Wake Forest Athletics
Wake Forest to Travel to Minnesota for ACC/Big Ten Challenge
7/11/2022 12:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Demon Deacons are scheduled to play the Gophers on Wednesday, Nov. 30 in Minneapolis, Minn.
GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Get excited, Deacon Nation! The ACC/Big Ten Challenge is back and the Deacs are scheduled to play Minnesota on Wednesday, Nov. 30 in Minneapolis, Minn.
The Demon Deacons are set to travel to play the Gophers, marking the third time the two programs will face each other in program history. Additionally, this is the second consecutive year Wake Forest will compete in the event. All-time, the Deacs have won seven matchups against Big Ten opponents in program history.
In the one previous meeting in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, Wake Forest topped Minnesota at home, 82-65, in 2011. Asia Williams scored 13 points and tied a career-high with 11 rebounds to collect a double-double. The junior also dished out a career-high six assists on the night and tied a career-high with five steals.
"The ACC/Big Ten Challenge has such a rich history and an event that I'm excited to take part in with our team," head coach Megan Gebbia said. "It will be an honor to represent our conference and compete together against the Big Ten. I know our team will be excited to travel to another Power-5 school and challenge themselves against a program like Minnesota on a national stage."
In 2020, the ACC/Big Ten Challenge was not played for the first time since the event started in 1999. Since the inception of the event, the ACC holds a 10-1-3 all-time record over the Big Ten.
Season Tickets On Sale
Claim your spot in Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum for what is shaping up to be another exciting season for Megan Gebbia's inaugural season with the Demon Deacons! Deposits for 2022-23 Wake Forest women's basketball season tickets are now being accepted at GoDeacs.com/tickets.
Scouting the Gophers
After finishing last season with a 15-18 record and 7-11 in Big Ten play, the Gophers return just three players from their 2021-22 team and have added five transfers and four freshmen to their roster ahead of the 2022-23 season.
As a team, Minnesota led the Big Ten and finished fifth in the nation with a 38.2 shooting percentage from behind the arc while also ranking 16th nationally with 277 three-point makes and 22nd in the country with 8.4 threes per game.
The Gophers are 6-8 all-time in ACC/Big Ten Challenge games.
Exciting Talent Returns
Gebbia inherits a young but talented team led by rising junior guard Jewel Spear. Spear is the first sophomore leading scorer in the conference since the 2011-12 season and just the third in the last 20 years. She averaged 18.3 points per game a season ago.
Additionally, Spear's 90 three pointers ranked second in the ACC and is the second most in single-season program history.
She had one of the greatest performances in program history against ETSU on Dec. 13, netting 40 points, the second best mark in school history while also breaking the program record with 10 three-point makes.
Spear went for 30-plus three times this season and 20-plus 10 times.
Upperclassmen Olivia Summiel and Kaia Harrison assumed new roles as captains alongside Spear and outgoing senior Christina Morra. Summiel had five games with double-digit rebounds including a career-high 14 rebounds in a win over in-state Charlotte. Harrison helped take the reins at the point guard position with four or more assists in four of the last 10 games of the season.
Freshman guard Elise Williams finished second on the team in scoring with 9.5 points per game while also leading the Demon Deacons in assists (87) and steals (51).
Additionally, forward Niyah Becker got valuable international experience with the Canadian U23 Team alongside Morra. The Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada native recorded a season-high 13 points three times during the 2021-22 including a 6-of-8 performance in the regular-season finale against nationally-ranked Georgia Tech. She tallied her first double-double as a Deac in a home win over Troy with 13 points and 11 rebounds.
