NC State
7-1,0-0ACC
#10/10 Iowa
5-3,0-0Big Ten
Five Score in Double Figures in #12 Pack’s Gutsy 94-81 Win at #10 Iowa
12/1/2022 11:23:00 PM | Women's Basketball
IOWA CITY, Iowa – NC State women's basketball gutted out a total team effort as five players scored in double figures in the 12th-ranked Pack's 94-81 road victory over 10th-ranked Iowa.
With the win, the Wolfpack improved to 7-1 on the season and won its fourth-straight ACC/B1G Challenge game.
NC State led for the final 25:11 of the contest and seemed to answer every Iowa bucket with a shot of its own. The team shot 36-of-65 (.554) and 7-of-13 (.538) from three-point range.
Saniya Rivers and Diamond Johnson tied for the team lead in scoring with 22 points apiece. Rivers' performance was a career high made special by a 9-of-11 shooting mark and three triples to go with five assists and four steals.
Jakia Brown-Turner (17), Jada Boyd (12) and Camille Hobby (10) stepped up as veterans in a big test for the Pack to join them in double figures.
After three ties and five lead changes to start a fast-paced second quarter, NC State went ahead at the 5:11 mark and stayed there for the rest of the period to take a four-point lead (39-35) into the half. The Pack shot 71.4 percent (10-of-14) overall and 66.7 percent (4-of-6) from distance in the second quarter on its way to outscoring Iowa 26-18. Rivers, who had already reached double figures for the first time in her career by halftime, shot 5-of-6 in the opening 20 minutes to lead a balanced scoring attack for the Pack.
NC State used a strong start to the third quarter to push its lead to over 10 points on multiple occasions. The Pack held the Hawkeyes without a field goal for nearly five minutes, forcing them into five turnovers in that span to open up its largest lead of the game (57-44, 2:25 3Q). Iowa tried to mount a comeback, bringing it as close as four points early in the fourth quarter (68-64, 8:13), but the Wolfpack did not slow down and shot 61.1 percent (11-of-18) in the final quarter to close out the win.
The Pack's 94 points marked the most it's scored against a ranked opponent since March 16, 1991. It was also the team's highest scoring performance in a true road game in the Wes Moore era.
Caitlin Clark of Iowa finished with 45 points, but NC State's balanced scoring was too much for Iowa to handle defensively.
NC State wraps up its five-game stretch on the road with a Monday night matchup at Georgia. Tip-off between the Wolfpack and the Bulldogs is slated for 8 p.m. on the SEC Network.
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