Wake Forest University
11-8,2-6ACC
Miami
12-6,5-2ACC
Deacs Drop Sunday Game at Miami
1/15/2023 4:25:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Demon Deacons will be off for the next week before returning to action at No. 13 Virginia Tech.
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Despite stingy defense and another team-high in points from sophomore Elise Williams, the Wake Forest women's basketball team dropped a 55-43 contest at Miami Sunday afternoon at Watsco Center.
The Demon Deacons (11-8, 2-6 ACC) made a run in the fourth, cutting the deficit against the Hurricanes (12-6, 5-2 ACC) to 10 points thanks to the help of a 7-0 run. The Deacs would get within 10 multiple times in the fourth quarter, but were unable to get closer.
The Deacs defense again had another impressive performance, holding the Hurricanes to 2-of-15 from behind the arc. Additionally, Wake Forest held Miami leading scorer Haley Cavinder to just nine points on 2-of-10 shooting and just 1-of-6 from behind the arc.
Cavider came into the game shooting 43 percent from behind the arc and the Deacs snapped her nine-game streak of double-figure scoring.
On the offensive end of the floor, Wake Forest was led by double-figure scoring efforts from sophomore Alyssa Andrews and Williams. This marks the sixth consecutive game Williams has finished in double digits. Over that stretch, she has led the Deacs in scoring four times.
Junior guard Jewel Spear moved into 24th on the all-time scoring list with her first three of the game, passing Secily Ray.
Senior guard Kaia Harrison finished with a strong all-around game, posting six points, eight rebounds and six assists, leading the Demon Deacons in both rebounds and assists Sunday.
There are only a limited number of home games remaining at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum this season. Be sure to claim your spot for exciting ACC matchups at GoDeacs.com/Tickets.
HOW IT HAPPENED
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Miami jumped out to a 4-0 lead to open the contest behind a layup from Lola Pendande and a jumper from Jasmyne Roberts.
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After being held scoreless for nearly three minutes, Kaia Harrison opened the scoring for Wake Forest at the 7:17 mark as she canned a triple on an assist from Jewel Spear.
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The three pointer marked Harrison's fifth three of the season, which ties her total from a season ago.
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Of note, Harrison has now scored Wake Forest's first points in eight of the Demon Deacons' 19 games.
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Miami then drained three-consecutive free throws, to take a 7-3 lead.
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The two sides traded layups before an Elise Williams trey made it a one point game (9-8).
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Miami made a free throw and a layup to extend its lead to four but the Deacs quickly responded as Spear made a stepback three.
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Spear's three moved her into 24th on the all-time scoring list.
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The Hurricanes outscored the Deacs 4-2 over the final 30 seconds of the first quarter to take a 16-13 lead after 10 minutes of play.
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Both sides came out strong defensively in the second quarter as the first six minutes of the frame featured only two points.
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Miami owned an 18-13 lead before a Williams layup made it a one-possession game.
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The Hurricanes then scored seven-unanswered to take a 25-15 lead into the halftime break.
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Defensively, Wake Forest held Miami to 0-of-6 from beyond the arc in the first half.
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Of note, the Hurricanes came into Sunday's contest shooting over 32 percent from three.
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In the first half, Wake Forest was led in the score column by Williams who tallied a game-high five points.
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The Raleigh, N.C. native also added a team-high two assists during the first 20 minutes of action.
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Miami opened the second half on a 12-4 run to extend its lead to 18 at the under five media timeout of the third quarter.
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Coming out of the break in action, Wake Forest was unable to significantly cut into the deficit as the Hurricanes held a 16-point lead with just over one minute remaining in the third frame.
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Miami owned a 43-27 lead after 30 minutes of play.
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In the third quarter, Alyssa Andrews led the Deacs with six points and two rebounds.
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Andrews shot a perfect 2-for-2 from the field and 2-for-2 from the charity stripe during the quarter.
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After trailing by 19 with just over eight minutes remaining, Wake Forest came alive offensively as the Deacs went on a 9-0 run to narrow Miami's lead to 10 with 5:37 left in the contest.
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Olivia Summiel knocked down two jumpers during the Demon Deacons' run.
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The Hurricanes then scored five unanswered to extend their lead to 15 but a triple from Williams and a pair of free throws by Harrison quickly cut the lead back down to 10.
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The two sides exchanged field goals over the final two minutes of the contest and Miami held on for the 55-43 victory.
STANDOUT STAT
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For the sixth consecutive game, sophomore guard Elise Williams finished the game in double figures, totaling a team-high tying 10 points.
FROM GEBBIA
"Our bye is coming at the right time. We have some things that we need to figure out before closing the year strong starting next Sunday. I am proud that the group that finished the game played to the final whistle. Alyssa and Marta especially played hard and finished in the positive plus/minus. We were able to cut it down to 10 points there a couple times in the fourth quarter, but we needed to find a way to start faster and be locked in from the beginning. We have some work to do in the week ahead, but if we have the same effort we did late in the game I am encouraged that we will learn and turn a corner from this." - Head Coach Megan Gebbia
NEXT UP
After seven days off, the Demon Deacons conclude their three-game road stretch on Sunday when the Deacs make the short trip to Blacksburg, Va. to face Virginia Tech. Tipoff for the road test is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Cassell Coliseum.
For those who cannot attend, the game will air on Regional Sports Networks.
