Wake Forest University
North Carolina State
NC State Turns Back Wake Forest 63-38
1/27/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 27, 2008
RALEIGH, N.C. - The Wake Forest women's basketball team fell 63-38 to NC State on Sunday at Reynolds Coliseum.
The Demon Deacons now stand at 13-9 overall and 0-7 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. With the win on Kay Yow Court, the Wolfpack improved to 14-8, 2-4.
Wolfpack members Khadijah Whittington and Megan Zullo led the game with 12-points a piece, while Mekia Valentine was the high Demon Deacon scorer with 11 points. Wake Forest junior Corinne Groves was the game's leading rebounder with 11 caroms, while Whittington had 10 for the Pack.
Both teams hurt from beyond the arc shooting, the Pack was 5-for-18, while the Demon Deacons hit just 3-for-18, with all three baskets coming in the second half. With long-range shooting a null factor, both teams were evenly matched in the paint with 18 points a piece. The teams were also even in off-the-bench scoring with 15 points each.
The decisive factor proved the be turnover points: the Wolf Pack herded 17 points from the Demon Deacons' 16 possession losses, while the Wake Forest was unable to convert on any of the nine Pack fumbles. The Pack only had a 15-11 advantage in fast break points.
After nearly three scoreless minutes, Wake Forest sophomore Courteney Morris had the first points of the night on a jumper with 17:14 on the clock. The Wolfpack then raced ahead with a 9-0 run, kicked-off with red-shirt freshman Megan Zullo's 3-point basket.
Facing a 22-8 deficit in the first half, the Deacons were recharged by sophomore Mekia Valentine at the post, who hit three back-to-back layups to keep Wake Forest above water. With 3:45 to play in the half, Alex Tchangoue and Camille Collier teamed up with Valentine to go 8-0 against the Pack and a final layup by Valentine with 75 seconds on the clock set the halftime score at 29-20.
Wake Forest couldn't keep the heat from the last minutes of the first alive in the second, and was kept scoreless by the Pack for eight minutes. Corinne Groves landed a layup with 11:56 to play to put the Demon Deacons at 22-45 behind the Pack, who took advantage of the Wake Forest scoring drought in the opening minutes.
The Demon Deacons will now face the No. 3 North Carolina Tar Heels in Winston-Salem at 7 p.m. on Thursday, January 31.
