Wake Forest University
13-13,6-9ACC
Virginia Tech
19-6,9-5ACC
Raca Scores 24 Points in Loss to Virginia Tech
2/16/2020 5:05:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Ivana Raca now has 947 points in her three years with the Demon Deacons
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The Wake Forest women's basketball team fell to Virginia Tech, 73-62, on Sunday afternoon in the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
Despite multiple runs in the second half, the Demon Deacons (13-13, 6-9 ACC) were unable to close the gap against the Hokies (19-6, 9-5 ACC).
After trailing by nine at the midway point, Wake Forest came out strong in the third quarter, scoring eight points in the first two minutes of the quarter. The spurt, led by four points from Ivana Raca, helped make it a 44-39 game at the 7:50 mark of the third.
It was as close as Wake Forest got in the second half as a late 9-0 run from the Hokie put the game away in the fourth quarter.
Raca, who was coming off a 23-point performance in a win at Clemson on Thursday night, continued to shoulder the load for Wake Forest, offensively. She finished the game just three points shy of her career-high, posting a game-high 24 points in the loss to Virginia Tech.
Her aggression at the rim paid off all game long as she went to the charity stripe a career-high 10 times in the game, knocking down eight free throws. The Belgrade, Serbia native rounded out her stat line with five rebounds, an assist and a steal.
"Ivana is trusting her teammates and trusting that the offense is going to get her the ball," head coach Jen Hoover said. "I give her a lot of credit, and a lot of our other players credit to. They've fought through the adversity we were facing earlier this season. We didn't come out on top today and Ivana will be mad. She'll be the first one in the gym tomorrow."
The junior, who leads the team with 16.6 points per game this season, has now scored 947 points in her Demon Deacon career. Raca is on pace to become the 28th member of the 1,000-point club by the end of the season after teammate Alex Sharp crossed the barrier a few weeks ago.
Sharp finished the game with a team-high eight rebounds, leading the Deacs for the sixth consecutive game and the 17th time this season. She also had a team-high three steals to go along with six points and a pair of assists.
Christina Morra joined Raca in double figures, finishing the game with 14 points on 6-of-8 from the field. It marks the seventh time in ACC play that the sophomore has posted double-figure points.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
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Christina Morra came out on fire for Wake Forest. Three consecutive layups at the rim helped put the Deacons on top, 6-4, just 1:14 into the game.
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Alex Sharp continued to attack the glass, grabbing three boards in the first period. She also grabbed a steal and rebound to help stop the Hokie's momentum with 1:30 left in the first quarter. Finishing the night with eight rebounds, Sharp now has 871 in her career as she looks to become the fourth player in program history to reach the 900 mark.
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Ivana Raca and Alexandria Scruggs got the Deacons going in the second quarter, recording with jumper and layup, respectively. After a pair of free throws from Raca, Wake trailed just 21-20 at the 8:49 mark of the second quarter.
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Raca made it look easy at the free-throw line in the second quarter, going a perfect 6-of-6 from the charity stripe. By halftime, the junior had a game-high 15 points as Wake trailed 40-31 heading into the locker room.
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With the Deacs trailing by double digits in the third quarter, Ona Udoh strong-armed her way in for a lay-up and was fouled at the 3:11 mark. This helped spark an 8-0 run for Wake Forest. She capped off the run with another layup with 1:45 left in the third as the Demon Deacons made it a 55-50 game.
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After receiving the ball on the left block and drawing a double team, Alex Sharp was able to find a wide open Christina Morra on the right block. She laid it up and in to make it a 61-55 game with 7:43 left. It was as close as Wake would get in the fourth as Virginia Tech proceeded to go on a 9-0 run to push the lead to 70-55 with under four minutes to play.
NEXT UP
The Demon Deacons travel to No. 14 Florida State for their final road game of the regular season. Earlier this season, Wake Forest nearly erased a 21-point deficit to defeat the Seminoles in LJVM Coliseum.
The game can also be seen on ACCNX with tipoff scheduled for 7 p.m. (ET).
