Wake Forest 66, N.C. State 50

Wake Forest has not made it easy for the Wolfpack in its past three contest, but this time there would be no chance to eke out a late-game victory with a buzzer-beater. Instead, the Demon Deacons prevailed 66-50 at Lawrence Joel Coliseum, pulling away over the final four minutes of the game.  

Finally finding a way to handle the Pack’s full-court pressure, the Deacs attacked the basket down the stretch and turned a one-point lead with 4 minutes, 56 seconds into a lopsided victory with a 21-6 run.

Wake finished with four players in double-figures, including a game-high 16-point performance by center Sandra Garcia. Both Brittany Waters and Secilly Ray had double-doubles, with Ray adding 15 points and a career-high 16 rebounds.

With the win, Wake (17-11, 7-6 ACC) snapped State’s three-game winning streak and secured fifth place in the conference, something it had shared with the Pack (16-11, 6-7) entering this contest. The Deacs have now won the second most conference victories in school history since a 9-5 finish during the 1987-88 season - the only season they participated in the NCAA Tournament.

The Deacs closed the game with offense, but they were most effective with their lock-down man-to-man defense.

“When we are doing the things we are suppose to, we’re not a lot of fun to play,” Wake Forest coach Mike Petersen said. “They had 50 points tonight. That’s not a lot of fun.”

Petersen called Courteney Morris’ 3-pointer with 3:35 remaining “huge,” as it launched the Deacs on their back-breaking run. He lauded her defense on State freshman Marrissa Kastanek, who finished 0-for-5 with two points and four turnovers. 

State senior Nikitta Gartrell scored a team-high 14 points, though the Pack needed more offensive consistency, shooting just 27.6 percent from the field (16-for-58).

“I’m frustrated with the outcome and how our team played tonight,” State coach Kellie Harper said. “We just have to bounce back, pull it together for our last game.”

State ends its regular season on Sunday at home against No. 22 Georgia Tech. It had held out hope of sweeping its final two contest and securing fourth place in the conference standings. That would have provided a lower seed in next week’s ACC Tournament (March 4-7) and secured a bye in the first round. Now the Pack’s place in the conference is less certain, leaving the possibility of a 6, 7 or 8 seed. 

Harper said the message to her players going forward is to come prepared and remain focused. She said the team’s energy level waned. She added that missing layups didn’t help, either. 

“We can’t let this loss take us down,” Gartrell said. “It’s going to have to start in practice. It will be done.”