In a tie game with under five minutes remaining, No. 21 NC State women’s basketball found itself in a barn burner. Tied at 64 apiece with Virginia, Reynolds Coliseum was as loud as ever. The Pack was shooting well under 40% from the field while the Cavaliers were over 50%, but the Wolfpack was still in it.
Virginia turned the ball over, allowing an easy layup opportunity for freshman forward Tilda Trygger. Trygger hesitated for a second, went up and missed the layup. Trygger then missed her next three shots, immediately followed by misses from senior guards Aziaha James and Saniya Rivers. Yet, after every miss, a red-and-white jersey always came down with the rebound. On the eighth shot of the possession, graduate guard Madison Hayes went up strong and earned an and-1 layup, emphatically celebrating as Reynolds Coliseum erupted.
The possession epitomized the hard-nosed mentality that head coach Wes Moore has instilled as NC State downed Virginia 73-68 to secure its 11th straight home victory.
“That’s just who we are as a team,” Hayes said. “We’re relentless and that’s what we show every night. When our shots aren’t going, we have to rely on our rebounding. We just kept fighting, and that’s who we are.”
NC State made a statement with its rebounding as Hayes and Trygger combined for 11 offensive rebounds in the fourth quarter alone. The Wolfpack recorded 14 offensive rebounds compared to the Cavalier’s two, proving to be the difference-maker.
Hayes recorded her second-straight double-double in one of the best games of her career as she willed NC State to victory with 19 points, 12 of which came in the fourth quarter when the team needed it most.
“The last double-double was 10 defensive rebounds and zero offensive,” Hayes said. “[Moore] got in me a bit about going to the offensive boards, and I’m like ‘OK.’ I got six of them today, so I don’t want to hear him tomorrow about my offensive rebounding. I just got to help my team in any way that I can.”
Moore seems to have put full faith in Trygger at the center moving forward. The six-foot-six forward made her sixth straight start and seems to be settling into her role. Trygger scored seven of the Wolfpack’s first nine points as the Wolfpack offense sputtered in the first quarter. Though scoring just two points through the final three quarters, Trygger recorded a career-high 13 rebounds, dominating on the offensive glass. However, Moore said she still plays with hesitation as she acclimates to collegiate hoops after so many years of playing European basketball.
“I’d like to see her change her demeanor and make it more de-meaner,” Moore said. “She still needs to be a little tougher, a little more physical. She’s a freshman. She’s still got a lot to learn.”
James led the Pack with 20 points, eclipsing 20 or more for the eighth time this season. She started the game making just one of her first six shot attempts, but after Rivers sat the entire second quarter in foul trouble, she attacked the interior of the Virginia defense and showed why she is one of the best scorers in the ACC. James uncharacteristically made just one of her eight 3-point attempts but continued to impact the offense from the mid-range.
“I don’t got time to sit back,” James said. “Saniya was out, so I had to help my team. We had to pick up the pieces that Saniya left off and keep going.”
Next up, the Wolfpack travels to New York on Thursday to take on the Syracuse Orange. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. and will be televised on ACC Network.
