In the inaugural ACC/SEC challenge, No. 5 NC State women’s basketball defeated Vanderbilt 70-62 behind a strong all-around performance from junior guard Saniya Rivers.
For most of the game, the Wolfpack (8-0) made life miserable for the Commodores (7-1), holding them to 36 points through three quarters and not allowing more than 15 points in one quarter. However, a 26-point fourth quarter by the Commodores left a bad taste in the Pack’s mouth.
“Fourth quarter we looked like we were playing pickup over in Carmichael, so [we] gotta learn that it’s a 40-minute game,” said head coach Wes Moore. “We were coming down, forcing some shots, getting some quick shots and let them back in the game obviously. So give them a lot of credit.”
Both teams came out of the gates slow with neither side shooting better than 31% from the field in the first quarter. The Pack established an aggressive style of play in the frame, attacking the basket and drawing fouls. NC State attempted eight free throws in the quarter, a trend that continued for the rest of the game with the Wolfpack finishing the contest with 30 attempts.
Rivers made her presence felt on both sides of the ball in the quarter, scoring five points with aggressive drives to the basket, and snatched down five of her eight rebounds. She also led the defensive effort by holding Vanderbilt to just 11 points in the first.
The Pack found its offensive footing in the second quarter after a sloppy first 10 minutes that saw the Wolfpack turn over the ball six times. Rivers stayed aggressive looking for her shot, leading the Pack with 10 points in the quarter, including two 3-pointers.
After scoring in single digits in back-to-back games in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Rivers got back to her high-scoring ways against the Commodores. Scoring a game-high 22 points, 15 of which came in the first half, Rivers helped her team overcome somewhat of a slow start.
“The Virgin Islands, I felt like I wasn’t having the best scoring stretch, but I contributed in other ways to get my teammates involved,” Rivers said. “Tonight, I felt like I came out and contributed with scoring. I felt like we needed it tonight. … It felt good to get my rhythm back.”
Graduate center River Baldwin also found her game in the quarter, scoring six points after starting the game 0-5 from the field, and pushed to finish the game with 12 points and 10 rebounds. She was also a defensive anchor with two blocks and contested every shot in the paint. Following a 24-point outing against Colorado, Baldwin has seemingly found her footing in her second year with the Pack.
“I think coming into the year, I had this leadership standpoint, but I didn’t really buy into doing the little things,” Baldwin said. “Something in the Virgin Islands just switched, like, if I play defense, buy into the scout, do what the coaches are asking, and rebound, points will come or they won’t. I don’t really care as long as we get the ‘W’.”
Strong first half performances from Baldwin and Rivers gave the Pack a nine-point advantage going into the locker room and the Pack carried its momentum into the third quarter. The Commodores struggled with the Wolfpack’s intense defensive pressure in the frame, only scoring 10 points on a measly 26% from the field.
It seemed like the Pack was on its way to an easy victory over Vanderbilt, holding a 54-36 lead after 30 minutes of play and even extending its lead to 26 points in the fourth quarter. However, the Commodores weren’t ready to throw in the towel just yet, keeping the pressure on until the final minutes.
After cutting the lead to nine with two minutes to go, Vanderbilt got a steal and had an opportunity to cut the lead to six points on a 3-point attempt, but fortunately for the Pack, it missed. The red-and-white was able to ride it out with a sigh of relief as the team improved to 8-0 for the fourth time under Moore.
“We can’t settle; we can’t be comfortable,” Baldwin said. “We’ve been talking about, ‘Stay hungry and stay together.’ You can’t settle, you can’t get comfortable. Even in the fourth quarter when you’re up 26 because a team that scrappy, they’re not going to lay down.”
In the Virgin Islands, NC State crushed teams and kept its foot on their throats, winning each game in lopsided fashion. The Pack had an opportunity to do the same in this game but let its foot off the gas, something the team will look to learn from as it continues to play with a target on its back as the No. 5 team in the country.
“I’d rather learn from a win any day,” Rivers said. “We blew a 26-point lead in the fourth quarter. It was embarrassing; we should have won by 26. … We just got top-five in the rankings, and even though it doesn’t matter, we have to keep proving why we earned that spot. We can’t have games like that, letting teams come back.”
After a string of games against teams from the major conferences, NC State will now have somewhat of a respite with home games against Illinois State and Liberty before hitting the road again. The Pack faces Illinois State on Sunday, Dec. 3 at 2 p.m. and Liberty on Sunday, Dec. 10 at 2 p.m.
