Friday, November 27
Fort Myers, FL
11:30 a.m.
Wake Forest University
0-1,0-0ACC
82
vs
98
Arkansas
2-0,0-0SEC
1
2
3
4
F
Wake Forest
20
20
18
24
82
Arkansas
23
19
37
19
98
Deacs Drop Season Opener to No. 14 Arkansas
11/27/2020 1:49:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Senior guard Gina Conti finished with a game-high 23 points on 8-of-12 from the field.
FT. MYERS, Fla. – The Wake Forest women's basketball fell to No. 14 Arkansas, 98-82, in the season opener in Ft. Myers.
The Demon Deacons (0-1) were led by senior guard Gina Conti, offensively. Conti nearly set a new career-high, ending the afternoon with a game-high 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting.
She was just two points shy of her 25-point performance against St. John's as a junior.
The Deacs hung in with the national-ranked Razorbacks through the first 20 minutes of action, trailing just 42-40 at the midway point.
Conti and Alexandria Scruggs combined to score 25 points in the first half while both having a pair of three pointers. Scruggs ended the afternoon with 13 points and seven rebounds.
Wake Forest was able to limit national player of the year candidate Chelsea Dungee to just six points in the first half. Last season, she averaged better than 17 points per game.
Joining Conti and Scruggs in double figures was junior forward Christina Morra. The Toronto, Ontario native nearly recorded a double-double in the season opener, putting up 14 points and nine rebounds.
She also had all three of the Demon Deacon blocks in the game.
Senior forward Ivana Raca finished the day with nine points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
• Wake Forest started hot from the field, knocking down three of its first four shots. Alexandria Scruggs led the Deacs offensively early, scoring seven of the first 12 points for the Deacs.
• Gina Conti was also key for the Demon Deacon offense in the first quarter, netting seven points. After 10 minutes of play, Wake Forest trailed 23-20.
• With the help of Christina Morra, the Deacs pushed in front of nationally-ranked Arkansas nearly midway through the second quarter. Morra took the ball on the left block and powered through the contact and lay it in. After knocking down the subsequent free throw, Wake Forest went up 28-27 at the 6:12 mark.
• At the midway point of the game, the Demon Deacons trailed 42-40, limiting Arkansas national player of the year candidate Chelsea Dungee to just six points. On the Wake Forest side, Conti and Scruggs combined for 25 points in the first half while each hitting a pair of three pointers.
• Arkansas came out hit in the second half, building its lead to double digits at the 7:13 mark of the third quarter.
• The Razorback lead extended out to 20 points by the end of the third quarter as the Hogs led 79-58 entering the fourth.
• Morra was key for the Demon Deacons in the final two quarters, pouring in nine of her 14 points in the final 20 minutes of cation. She got the free throw line six times, knocking down five. She also was a force on the defensive end, tallying all three of her blocks in the third and fourth quarters.
• With the help of a 10-0 fourth quarter run, the Deacs worked the deficit down to 11 points, but was unable to get it down to single digits. Wake Forest fell 98-82 in the season opener.
STANDOUT STAT
5 – Gina Conti ended the game with a game-high five assists push her career total to 384 in her career. She is just 12 away from Cathy Willie (1987-90) for sixth place on the all-time Wake Forest assist list.
FROM HOOVER
"First and foremost, I am proud of this team and their perseverance throughout this offseason to play the game we all love. Obviously, this is not the result that we wanted. We showed throughout this game that we can hang with one of the best teams in the country. We have some things that we need to clean up, but the good thing for us is we have another opportunity to go out and bounce back tomorrow against Davidson." – Head Coach Jen Hoover
NEXT UP
Wake Forest is back on the court Saturday morning at 11:30 a.m., taking on in-state foe Davidson in the second of three games at the Gulf Coast Showcase.
The game can be seen on FloHoops ($).
The Demon Deacons (0-1) were led by senior guard Gina Conti, offensively. Conti nearly set a new career-high, ending the afternoon with a game-high 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting.
She was just two points shy of her 25-point performance against St. John's as a junior.
The Deacs hung in with the national-ranked Razorbacks through the first 20 minutes of action, trailing just 42-40 at the midway point.
Conti and Alexandria Scruggs combined to score 25 points in the first half while both having a pair of three pointers. Scruggs ended the afternoon with 13 points and seven rebounds.
Wake Forest was able to limit national player of the year candidate Chelsea Dungee to just six points in the first half. Last season, she averaged better than 17 points per game.
Joining Conti and Scruggs in double figures was junior forward Christina Morra. The Toronto, Ontario native nearly recorded a double-double in the season opener, putting up 14 points and nine rebounds.
She also had all three of the Demon Deacon blocks in the game.
Senior forward Ivana Raca finished the day with nine points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
• Wake Forest started hot from the field, knocking down three of its first four shots. Alexandria Scruggs led the Deacs offensively early, scoring seven of the first 12 points for the Deacs.
• Gina Conti was also key for the Demon Deacon offense in the first quarter, netting seven points. After 10 minutes of play, Wake Forest trailed 23-20.
• With the help of Christina Morra, the Deacs pushed in front of nationally-ranked Arkansas nearly midway through the second quarter. Morra took the ball on the left block and powered through the contact and lay it in. After knocking down the subsequent free throw, Wake Forest went up 28-27 at the 6:12 mark.
• At the midway point of the game, the Demon Deacons trailed 42-40, limiting Arkansas national player of the year candidate Chelsea Dungee to just six points. On the Wake Forest side, Conti and Scruggs combined for 25 points in the first half while each hitting a pair of three pointers.
• Arkansas came out hit in the second half, building its lead to double digits at the 7:13 mark of the third quarter.
• The Razorback lead extended out to 20 points by the end of the third quarter as the Hogs led 79-58 entering the fourth.
• Morra was key for the Demon Deacons in the final two quarters, pouring in nine of her 14 points in the final 20 minutes of cation. She got the free throw line six times, knocking down five. She also was a force on the defensive end, tallying all three of her blocks in the third and fourth quarters.
• With the help of a 10-0 fourth quarter run, the Deacs worked the deficit down to 11 points, but was unable to get it down to single digits. Wake Forest fell 98-82 in the season opener.
STANDOUT STAT
5 – Gina Conti ended the game with a game-high five assists push her career total to 384 in her career. She is just 12 away from Cathy Willie (1987-90) for sixth place on the all-time Wake Forest assist list.
FROM HOOVER
"First and foremost, I am proud of this team and their perseverance throughout this offseason to play the game we all love. Obviously, this is not the result that we wanted. We showed throughout this game that we can hang with one of the best teams in the country. We have some things that we need to clean up, but the good thing for us is we have another opportunity to go out and bounce back tomorrow against Davidson." – Head Coach Jen Hoover
NEXT UP
Wake Forest is back on the court Saturday morning at 11:30 a.m., taking on in-state foe Davidson in the second of three games at the Gulf Coast Showcase.
The game can be seen on FloHoops ($).
Team Stats
Wake
Ark
FG%
.394
.471
3FG%
.280
.458
FT%
.731
.840
RB
44
37
TO
19
10
STL
5
5
Game Leaders
Pts
23
FGM
8
3FGM
3
FTM
4
Pts
14
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
6
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Women's Basketball
Forward
/ Women's Basketball
Forward
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
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