North Carolina State University Athletics
Women's Basketball Falls to Clemson
2/21/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 21, 2003
CLEMSON, S.C. - NC State (10-14, 5-8 ACC) lost to Clemson (13-11, 5-8 ACC), 73-62 on Thursday, Feb. 20, in Littlejohn Coliseum. The Pack, which finished with three in double figures, including 22 from redshirt junior Kaayla Chones, fell short against the 54.5 percent shooting performance by the Clemson Tigers. Clemson senior Chrissy Floyd led all scorers with 23 points.
Clemson shot 61 percent in the first half, a success rate that helped them to a three-point lead heading into half time. The Pack, which has been struggling with its rebounding as of late, dominated the boards in this game. NC State held a 20-9 advantage on the glass and forced Clemson to 11 turnovers. Both teams made 11 shots, but the Tigers were 11-18, which included a perfect 4-4 from the beyond the arc, while the Wolfpack was 11-30. NC State junior Alvine Mendeng collected five offensive rebounds en route to eight total boards in the first half, she eventually went on to finish with a career-high 16 for the game. Her 10 offensive boards was the most Clemson has allowed all season. The score was tied 11 times in the first half - at 21, 23, 26, 28 and 29, and also produced 11 lead changes. Clemson scored the last four points of the half to take a 33-30 lead into the locker room.
The second half was a bit more difficult for the Pack as it struggled to score. After coming out of the locker room and scoring the first two field goals in the second half, the Pack saw its only lead in the final 20 minutes disappear. As the minutes ticked off the clock, NC State didn't score another field goal until the 7:30 mark. The Pack never gave up however and thanks to free throws and rebounding, remained in a position to possibly pull out the win. Aided by Chones' 14 second-half points, the Pack did make a run to cut the Tiger lead to five just under three minutes remaining. Unfortunately, Clemson went on a 12-6 run to end the game. Floyd hit two field goals and Stokes made one and a free throw to give Clemson a double-digit lead and the eventual victory with one minute left.
Senior Carisse Moody added 13 points off the bench for the Wolfpack. Her first basket of the game provided her the go ahead to 1,000 points for her career. Terah James was the only other player in double figures for NC State as she had 10 points and four assists. Chones' 22 points and 10 rebounds was her seventh double-double this season and 20th of her career.
NC State plays at home for the next two contests, beginning with Wake Forest on Sunday, Feb. 23, at 2 p.m. Georgia Tech will be in Raleigh on Thursday, Feb. 27.
