North Carolina State University Athletics
Wolfpack Women Travel To Clemson
1/23/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 23, 2002
To n i g h t 's Matchup: To n i g h t 's game could prove to be a pivotal game in the A C C standings for both teams. T h e Tigers are battling to get back to .500 in the league and the Wolfpack is looking to move above .500 and stay in the top half of the conference standings. The Wolfpack has lost two consecutive ACC games and two of three since losing All-ACC center Carisse Moody to an ankle sprain. Kaayla Chones has stepped up and provided a scoring punch for NC State, but the Pack lack depth in the post and foul trouble has become costly. A key to tonight's outcome could be who wins the battle of the boards. NC State is a solid rebounding team and holds a slight height advantage in the paint tonight. NC State ranks third in the A C C in rebounding margin while Clem-son is seventh. The Pack's young backcourt will also have to take care of the ball and limit turnovers. NC State is last in the league with an average of over 20 turnovers per game which is to be expected when the three ballhandlers are two freshmen and a sophomore. On the other hand, Clemson's experienced backcourt ranks second in the conference in turnover marg i n .
The Opponent: Clemson enters tonight's game with an 11-7 record and 3-4 conference mark and is coming off a 60-47 win over Maryland on Monday. Prior to the Maryland win, the Tigers had lost three straight conference matchups. Clemson has an experienced backcourt in senior point guard Krystal Scott and junior All-ACC guard Chris-sy Floyd. Floyd is the Ti g e r s ' leading scorer with 16.6 points per outing and Scott is chipping in 12.3 points per game. Floyd was a member of the USA Basketball national team, along with NC State's Carisse Moody, that won the gold medal in the World University Games last summer. Junior Marci Glenney is having a solid season for Clemson. T h e UConn transfer is averaging 13.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per contest.
The Series: The Wolfpack has a 37-22 advantage in the all-time series with Clemson. However, the Tigers hold a narrow 13-12 advantage in games at Clemson, including winning eight of the last 10 matchups between these squads in Littlejohn. Ayear ago, the regular season series was split with each team winning on the road. NC S t a t e 's 56-50 come-from- behind win at Clemson was its first win there since 1996. The teams met again in the semifinals of the A C C To u r-nament with the Wolfpack claiming a 65-52 victory to advance to the ACC championship game for the first time in 10 y e a r s .
Probable Wolfpack Starters :
G - 30 Kendra Bell (5-5, freshman, 3.4 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 2.8 apg)
G - 14 Nanna Rivers (5-8, sophomore, 4.4 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 3.6 apg)
C - 50 Kaayla Chones (6-3, r-sophomore, 12.2 ppg, 6.5 rpg)
F - 45 Talisha Scates (6-1, senior, 6.1 ppg, 5.5 rpg)
F - 42 Amy Simpson (6-0, junior, 8.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg)
Probable Tigers Starters :
G - 12 Krystal Scott (5-8, senior, 12.3 ppg, 3.8rpg, 3.5 apg)
G - 32 Chrissy Floyd (5-9, junior, 16.6 ppg, 4.1 rpg)
C - 4 Maggie Slosser (6-2, sophomore, 6.6 ppg, 5.6 rpg)
F - 15 Marci Glenney (5-11, junior, 13.4 ppg, 5.0 rpg)
F - 30 Julie Aderhold (5-11, sophomore, 7.2 ppg, 3.5 rpg)
The Coaches: Head Coach Kay Yow is in her 27th season on the Wolfpack bench and owns a 563-242 mark at NC State and a 620-261 overall record. She ranks fifth among active coaches for all-time wins and was inducted into the Wo m e n 's Basketball Hall of Fame in June 2000. Yow has been named a finalist for the Naismith Coach of the Ye a r Award for the previous two seasons. Jim Davis is in his 15th season at the helm of the Lady Tigers and owns a 310-145 record at Clemson. He is a two-time ACC Coach of the Ye a r.
Last Time Out: Despite a 27-point, 11-rebound performance from Kaayla Chones, the Wolfpack dropped an 80- 74 decision at Florida State last T h u r s d a y. The Seminoles shot 60 percent in the second half to overcome an 11 - p o i n t deficit. Freshmen Rachel Stockdale and Kendra Bell contributed 11 and 10 points respectively. Clemson downed Maryland 60-47 in a Monday afternoon T V matchup. The Tigers shot only 31.7 percent but forced 23 Terrapin turnovers. Marci Glenney led Clemson with 19 points and seven rebounds.
Next Up: NC State returns home after consecutive road trips to face Maryland in a Monday night matchup on Jan. 28. The 7 p.m. tipoff will be televised by FoxSportsSouth and other regional sports networks. Clemson travels down the road to Atlanta for a Saturday contest at Georgia Te c h .
