North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State
Wake Forest
Wake Forest Tops NC State, 76-63
3/4/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 4, 2006
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) - Eric Williams had 22 points and 16 rebounds to help Wake Forest beat No. 22 North Carolina State 76-63 on Saturday.
Justin Gray scored 16 points for the Demon Deacons (15-15, 3-13 Atlantic Coast Conference).
Engin Atsur scored 23 points to lead the Wolfpack (21-8, 10-6), who played without leading scorer Cameron Bennerman and suffered through a miserable shooting day to close the regular season with a third straight loss.
Gavin Grant added 21 points for N.C. State despite suffering what Herb Sendek said was a broken nose on a collision early in the game.
The Demon Deacons turned in a spirited effort, leading the entire way and increasing their margin to as many as 17 points in the second half. Wake Forest also played solid defense, holding the Wolfpack to 26 percent shooting and a 4-for-29 day from behind the arc.
Bennerman, who averaged a team-high 13 points, sat out with a pulled hamstring that kept him out of practice this week. That opened the door for Grant to make just his second start in the past 23 games, and the sophomore responded by coming within a point of matching his career-high.
Atsur shot 5-for-16 from the field and 2-for-10 on 3-pointers, while Williams completely outplayed Cedric Simmons in the paint.
Simmons, a 6-foot-9 sophomore averaging 12 points per game, finished with 10 but didn't make a field goal.
N.C. State managed to hang in the game by shooting 29-for-34 at the foul line.
The Demon Deacons scored the game's first seven points and took a 45-32 edge on the boards while forcing the Wolfpack to work for every basket.
N.C. State came in ranking second in the ACC in 3-point shooting (39 percent) and leading the league with an average of 9.5 made 3s per game. But the Wolfpack missed its first 12 shots behind the arc, and couldn't rally after Wake Forest shot 61 percent to build a 42-30 halftime lead.
