NC State
Virginia Tech
Second-Ranked Pack Returns to Action Sunday Against Virginia Tech
1/23/2021 10:06:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Game against the Hokies will be the first for NC State since Jan. 3
GAME NOTES | LIVE STATS | ACC NETWORK
RALEIGH – The No. 2 NC State women's basketball team (10-0, 5-0 ACC) returns to the court for the first time in three weeks as it hosts Virginia Tech (7-6, 2-6 ACC) Sunday afternoon. Tip-off between the Wolfpack and the Hokies is set for 4 p.m. from Kay Yow Court inside Valvano Arena at Reynolds Coliseum.
The game will be televised nationally on the ACC Network, and radio broadcasters Patrick Kinas and Ashley Eli will have the call on WKNC 88.1 FM in Raleigh.
Due to health and safety recommendations and current state guidelines, home NC State women's basketball games are closed to the public.
A WIN ON SUNDAY WOULD...
• Be the 955th win in program history (954-471)
• Be head coach Wes Moore's 737th career win (736-231)
• Be Moore's 179th win at NC State (179-62)
• Be Moore's 83rd ACC win at NC State (82-37)
• Be the Pack's third-straight 11-0 start to a season
• Extend the Wolfpack's winning streak over Virginia Tech to seven games
NOTING THE WOLFPACK (10-0, 5-0)
• Ranked season-high and program best-tying No. 2 nationally in the Associated Press Top 25
• Returning to action on Sunday for the first time in three weeks, as NC State has had five games in a row postponed or canceled since it last played on Jan. 3
• One of two remaining unbeaten teams in the conference and one of seven remaining unbeaten teams in the nation
• Ranked second in the league, just one game behind No. 1 Louisville
• Currently riding the ACC's longest winning streak of 15 games that started last season on Feb. 27, 2020
• No. 1 nationally and first in the conference in defensive rebounds per game (33.8)
• No. 10 nationally and first in the conference in field-goal percentage defense (.329)
• Also leads league in scoring defense (58.7)
• No. 7 in field-goal percentage (.490)
• No. 9 in scoring margin (+23.4)
• Also top-25 nationally in rebounds per game (10th, 46.2), rebound margin (15th, +11.6), scoring offense (17th, 82.1) and three-point field- goal percentage (21st, .372)
• Four members of the squad with scoring averages in double digits - Elissa Cunane (16.2), Jakia Brown-Turner (13.7), Kayla Jones (12.9) and Jada Boyd (11.7)
• Top six scorers all averaging at least 42 percent shooting
• Shot better than 50 percent as a team in each of the last three outings and a total of five games this year
• Cunane (3rd - .582), Jones (4th - .573) and Brown-Turner (15th - .444) all ranked in the top 15 in the league in field-goal percentage
• Only team in the ACC with a pair of players averaging better than 50 percent on the season (five field goals made per game minimum)
NATIONAL NO. 2
The Wolfpack tied its best Associated Press Top 25 ranking in program history as it moved up to second in the nation on Monday. It marks the 43rd week in program history that NC State has been featured in the top five.
The placement marks NC State's first No. 2 national ranking since week seven of the 1990-91 campaign. In total, Wolfpack women's basketball has spent eight weeks in program history as the nation's second-ranked team.
SCOUTING THE HOKIES (7-6, 2-6)
• Started the season with 6-0 record before losing six of its last seven ACC contests. Most recently fell to Notre Dame, 60-65, at home on Jan. 21
• Getting outscored by a margin of just 0.13 in league contests, with four of its six ACC losses coming at margins of five or fewer points
• Three Hokies have scoring averages in double digits, led by senior guard Aisha Sheppard (18.5 ppg)
• Sophomore center Elizabeth Kitley averages a double-double on the year with 17.5 points (third in the ACC) and 11.8 rebounds (second in the ACC)
• Hokies lead the ACC in three pointers per game with an average of 9.8
• Also top three in the ACC in three-point field percentage (3rd - .365) and blocks per game (3rd - 5.4)
SERIES HISTORY (NC State leads 21-1)
• Sunday marks the 23rd overall meeting between NC State and Virginia Tech.
• The Wolfpack is currently on a six-game winning streak in the series. The Hokies have just one victory in the all-time series, a win that came at the 2015 ACC Tournament.
• NC State is a perfect 10-0 against Virginia Tech at home.
• The squads squared off twice during the 2019-20 season, most recently meeting on Feb. 6, 2020. NC State won 71-59 inside Cassell Coliseum to hand the Hokies their first home loss in 16 games.
LAST TIME OUT
• NC State picked up another double-digit win over a conference foe, most recently defeating Boston College 76-57 at home on Jan. 3.
• Cunane led the way with a season-high 24 points in what was her third 20+ point performance of the year. She went a perfect 9-of-9 from the field.
• Raina Perez put up 16 points and finished just one assist shy of her first double-double as a member of the Pack. Brown- Turner (13) and Boyd (10) also found double figures.
• NC State shot a collective 30-of-56 (.536) from the field and assisted on 17 of those made baskets. The team capitalized on Boston College's 15 turnovers with 21 points off of those mishandles. It also held the Eagles to under 27 percent shooting in each of the game's final three quarters and under 30 percent from the floor on the day.
STIFLING DEFENSE
The Wolfpack has seen no shortage of points scored this season (averaging 82.1 per game), but its defensive effort as a team ranks among the best in the nation as the squad nears the end of January.
NC State has limited its opponents to just 32.9 percent shooting from the field, a number that ranks 10th in the nation. The Pack has held five of its opponents to under 30 percent shooting and eight of 10 opponents to under 40 percent.
The Pack's opponents average just 58.7 points per game, a defensive mark for NC State that leads the league. The team has held four teams to under 50 points this season, with that number including conference foe Miami and then top-ranked South Carolina.
COMING UP
NC State at Virginia Tech • Thursday, Jan. 28 • 4 p.m. • RSN
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