The NC State women’s basketball team fell to the Syracuse Orange 55-52 at Holliday Gymnasium in Broughton High School in the 11th annual Hoops 4 Hope game.
It was a tenaciously physical defensive game, as the Wolfpack (17-9, 8-5 ACC) shot uncharacteristically poorly — 29.7 percent from the field and 4 of 21 from 3-point range — and held the Orange (20-6, 10-3 ACC) to 31 percent from the field. Despite Cuse’s aggressive use of full-court pressure, NC State turned it over just 12 times and forced 15 turnovers.
“They spread their zone out and made it tough for us to get good looks,” head coach Wes Moore said. “But still, the last three games we haven’t shot the way we’re capable of. But give them credit, they did a good job of getting to people and getting a hand in the face.”
The Pack got started quickly, jumping out to a 12-4 lead in the first 5:30 of the game. State started off a respectable 5 of 10 from the field, but the Orange struggled to find its shooting touch, shooting merely 2 of 9. It was fairly evenly matched for the remainder of the quarter as NC State ended it with a 17-11 lead.
Both teams shot very poorly throughout the quarter, as the Wolfpack shot 12.5 percent and the Orange shot 14.3 percent. They combined for just four-made field goals in the period as the Pack took a 26-20 lead going into the intermission.
Syracuse used full-court pressure throughout the half in attempt to rattle the Wolfpack. State responded well to it, though, turning the ball over only six times to Cuse’s 10.
“Syracuse is a very aggressive team,” junior guard Miah Spencer said. “They pressed the whole game, they get after it, they go for steals [and] they try to make you rattled. But I feel like we handled the press very well.”
The Orange seemingly solved its shooting woes as it opened the second half on a 7-2 run in the first 2:20 to close the gap 28-27. Cuse then went on a 6-2 run to take its first lead of the game 33-30. The teams battled it out for the rest of the quarter, with the Orange maintaining a 37-36 lead at the intermission. Syracuse shot 46.7 percent from the field in the third after shooting just 23.3 percent in the first half.
Cuse led the first half of the final quarter until redshirt junior guard Dominique Wilson was fouled with 4:43 left and hit both free throws to spark a 6-0 run to take a 49-45 lead with 3:49 remaining. However, the Orange then hit two 3-pointers that jump-started an 8-0 run to take a 53-49 lead with 2:23 left.
Junior guard Ashley Williams proceeded to hit a 3-pointer to cut the lead 53-52. However, State failed to score on its next two possessions, forcing it to foul the opposition. Cuse hit two of its four free throws to take a 55-52 lead, keeping the Wolfpack in the game with 2.5 seconds remaining. However, Williams missed the potential game-tying shot.
“It wasn’t a good look, but it was a look,” Williams said. “And I knew we needed three, so I had to get it up there.”
Wilson led the team with 12 points and six assists, while Jennifer Mathurin tacked on 10 points and 10 rebounds for the double-double. For Syracuse, junior Alexis Peterson led all scorers with 16 points and junior Briana Day put up 14 points and 12 boards.
“Our kids fought their guts out,” Moore said. “This loss and the Louisville loss were two [potential] wins that could’ve looked very good on our resume. But we just didn’t get the job done. In this league, you just gotta focus on the next game.”
The Wolfpack has now lost three of its last four games and hopes to turn its fortunes around on the road against UNC-Chapel Hill Sunday.
