Wake Forest University
NC State
Deacs Hold Off NC State for First ACC Win
1/10/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
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| USATSI Photo Gallery Jan. 10, 2016
By Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@TieDyeNation)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - A pair of second-half runs helped guide the Wake Forest men's basketball team to a 77-74 victory over in-state foe NC State Sunday evening at the LJVM Coliseum. Devin Thomas registered his third-straight double-double, leading the Demon Deacons with 20 points and 11 rebounds in their first ACC win of the year.
The Deacons improved to 10-5 on the year with a 1-2 mark in conference play, while the Wolfpack fell to 10-6 overall and remained winless in league competition at 0-3. The Deacs' win was the eighth-straight by the home team in the series between the two schools.
Joining Thomas in double figures in points for Wake Forest were Bryant Crawford with 17, Konstantinos Mitoglou with 15 and Codi Miller-McIntyre with 11. Crawford also led the team with six assists and Mitoglou chipped in nine boards.
After a first half that saw the teams combined to shoot 30.2 percent (19-of-63) from the field, the scoring picked up in the second half.
Up by a score of 27-25 after the opening stanza, the Demon Deacons scored the first 13 points of the second half to jump in front by 15. Their lead was short-lived, however, as NC State began to heat up and reeled off a 21-4 run that included 16-consecutive points over a 3:50 stretch to regain the lead.
The Deacons wasted little time seizing the momentum back, using a Crawford 3-pointer to spark a 13-3 run that made it 57-49. The hosts were able to up their cushion to 66-55 before the Wolfpack battled back to cut the gap to five points.
With the score 68-63, the Deacs used another Crawford 3-pointer and a Thomas dunk to regain a double-digit lead. NC State made one final push, scoring 11 points in the final 49 seconds, but Crawford knocked down four free throws in that time to keep the Pack at bay and seal the win.
The Demon Deacons are now 8-0 in games decided by six or fewer points this season after going 5-6 in such contests a year ago. The Deacs have won their last four meetings against NC State at the Coliseum by a combined 10 points.
Wake Forest resumes play Wednesday with a trip to Virginia Tech. Opening tip in Blacksburg, Va. is slated for 9 p.m. The Deacs return home Saturday for a noon meeting with Syracuse.
BIG RUNS
• Wake Forest scored the final two points of the first half and the first 13 points of the second half. The 15-point run was their longest of the season.
• NC State scored 16-straight points in the second half, marking the largest run conceded by the Deacs this season.
SERIES HISTORY
• With Wake Forest's 77-74 win, the home team has now won the last eight meetings between the two schools.
• The last four meetings between the two teams in Winston-Salem, all Wake Forest wins, have been decided by a combined 10 points.
WINNING THE CLOSE ONES
• With the three-point win over NC State, Wake Forest improves to 8-0 on the season in games decided by six points or fewer.
• The Demon Deacons were 5-6 in such games in 2014-15.
STRONG FIRST-HALF D
• Wake Forest and NC State combined for 52 first-half points, the lowest combined total for any half Wake Forest has played this season. The previous low was 53 in the first half against Rutgers.
• The Deacons allowed only 25 first-half points, the lowest number of points allowed in a half by the Deacons since they allowed 24 first-half points to Rutgers on Nov. 30.
• The Deacs held NC State to 29.4 percent shooting from the field in the first half, the third time this season Wake has held an opponent to under 30 percent from the field in the first half. The previous two occurred at Rutgers on Nov. 30 and at home against No. 6 Xavier on Dec. 22.
THOMAS MOVING UP THE RECORD BOOKS
• Devin Thomas recorded yet another double-double, with 20 points and 11 rebounds.
• Thomas leads all active ACC players with 30 career double-doubles.
• Thomas' 30 double-doubles also move him into sixth place alone in Wake Forest history, passing Al-Farouq Aminu.
• Thomas has recorded nine double-doubles for the season, including three in a row to begin ACC play.
• This was Thomas' seventh game this year with at least 20 points and his fifth game this season with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds.
ACC SEASON/CAREER-HIGHS
• Sophomore guard Mitchell Wilbekin recorded his ACC season-highs with six points and two 3-point field goals made.
• Sophomore forward Dinos Mitoglou notched his ACC season-high with 15 points and three made shots from beyond the arc.
• Freshman guard Bryant Crawford tallied his ACC career-highs with 17 points and three 3-pointers. He also did not commit a turnover.
CRASHING THE GLASS
• Wake Forest and NC State each recorded 40 rebounds. Wake Forest is now 8-2 on the season when breaking even or winning the rebounding category.
ALSO OF NOTE
• Codi Miller-McIntyre (11 points) and Bryant Crawford (17 points) scored in double-figures in the same game for the second time this season and the first time in conference play.
• The Deacs shot 8-of-20 (40 percent) from 3-point range against the Wolfpack. Wake Forest is 4-1 on the season when shooting at least 40 percent from three.
• Devin Thomas led Wake Forest with 20 points. He has now led the team in scoring eight times this year.
• Bryant Crawford led Wake in assists for the team-leading ninth time this season.
• Wake Forest scored 50 points in the second half. It was their first 50-point half since the first half of their Nov. 23 victory over No. 13 Indiana.
