Tuesday, November 9
Raleigh, N.C.
5 PM
NC State
vs
#1/1 South Carolina
Photo by: ehyman@newsobserver.com
#5 Wolfpack Opens 2021-22 Campaign with Home Showdown Against #1 South Carolina
11/8/2021 9:31:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Top-five matchup tips off at 5 p.m. on ESPN
TICKETS SOLD OUT | GAME NOTES | LIVE STATS | ESPN
RALEIGH – No. 5 NC State women's basketball begins its 48th season and its ninth season of the Wes Moore era at home on Tuesday evening with a highly-anticipated matchup against No. 1 South Carolina. Tip-off in front of a sold-out crowd is scheduled for 5 p.m. from Kay Yow Court inside Valvano Arena at Reynolds Coliseum.
The game will be televised nationally on ESPN, and radio broadcasters Andrew Sanders and Ernie Myers will be on the call on WKNC 88.1 FM in Raleigh.
FAN INFO
Due to the 5 p.m. start time of Tuesday's season opener, the University will still be operating under normal business operations, including all parking lots. Multiple lots have been reserved for fans coming to the game and will be available for FREE beginning at 4 p.m. All information about parking and mobile ticketing can be found here.
Masks are required to be worn when not actively eating or drinking.
A WIN ON TUESDAY WOULD
• Be the 967th win in program history (966-474)
• Be Coach Moore's 749th career win (748-234)
• Be Moore's 191st win at NC State (190-65)
• Extend the Wolfpack's home winning streak to 13 games
• Be NC State's 41st-straight non-conference win on Kay Yow Court
• Be the Pack's fourth win in a row over the nation's No. 1 team and its fifth top-ranked victory in team history (4-17)
• Be NC State's second time defeating a top-ranked team at home and its first time doing so since the 1977-78 campaign
• Extend NC State's winning streak against South Carolina to three games
• Mark the Wolfpack's 19th-straight season-opening win
NOTING THE WOLFPACK
• NC State begins the season ranked fifth in the Associated Press Top 25 and fourth in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll. Both of those numbers tie or set preseason program records.
• Both the ACC's head coaches and blue ribbon panel selected the Wolfpack as the preseason favorite to win the league. NC State received first-place votes from all 14 of the other head coaches in the conference.
• NC State returns nine players and all five starters from last season's squad that went 22-3 overall and won the 2021 ACC Tournament. The Wolfpack also welcomes five newcomers - two transfer sophomores and three freshmen.
• Both of the Pack's transfers (Madison Hayes and Diamond Johnson) were ranked in the top 30 in the class of 2020 coming out of high school and garnered All-Freshman honors from their respective leagues last season.
• NC State's current freshman class (Sophie Hart, Aziaha James, Jessica Timmons) was ranked as high as 12th nationally.
• Five Wolfpack women's basketball players were named to the preseason positional watch lists by HoopHall. Elissa Cunane made an appearance on the Lisa Leslie Award watch list for the third-straight season, Jakia Brown-Turner appeared on the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award preseason list for the second year in a row, Raina Perez and Diamond Johnson made their second-straight appearances on the Nancy Lieberman Award watch list and Kayla Jones was featured on the Katrina McClain Award preseason list for the first time in her career. NC State is tied with South Carolina for second nationally, and only UConn has more with six on those lists.
• NC State defeated UNC Pembroke 92-36 in exhibition action on Nov. 3. All 13 available players saw time on the floor, and 12 of those players found the scoring column. Four members of the Pack scored in double figures in that game.
20-21 REWIND
• NC State went 22-3 overall in 2020-21 and reached the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 for the third season in a row, a feat that has been accomplished just one other time in program history. The Wolfpack earned a No. 1 seed in the national tournament, marking a program first.
• The Wolfpack successfully defended its ACC Tournament title in 2021 to win back-to back crowns for the first time ever.
• The Wolfpack compiled a 20+ win season for the sixth year in a row and the seventh time in eight completed seasons under the leadership of head coach Wes Moore. It marks the longest such streak since it had nine consecutive 20+ win seasons from 1976 77 through 1984-85.
• In league play, NC State posted a 12-2 record in what was an abbreviated schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The team finished second in the ACC following the regular season.
• In 2020-21, NC State shot 50 percent or better as a team in nine games and 45 percent or better in 15 games. The well-balanced squad averaged 37.3 points in the paint and 7.1 made three pointers per contest.
SERIES HISTORY (NC State leads 20-11)
• Tuesday marks the 32nd meeting between NC State and South Carolina in a series that dates back to 1977. It is the second game in a home-and-home agreement that the teams arranged in November 2020.
• The Wolfpack and the Gamecocks faced off during non-conference play last season, with NC State emerging victorious in that Dec. 3, 2020 matchup in Columbia.
• The victory marked the first of two wins over the nation's No. 1 teams that NC State collected in 2020-21. It was also the Pack's first over a top-ranked team since March 3, 2007.
• NC State owns the 9-3 series advantage in games played on its home court. The Wolfpack won its last home game against South Carolina in a contest played in December of 2011.
• This meeting marks the first time that both the Wolfpack and the Gamecocks are ranked in the national top five when playing each other. Eleven out of the 31 previous matchups between NC State and South Carolina have occurred when both teams were ranked in the national top 25. The Wolfpack has won the last three of those games.
BACK WITH THE PACK
NC State welcomes back:
• Its top eight scorers from 2020-21, including four players who averaged double figures
• All five starters from 2020-21 (Perez, Kai Crutchfield, Brown-Turner, Jones, Cunane) and ACC Sixth Player of the Year Jada Boyd; one of six teams in the ACC to return all of last season's starters
• 93.5 percent of its points scored (1,804 out of 1,929)
• 95.9 percent of its assists (378 out of 394)
• 81.9 percent of its total rebounds (847 out of 1,034)
RALEIGH – No. 5 NC State women's basketball begins its 48th season and its ninth season of the Wes Moore era at home on Tuesday evening with a highly-anticipated matchup against No. 1 South Carolina. Tip-off in front of a sold-out crowd is scheduled for 5 p.m. from Kay Yow Court inside Valvano Arena at Reynolds Coliseum.
