North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State
Clemson
#4 NC State Returns Home for Thursday Afternoon Matchup with Clemson
2/10/2021 10:03:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Wolfpack has won the last 11 meetings with the Tigers
RALEIGH – After playing its last three contests on the road, the fourth-ranked NC State women's basketball team (12-2, 7-2 ACC) makes its return to Kay Yow Court on Thursday afternoon as it hosts Clemson (10-7, 5-7 ACC). Tip-off from Reynolds Coliseum is scheduled for 4 p.m., with live television coverage provided by RSN (Fox Sports South 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 THURSDAY WOULD...
• Be the 957th win in program history (956-473)
• Be head coach Wes Moore's 739th career win (738-233)
• Be Moore's 181st win at NC State (180-64)
• Be Moore's 85th ACC win at NC State (84-39)
• Be the Pack's 12th in a row over Clemson and its fifth home victory in a row over the Tigers
NOTING THE WOLFPACK (12-2, 7-2)
• Ranked No. 4 in the Associated Press Top 25 for the second week in a row and been ranked in the national top five since Dec. 7
• Stands at second in the ACC behind Louisville (18-1, 11-1 ACC)
• No. 2 nationally and first in the conference in defensive rebounds per game (32.6)
• Paces the league in rebound margin (15th nationally, +9.6) and field-goal percentage defense (23rd nationally, .354)
• Also top-20 nationally in field-goal percentage (13th, .475), rebounds per game (16th, 44.3), scoring margin (17th, +16.5) and scoring offense (20th, 80.3)
• Five members of the squad with scoring averages in double digits - Elissa Cunane (16.0), Jakia Brown-Turner (14.3), Kayla Jones (12.4), Jada Boyd (11.4) and Raina Perez (10.0)
• Cunane and Brown-Turner both rank in the top 20 in the ACC with their scoring numbers
• Cunane (2nd - .596) and Brown-Turner (12th - .453) also both ranked in the top 15 in the league in field-goal percentage, with Cunane's number also ranking 12th in the nation
• Perez (2.81) owns the ACC's top assist-to-turnover ratio and also ranks second in assists per game (5.2)
• Held five of its opponents to under 30 percent shooting and 10 of 14 opponents to under 40 percent
• Averaging 38.7 points in the paint and also a threat from distance with an average of 7.3 made three pointers per contest
• Outscored in the paint on just two occasions and beating out its opponents in that category by an average margin of +14.3
SCOUTING THE TIGERS (10-7, 5-7)
• Tied for eighth in the conference with Virginia Tech
• 3-5 in road games played this season
• Faced two ranked opponents so far this year, earning an overtime victory over then-No. 20 Syracuse on Jan. 24
• Opened the year with six straight victories and won eight of its first nine games. Won just one of its six ACC contests since then
• Leads the conference (17th nationally) in offensive rebounds with 16.0 per game
• Ranked third in the league in both three-point field-goal percentage defense (.291) and rebound margin (+8.2)
• Delicia Washington leads the way for three Clemson scorers averaging double figures, with her 15.4 points per game ranking eighth in the conference
• Kendall Spray ranked second in the ACC with an average of 3.1 made three pointers per game
SERIES HISTORY (NC State leads 59-30)
• Thursday marks the 90th meeting between NC State and Clemson.
• The Wolfpack has won its last 11 games played against the Tigers. Clemson has not picked up a win in the series since Jan. 6, 2011.
• NC State enters Thursday's game with a 27-7 record against Clemson when playing at home. The Tigers' last win in the series was also their last win in Raleigh.
• The squads last squared off on Jan. 30, 2020 inside Littlejohn Coliseum in Clemson, S.C. NC State cruised to the 79-60 victory to earn its 20th win of the 2019-20 campaign.
PACK ATTACK
NC State is currently the only team in the ACC that has five players averaging double figures in scoring. In total, the Pack has had at least four players post 10+ points in 11 of 14 games.
Seven different players have led the team in scoring in a game this season. In addition, five different players have put up at least one 20+ point game in 2020-21, which ties as the most for one team in the ACC.
STRENGTH IN THE PACK
Despite not having its usual sell-out home crowds of 5,500+ this season, the Pack has still put together a perfect 8-0 record on Kay Yow Court in 2020-21. Since the renovation of Reynolds Coliseum was completed in August 2016, NC State has gone 68-9 overall when playing at home. That record includes 28 out of 37 possible league wins.
PEREZ'S PLAYMAKING PROWESS
Perez inked her name in the Wolfpack record book on Sunday afternoon against UNC. She tied her career high with 13 assists, which also tied the single-game program record. Perez joined Krissy Kuziemski (Jan. 15, 1992 vs. Wake Forest) at the top of NC State's list.
With her current average of 5.2 assists per game, Perez is on pace to continue joining elite company. In total in the program's 46 completed seasons, a player has ended the season with an average of 4+ assists a total of 20 times, 5+ assists a total of nine times and 6+ assists a total of two times. The last time a player averaged more than five assists in a campaign was Kuziemski in 1992-93.
CAN'T STOP CUNANE
• Cunane finished third in the ACC in field-goal percentage (.547) last season, and she is shooting nearly 60 percent (.596) from the floor this season to rank second in the league. She has shot 50+ percent from the floor in a total of eight outings, including two perfect shooting nights (6-of-6 against NC Central and 9-of- 9 against Boston College, both at home).
• Through 12 games played, the center averages 9.0 points in the paint. The rest of her 16.0 scoring average shows her ability to convert on a variety of mid-range shots and to step out and knock down the three.
• She has a cumulative +/- number of 209 in 12 games, which breaks down to a +17.4 game average. She has clocked 276 minutes this season and owns a team best +/- mark of 0.70 per minute played.
• Cunane has scored in double figures in all but one game (the Pack's dominant win against Coastal Carolina where she was only needed for 13 minutes of game action). She also has three 20+ point outings this season.
COMING UP
NC State vs. Notre Dame • Monday, Feb. 15 • 5 p.m. • ESPN2
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