North Carolina State University Athletics
Kastanek Shoots Pack to Win Over TCU
12/6/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
RALEIGH, N.C. – Marissa Kastanek scored a season-high 22 points to lead NC State to a 76-62 victory over TCU Sunday afternoon at Reynolds Coliseum.
Kastanek, the freshman from Lincoln, Neb., got off to a hot start in each half by scoring her teams first eight points of the game and later came out of intermission by draining the first seven points of the second half to give NC State (6-3) a lead it never relinquished the rest of the game.
TCU’s Starr Crawford (11 points) gave her club a 37-36 lead just seconds into the second stanza, but Kastanek answered with three straight buckets for a 43-37 Wolfpack lead.
The Lady Frogs got back within three points, but NC State put the game away with a 12-2 run to lead 57-44 lead with 10:12 to play.
The Pack dominated on the boards again – hauling in 17 offensive rebounds. Three consecutive putback layups fueled the crucial run.
It was a double-digit lead for the home team the rest of the way.
“I’m extremely excited about this win,” noted head coach Kellie Harper. “Not only with winning, but with how we won. It was a great offensive performance, especially in the second half.”
The first half was a completely different story; especially the opening 10 minutes.
The Lady Frogs made eight of its first 10 shots from the field that led to a 21-15 advantage. Helen Sverrisdottir (19 points) was nearly unstoppable in the early moments of the game with 13 of TCU's first 17 points.
The shots continued to drop in for TCU (5-3) as the lead grew to 27-17 after a three-pointer by TK Lafleur with 10:17 left until halftime.
“The unforced turnovers hurt us early,” added Harper, who say her club turn it over 13 times in the first half.
Three-point shooting and a renewed defensive effort got NC State back in the game. Kastanek and Brittany Strachan (10 points) each drained a pair of 3’s, while the Pack defense surrendered just eight points after the LaFleur three-ball.
NC State's Lucy Ellison (15 points, nine rebounds) capped off a 15-5 run with two free throws to square the game 32-all.
TCU would regained the lead in the late moments of the first half, but Strachan drove baseline for a layup to give NC State a 36-35 halftime lead, the first since the opening minute of the game.
The defense figured out how to stop Sverrisdottir after her hot start to the game. She only had six points the final 33 minutes of the game.
“We were more alert to her [Sverrisdottir] in the second half,” explained Harper. “She missed some shots later on that she was making early. I think our aggressiveness wore on her and their entire team.”
Nikitta Gartrell (12 points, nine rebounds) helped stop Sverrisdottir on the defensive end of the floor. She made just one of her last eight shots in the game.
“It was just ball pressure,” Gartrell said.” I pressured her up the court. I just wanted to make her tired when she got to their end of the court.”
NC State avoided back-to-back non-conference home losses for the first time since 2002 and matched up with a Mountain West team for the first time since a 67-65 win at BYU on Dec. 21, 2005.
The Wolfpack takes the next week off for exam week. Next up is a road game at South Carolina on Sunday in Columbia at 2 p.m. The game will be televised on SportsSouth.
Kastanek, the freshman from Lincoln, Neb., got off to a hot start in each half by scoring her teams first eight points of the game and later came out of intermission by draining the first seven points of the second half to give NC State (6-3) a lead it never relinquished the rest of the game.
TCU’s Starr Crawford (11 points) gave her club a 37-36 lead just seconds into the second stanza, but Kastanek answered with three straight buckets for a 43-37 Wolfpack lead.
The Lady Frogs got back within three points, but NC State put the game away with a 12-2 run to lead 57-44 lead with 10:12 to play.
The Pack dominated on the boards again – hauling in 17 offensive rebounds. Three consecutive putback layups fueled the crucial run.
It was a double-digit lead for the home team the rest of the way.
“I’m extremely excited about this win,” noted head coach Kellie Harper. “Not only with winning, but with how we won. It was a great offensive performance, especially in the second half.”
The first half was a completely different story; especially the opening 10 minutes.
The Lady Frogs made eight of its first 10 shots from the field that led to a 21-15 advantage. Helen Sverrisdottir (19 points) was nearly unstoppable in the early moments of the game with 13 of TCU's first 17 points.
The shots continued to drop in for TCU (5-3) as the lead grew to 27-17 after a three-pointer by TK Lafleur with 10:17 left until halftime.
“The unforced turnovers hurt us early,” added Harper, who say her club turn it over 13 times in the first half.
Three-point shooting and a renewed defensive effort got NC State back in the game. Kastanek and Brittany Strachan (10 points) each drained a pair of 3’s, while the Pack defense surrendered just eight points after the LaFleur three-ball.
NC State's Lucy Ellison (15 points, nine rebounds) capped off a 15-5 run with two free throws to square the game 32-all.
TCU would regained the lead in the late moments of the first half, but Strachan drove baseline for a layup to give NC State a 36-35 halftime lead, the first since the opening minute of the game.
The defense figured out how to stop Sverrisdottir after her hot start to the game. She only had six points the final 33 minutes of the game.
“We were more alert to her [Sverrisdottir] in the second half,” explained Harper. “She missed some shots later on that she was making early. I think our aggressiveness wore on her and their entire team.”
Nikitta Gartrell (12 points, nine rebounds) helped stop Sverrisdottir on the defensive end of the floor. She made just one of her last eight shots in the game.
“It was just ball pressure,” Gartrell said.” I pressured her up the court. I just wanted to make her tired when she got to their end of the court.”
NC State avoided back-to-back non-conference home losses for the first time since 2002 and matched up with a Mountain West team for the first time since a 67-65 win at BYU on Dec. 21, 2005.
The Wolfpack takes the next week off for exam week. Next up is a road game at South Carolina on Sunday in Columbia at 2 p.m. The game will be televised on SportsSouth.
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