The game will be televised nationally on ESPN, and radio broadcasters Andrew Sanders and Ernie Myers will be on the call on WKNC 88.1 FM in Raleigh.
FAN INFO
Due to the 5 p.m. start time of Tuesday's season opener, the University will still be operating under normal business operations, including all parking lots. Multiple lots have been reserved for fans coming to the game and will be available for FREE beginning at 4 p.m. All information about parking and mobile ticketing can be found here.
Masks are required to be worn when not actively eating or drinking.
A WIN ON TUESDAY WOULD
• Be the 967th win in program history (966-474)
• Be Coach Moore's 749th career win (748-234)
• Be Moore's 191st win at NC State (190-65)
• Extend the Wolfpack's home winning streak to 13 games
• Be NC State's 41st-straight non-conference win on Kay Yow Court
• Be the Pack's fourth win in a row over the nation's No. 1 team and its fifth top-ranked victory in team history (4-17)
• Be NC State's second time defeating a top-ranked team at home and its first time doing so since the 1977-78 campaign
• Extend NC State's winning streak against South Carolina to three games
• Mark the Wolfpack's 19th-straight season-opening win
NOTING THE WOLFPACK
• NC State begins the season ranked fifth in the Associated Press Top 25 and fourth in the USA Today/WBCA Coaches Poll. Both of those numbers tie or set preseason program records.
• Both the ACC's head coaches and blue ribbon panel selected the Wolfpack as the preseason favorite to win the league. NC State received first-place votes from all 14 of the other head coaches in the conference.
• NC State returns nine players and all five starters from last season's squad that went 22-3 overall and won the 2021 ACC Tournament. The Wolfpack also welcomes five newcomers - two transfer sophomores and three freshmen.
• Both of the Pack's transfers (Madison Hayes and Diamond Johnson) were ranked in the top 30 in the class of 2020 coming out of high school and garnered All-Freshman honors from their respective leagues last season.
• NC State's current freshman class (Sophie Hart, Aziaha James, Jessica Timmons) was ranked as high as 12th nationally.
• Five Wolfpack women's basketball players were named to the preseason positional watch lists by HoopHall. Elissa Cunane made an appearance on the Lisa Leslie Award watch list for the third-straight season, Jakia Brown-Turner appeared on the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award preseason list for the second year in a row, Raina Perez and Diamond Johnson made their second-straight appearances on the Nancy Lieberman Award watch list and Kayla Jones was featured on the Katrina McClain Award preseason list for the first time in her career. NC State is tied with South Carolina for second nationally, and only UConn has more with six on those lists.
• NC State defeated UNC Pembroke 92-36 in exhibition action on Nov. 3. All 13 available players saw time on the floor, and 12 of those players found the scoring column. Four members of the Pack scored in double figures in that game.
20-21 REWIND
• NC State went 22-3 overall in 2020-21 and reached the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 for the third season in a row, a feat that has been accomplished just one other time in program history. The Wolfpack earned a No. 1 seed in the national tournament, marking a program first.
• The Wolfpack successfully defended its ACC Tournament title in 2021 to win back-to back crowns for the first time ever.
• The Wolfpack compiled a 20+ win season for the sixth year in a row and the seventh time in eight completed seasons under the leadership of head coach Wes Moore. It marks the longest such streak since it had nine consecutive 20+ win seasons from 1976 77 through 1984-85.
• In league play, NC State posted a 12-2 record in what was an abbreviated schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The team finished second in the ACC following the regular season.
• In 2020-21, NC State shot 50 percent or better as a team in nine games and 45 percent or better in 15 games. The well-balanced squad averaged 37.3 points in the paint and 7.1 made three pointers per contest.
SERIES HISTORY (NC State leads 20-11)
• Tuesday marks the 32nd meeting between NC State and South Carolina in a series that dates back to 1977. It is the second game in a home-and-home agreement that the teams arranged in November 2020.
• The Wolfpack and the Gamecocks faced off during non-conference play last season, with NC State emerging victorious in that Dec. 3, 2020 matchup in Columbia.
• The victory marked the first of two wins over the nation's No. 1 teams that NC State collected in 2020-21. It was also the Pack's first over a top-ranked team since March 3, 2007.
• NC State owns the 9-3 series advantage in games played on its home court. The Wolfpack won its last home game against South Carolina in a contest played in December of 2011.
• This meeting marks the first time that both the Wolfpack and the Gamecocks are ranked in the national top five when playing each other. Eleven out of the 31 previous matchups between NC State and South Carolina have occurred when both teams were ranked in the national top 25. The Wolfpack has won the last three of those games.
BACK WITH THE PACK
NC State welcomes back:
• Its top eight scorers from 2020-21, including four players who averaged double figures
• All five starters from 2020-21 (Perez, Kai Crutchfield, Brown-Turner, Jones, Cunane) and ACC Sixth Player of the Year Jada Boyd; one of six teams in the ACC to return all of last season's starters
• 93.5 percent of its points scored (1,804 out of 1,929)
• 95.9 percent of its assists (378 out of 394)
• 81.9 percent of its total rebounds (847 out of 1,034)
NC State ranks first in the ACC in number of points returned (1,804), first in points per game returned (72.2) and third in percentage of points returned (.935).
#GoPack | @PackWomensBball
Players Mentioned
Wing
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Center
/ Women's Basketball
Center
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Forward
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
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