

In the fourth quarter, NC State shut the door when Junior Center Camille Hobby (Jacksonville, FL) and Jada Boyd opened the game with layups and a three-point jumper from Sophomore Guard Madison Hayes (Chattanooga, TN).

The Wolfpack’s victory made them win their first ACC Regular-Season Championship since 1990 and they’re seventh overall. Previously, they won in 1978, 1980, 1983, and 1985.

On their next steps, Jones explained, “We have one more game against Virginia Tech on Sunday and we have to keep this momentum going into the Tournament.”

On his chances for the ACC Tournament, Coach Moore stated, “Well, yes. We’ve done it for the last couple of years and it’s still hard. We have a lot of great teams in the league. You have to win three and four games in a row. It’s a big challenge.”

For Syracuse, Guard Chrislyn Carr (Senior – Davenport, Iowa) led the Orange with 14 points, while Redshirt Sophomore Guard Teisha Hyman and Graduate Student Guard Naje Murray (Stockton, California) had 12 points each.

Next Sunday, the 4th-ranked Wolfpack will travel up to Blacksburg, Virginia to face Virginia Tech for the regular-season finale at Cassell Coliseum, on a 6 PM game on ACC Network. Meanwhile, Syracuse travels to Winston-Salem, NC, on Thursday, to face the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem, NC, at 7 PM on the ACC NX Streaming Network.