NC State
20-10,9-9ACC
Syracuse
18-12,9-9ACC
Wolfpack Moves On to ACC Tournament Quarterfinal with Win Over Syracuse
3/2/2023 4:39:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Wes Moore reaches 800 career wins
GREENSBORO, N.C. – NC State women's basketball (20-10) won its ACC Tournament opener for the sixth season in a row as it put together a dominant second half against Syracuse (18-12) for an 83-58 second-round win on Thursday afternoon.
The Wolfpack advances to play top-seeded Notre Dame in the quarterfinals. That game is set for a 2 p.m. start on Friday inside the Greensboro Coliseum. NC State will be making its eighth-straight appearance in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals.
The victory was also the 800th of head coach Wes Moore's 34-year career. Moore became the fifth active and 15th ever NCAA Division I women's basketball coach to reach that career mark.
The Wolfpack shot a blistering 60.7 percent (34-of-56) from the field, its highest mark of the season. The team's scoring attack was highlighted by a season-high 54 points in the paint as the Pack won that category by 30. NC State also had a +18 rebound margin (41-23).
Five Wolfpack figures scored in double figures in the win, with Camille Hobby (16) and River Baldwin (14) contributing heavily to the team's paint attack. Jakia Brown-Turner (16) tied for the team lead in scoring, and Aziaha James and Madison Hayes both pitched in 10 points each as well.
NC State overcame a quick start by the Orange and used a 8-0 run to jump in front midway through the first quarter after which it would never trail again. Within that run, the Pack forced Syracuse into turnovers on three-straight possessions, and Baldwin scored six of her points in the opening period alone.
The Pack led by as many as nine points (26-17, 6:02) in the second quarter but then hit a scoreless drought that spanned nearly three minutes. The Orange came back within two points in that stretch, but NC State hit some late buckets in the second to take a 32-26 lead to the locker room.
Seven unanswered points near the start of the third quarter opened up a 10-point Wolfpack lead (41-31, 6:43), the first time either squad led by double digits. Syracuse brought it within single digits twice from there, but NC State scored the final bucket of the third quarter to lead 55-44 with 10 minutes left. The Pack kept its foot on the gas pedal from there, outscoring the Orange 9-2 in the first four minutes of the fourth to go up 18 (64-46, 6:04) and pave the way for its ticket punch to the next round.
NC State makes the turnaround for the Friday quarterfinal round, with the contest against Notre Dame set to be televised nationally on the ACC Network.
#GoPack | @PackWomensBball
