Wake Forest University
3-0,0-0ACC
Charleston Southern
1-2,0-0Big South
Winston-Salem Native Williamson Reaches Historic Mark in Wake Forest Victory over Charleston Southern
11/17/2021 9:51:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Daivien Williamson scored 16 points to eclipse the 1,000 point mark in his collegiate career.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Junior forward Jake LaRavia scored 24 points on Wednesday night, while guards Daivien Williamson, Alondes Williams and Cameron Hildreth set milestones as Wake Forest defeated Charleston Southern, 95-59.
The Demon Deacons (3-0) shot above 50 percent from the field (55.6 percent) for the third-consecutive game this season and held the Buccaneers (1-2) to just 37.9 percent and forced 22 turnovers in the victory. Wake Forest's defense has now forced 62 turnovers through three games and has converted those opportunities into 76 points.
LaRavia led the scoring effort for the Deacons with 24 points on a career-high 10 made field goals. Additionally, he finished with two steals and two blocks to bring his season tally to 12 steals.
Williamson ended the evening with 16 points on 4-of-6 shooting including a perfect 4-of-4 from both beyond the arc and at the free throw line, respectively. With tonight's performance, Williamson eclipsed 1,000 career points and he set a new career high in steals with four.
Khadim Sy (12 points), Dallas Walton (11 points), Hildreth (10 points) and Williams (10 points) all ended the night in double figures.
Hildreth's 10 points on 80 percent shooting marks the third-consecutive game he poured in double-digits on at least 50 percent shooting. The Worthing, England native is the only Wake Forest freshman this century to accomplish this feat in the opening three games of his collegiate career. Hildreth also led the team in rebounds (eight) and finished with four assists.
Williams' 10 points on the night brought his season total to 64, which ties Codi Miller-McIntyre (2013-14), Robert O'Kelley (1998-99) and Tim Duncan (1995-96) for the fifth-most points scored by a Demon Deacon through the opening three games of a season since 1995. The Milwaukee, Wis. product also finished with five rebounds and five assists.
Second-year freshman guard Carter Whitt dished out a game-high seven assists, tallied five rebounds and two points.
How It Happened
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A Dallas Walton hook shot in the post started the Demon Deacons scoring on Wednesday night.
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The Deacs took a 7-2 lead following a 3-pointer from Jake LaRavia and two makes at the free throw line by Alondes Williams at the 16:34 mark in the first half.
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After the Buccaneers responded with a basket, the Deacs went on a 9-2 run to take a 10-point lead, 16-6, with 12:20 remaining in the first half.
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LaRavia accounted for six of the aforementioned nine points, all coming in the paint.
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Daivien Williamson also knocked down his first triple of the night during the run.
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Following another basket from Charleston Southern, Wake Forest embarked on an 8-0 run highlighted by two dunks from Khadim Sy and Williams. That run put the Deacs up 24-8 with just over 10 minutes left until halftime.
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Cameron Hildreth silenced an 8-0 Buccaneer run with a turnaround layup, bringing the lead back to 10, 26-16, with 7:44 left until intermission.
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After going 1-of-2 at the stripe, Walton grabbed a steal at the top of the key and thundered down a dunk in transition to bring the lead to 13 points, 29-16, with 6:46 to play in the first half.
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Wake Forest ended the final four minutes of the half on a 14-3 run, giving the Deacs a 47-24 advantage at intermission.
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The Deacs shot a blistering 62 percent from the field (18-of-29 and 4-of-6 from three) in the first half. Wake Forest scored a bulk of their points in the paint, where they outscored Charleston Southern, 24-8.
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LaRavia and Sy finished the first half in double digits with 15 and 12 points, respectively, on a combined 10-of-13 shooting from the field and 3-of-3 shooting from beyond the arc.
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On the defensive side, the Deacs were just as dominant as they forced 12 turnovers and held the CSU offense to just 31% shooting from the field. Six Demon Deacons recorded a steal in the first half, including four from Williamson - a new career high.
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LaRavia threw in a dunk in transition to open up the second half scoring.
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Walton found the bottom of the net for his first three pointer of the season, giving the Deacs a 25 point lead, 52-27, just over two minutes into the second half.
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Williamson connected on three triples over a 2:10 span, the third giving Wake Forest a 70-34 advantage with 13:40 left to play.
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Cameron Hildreth silenced another Buccaneer run and brought the lead to 72-41 with 12:24 remaining in the contest.
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Williamson went 2-for-2 at the charity stripe, giving the Winston-Salem native his 1,000 and 1,001 career points and the Deacs an 83-48 lead with 7:02 remaining in the game.
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Wake Forest went on to defeat Charleston Southern, 95-59.
In The Spotlight
Winston-Salem native Daivien Williamson ended tonight's game with 16 points on 4-of-6 shooting including a perfect 4-of-4 from both beyond the arc and at the free throw line to go along with a career high four steals.
With tonight's performance, Williamson eclipsed 1,000 career points:
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2018-19 (East Tennessee State): 315
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2019-20 (East Tennessee State): 352
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2020-21 (Wake Forest): 284
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2021-22 (Wake Forest): 50
Heading into Saturday's game, Williamson is shooting 71.4 percent from deep (10-for-14).
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William and Mary: 2-for-4
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Western Carolina: 4-for-6
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Charleston Southern: 4-for-4
Stat of the Game
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With 50 percent or better shooting against William & Mary (51.7 percent), Western Carolina (51.7 percent), and now Charleston Southern (55.6 percent), Wake Forest has shot 50 percent or better in three consecutive games to open the season for the first time since 2008-09.
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However, this year's squad is shooting 37.1 percent (23-of-61) from beyond the arc to open this season compared to 23.3 percent (7-of-30) to open the 2008-09 season.
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With tonight's performance, the Demon Deacons currently rank second in the ACC in field goal percentage at 53 percent, trailing only Syracuse.
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Key Moment
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After the Buccaneers cut their deficit to 12 late in the first half, the Deacs closed out the final four minutes of the half on a 14-3 run that gave them a 47-24 lead at the intermission.
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In the Deacs offensive spurt, it was all Khadim Sy and Jake LaRavia as the duo tallied 10 and four points respectively.
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Wake Forest's defense limited Charleston Southern to just 33 percent shooting (2-6) to close the half.
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Coach's Comments
"I was very proud of my team tonight and it was a very solid performance from the beginning. We had a couple rough spots there in the first half where we got tired, maybe played a little smaller at times, but corrected the issue and finished the half strongly. We had great balance. Six guys in double figures, 20 assists, 10 turnovers and 20 assists on 35 baskets. That's pretty good considering that we're a team that can score off the bounce. There's always going to be an assist when you can score off the bounce.
"I'm really proud of Daivien (Williamson). I knew he was getting close to 1,000 (points) because he played for me at East Tennessee State and I was tracking it. He got that quick because he didn't have a full year last year so he would've gotten it last year. He's a wonderful young man. I've never had anything negative to ever say about him. He is a great player, great person, great scorer and great teammate. He deserves all the credit. Scoring 1,000 points is a pretty good milestone for a career." - Head Coach, Steve Forbes
Up Next
Wake Forest will be back in action on Saturday, Nov. 20 for an evening tilt against North Carolina A&T in LJVM Coliseum.
Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. and the game will stream live on ACC Network Extra.
