LaRavia, Wake Forest Down Northwestern in Overtime

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Wake Forest earned a 77-73 overtime victory against Northwestern in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum on Tuesday night.

Offensively, the Demon Deacons (7-1) connected on 10 three-pointers for the fourth time this season while shooting 45.8 percent (27-of-59) from the field. Fourteen of the team's 27 made field goals were assisted upon.

On the defensive end, Wake Forest held the Wildcats (5-2) to their fewest points (73), fewest three-pointers (seven) and worst field goal percentage (37.7) this season.

Free throws proved to be crucial down the stretch as the Deacs converted 10 of their 13 opportunities at the stripe in the second half and overtime.

LaRavia and Alondes Williams led all scorers with 21 points apiece and combined to shoot 15-of-25 from the field and 8-of-9 from the free throw line.

The duo led the Deacs down the stretch as Williams scored Wake Forest's final four points in regulation and LaRavia scored eight of Wake Forest's 13 points in overtime to secure the win.

Additionally, Williams hauled in a career-high nine rebounds, led the team with four assists and contributed a pair of steals. LaRavia also grabbed seven boards and had a pair of assists and steals.

Isaiah Mucius was the third Demon Deacon to finish in double figures, scoring 12 points including three makes from downtown for the fourth time this season. The senior captain also grabbed five rebounds and dished two assists.

The four-point overtime victory improved Wake Forest's record to 13-6 in the ACC/Big 10 Challenge, including an 8-2 mark at home. Their 13 wins are tied for the second-most in the challenge's history.

How It Happened

Isaiah Mucius scored the Deacs' first points from three-point land 45 seconds into the contest.
Jake LaRavia drilled in triples on consecutive possessions and Dallas Walton rolled in a layup as part of an early 8-0 run that gave Wake Forest an 11-5 lead just under five minutes into the game.
Carter Whitt drained a step-back jumper, giving the Deacs a 19-16 advantage with 10:20 remaining in the first half.
After the Wildcats netted a pair of free throws, Mucius retook the lead (21-20) and opened up a 13-0 run with his own pair of free throws.
- Williams, Walton, and Mucius followed up with back-to-back-to-back three-pointers, and LaRavia added a layup in transition to give Wake Forest a 32-20 lead with under four minutes left until halftime.
Daivien Williamson scored the Deacs' eighth three-pointer of the first half with two seconds until the buzzer to give Wake Forest a 37-32 lead going into halftime.
- LaRavia led the first-half scoring effort, with 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting. Mucius and Williams each contributed eight points on a combined 5-of-10 shooting. Overall, the team shot 43.3 percent from the field and 50 percent from three.
- 10 of the Deacs' 13 field goals in the opening period were assisted upon, as Williams (three), Mucius (two), and Walton (two) each dished out multiple assists.
- On the other end, Wake Forest held Northwestern to just 37.1 percent shooting, including 9-of-25 shooting (36 percent) from inside the arc.
Williamson opened up scoring in the final period with a layup on the half's opening possession.
Mucius, Williamson and Williams responded to an 8-0 Wildcat run with a 10-0 run of their own, featuring triples from Mucius and Williamson along with a pair of baskets from Williams.
- That run gave the Deacs a 49-40 advantage with 15:20 remaining in regulation.
Whitt ended an 8-0 Northwestern run with his second jumper of the evening, giving the Deacs a 53-51 lead with 9:32 left in regulation.
Wake Forest entered the under-8 timeout with a 55-53 lead after Williams rolled in a layup.
LaRavia and Williams scored back-to-back buckets in the paint to push the Deacs' lead to four (57-53) with 5:24 remaining.
Williams connected on another layup to regain the lead (62-60) with just over four minutes left.
Williams again regained the lead (64-62), this time at the free throw line - going 2-of-2 with 2:53 remaining in regulation.
Neither team was able to score after Northwestern tied the game with 2:35 left to play, and the two teams entered the overtime period knotted up at 64.
Walton's layup tied the game up at 67 with 3:32 left in overtime.
LaRavia converted an and-one opportunity at the stripe to give the Deacs a 70-69 lead with 1:54 left to play.
LaRavia retook the lead again at the stripe, going 2-of-2 to bring the score to 72-71 with 51 seconds remaining in overtime.
Williamson hit a free throw to extend the lead to two (73-71) with 26 seconds left.
LaRavia hit a turnaround jumper to give the Deacs a 75-73 lead with 4.7 seconds to play.
LaRavia grabbed a clutch steal and iced the game at the stripe, going 2-for-2 to give Wake Forest a 77-73 victory.

Key Moment
With six seconds left in overtime, Jake LaRavia drained a go-ahead jumper to retake the lead. Following Northwestern's timeout, the junior from Indiana grabbed a steal and drew a foul, preventing Northwestern from attempting a final shot. LaRavia then iced the game at the stripe, going 2-for-2 to put the game out of reach.

Stat of the Game

With overtime victories this season against Oregon State and Northwestern, Wake Forest has secured two overtime victories in a season for the first time since the 2009-10 season (5-0).

Coach's Comments
"What you saw tonight was a gritty, grimy and tough win. There were a lot of runs in the game and I was happy that we didn't fold when we were struggling to score. Coming away from Florida, we learned how to win in overtime and we executed in the areas that I wanted to execute in. I am proud of my team and their toughness. We won the fifty-fifty balls at critical moments, and it led to a win tonight. Northwestern is disciplined and they will win a lot of games. This was a good team win tonight."

Up Next
The Demon Deacons open Atlantic Coast Conference play on the road Saturday with a matchup against Virginia Tech in Blacksburg.

Tip-off against the Hokies is set for 2:00 p.m. ET and the game will air live on ACC Network.

Players Mentioned

Jake LaRavia

Isaiah Mucius

Dallas Walton

Carter Whitt

Alondes Williams

Daivien Williamson