Sunday, December 31
Tallahassee, FL
Noon
Wake Forest University
4-9,0-1ACC
61
at
73
Florida State
11-3,2-0ACC
1
2
3
4
F
Wake Forest
16
10
15
20
61
Florida St.
15
21
11
26
73
Deacs Hold No. 22 Florida State to Second-Lowest Season Point Total
12/31/2023 2:42:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Demon Deacons will return to Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum to face No. 14 Virginia Tech Thursday at 6 p.m.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Despite a strong defensive performance and another big game in the post from redshirt sophomore forward Malaya Cowles, the Wake Forest women's basketball team dropped a 73-61 contest at No. 22 Florida State Sunday afternoon.
The Demon Deacons (4-9, 0-1 ACC) limited the Seminoles (11-3, 2-0 ACC) to their second-lowest season point total as the Noles came into the game averaging 86.0 points per game, ranking 11th nationally. Wake Forest also forced 15 turnovers which was four more than Florida State's season average. The Seminoles ranked eighth in the country in turnovers per game coming into the contest.
On the offensive end of the floor, the Deacs were led by another great post performance from Cowles as she tallied a team-high 16 points on 7-of-13 shooting while also pulling down four rebounds and tallying two assists.
Junior guard Elise Williams had a balanced effort with nine points to go along with a team-best eight rebounds and a team-high four assists.
Graduate guard Alexandria Scruggs had a near double-double performance with 10 points and a team-best eight rebounds. Sunday was her 130th career game, tying her for the most games played in a Wake Forest career.
An exciting season awaits at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum for the Wake Forest women's basketball team! There is no better time than now to become a season ticket holder and support your Demon Deacons at home this season.
Along with your purchase of a $60 season ticket package this season there are many added benefits exclusive only to those who buy season tickets.
How It Happened
The Demon Deacons (4-9, 0-1 ACC) limited the Seminoles (11-3, 2-0 ACC) to their second-lowest season point total as the Noles came into the game averaging 86.0 points per game, ranking 11th nationally. Wake Forest also forced 15 turnovers which was four more than Florida State's season average. The Seminoles ranked eighth in the country in turnovers per game coming into the contest.
On the offensive end of the floor, the Deacs were led by another great post performance from Cowles as she tallied a team-high 16 points on 7-of-13 shooting while also pulling down four rebounds and tallying two assists.
Junior guard Elise Williams had a balanced effort with nine points to go along with a team-best eight rebounds and a team-high four assists.
Graduate guard Alexandria Scruggs had a near double-double performance with 10 points and a team-best eight rebounds. Sunday was her 130th career game, tying her for the most games played in a Wake Forest career.
An exciting season awaits at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum for the Wake Forest women's basketball team! There is no better time than now to become a season ticket holder and support your Demon Deacons at home this season.
Along with your purchase of a $60 season ticket package this season there are many added benefits exclusive only to those who buy season tickets.
How It Happened
- Wake Forest jumped out to a 5-2 lead over the first two minutes of action behind a triple from Malaya Cowles and a layup from Alexandria Scruggs.
- After a Florida State jumper brought the Seminoles to within one, Cowles made a layup, giving the Demon Deacons a 7-4 advantage.
- Florida State then scored eight unanswered, before Elise Williams knocked down a three-pointer.
- The Seminoles responded with a triple of their own on the ensuing possession.
- Wake Forest closed the first quarter scoring six unanswered and held a 16-15 advantage after 10 minutes of action.
- As a unit, the Deacs shot 50 percent from the field in the opening period.
- Individually, the Demon Deacons were paced by Cowles as she logged seven points, while shooting a perfect 3-for-3 from the floor.
- Florida State opened the second frame, outscoring the Deacs 12-5 heading into the under-five media timeout.
- The Seminoles held a 27-21 lead at the 4:30 mark.
- The two sides exchanged baskets over the following two minutes of play.
- Florida State then scored seven unanswered, before a Kaia Harrison jumper with three seconds remaining ended the first half.
- Wake Forest faced a 36-26 deficit at the halftime break.
- The Demon Deacons and the Seminoles exchanged field goals to open the third quarter, as Florida State held a 43-31 advantage with 6:57 minutes left in the period.
- After the Seminoles extended their lead to 14, Wake Forest went on a 8-2 run to narrow its deficit to eight.
- Kate Deeble and Raegyn Conley both drained three's during the stretch.
- Harrison finished a layup with 2:11 minutes left to bring the Deacs with six, closing the third quarter scoring.
- The Demon Deacons trailed 47-41, entering the final 10 minutes of action.
- Defensively, the Deacs forced five turnovers during the third quarter.
- After trading buckets to open the final period, the Seminoles went on a 6-2 spurt to extend their lead to nine.
- Despite a resilient effort, the Deacs were unable to cut into Florida State's lead over the ensuing four minutes of action.
- The Seminoles held on to defeat the Demon Deacons, 73-61.
Standout Stats
- Graduate guard Alexandria Scruggs suited up in her 130th career game on Sunday, tying her for the most games played in a Wake Forest career.
- Defensively, Wake Forest held Florida State to just 73 points Sunday, marking the second-fewest points the Seminoles have scored in a contest all season. Of note, Florida State came into Sunday averaging 86.0 points per game.
- The Demon Deacons held the Seminoles to just 43.6 percent shooting from the field.
- Additionally, the Deacs limited Florida State to just four three-pointers made, marking a season-low.
From Gebbia
"The non-conference schedule definitely helped us and we were in a lot of close games during the first few games. Florida State made some timely plays when they needed to. We needed to shoot better to win this game. We competed hard and I loved the effort. We were in the game the entire time. We just needed to finish this one stronger down the stretch. We need to get better at limiting the other team's best players. We're growing and we can see it but we need to build off this effort. With losses, you learn and we need to do that going into another tough one on the road. We played with No. 22 on the road and it came down to the wire. The bench communication was good and the energy overall was really good in this game. We are excited to get home in front of our home crowd as we are ready for another top-25 team on Thursday." - Megan Gebbia
Next Up
The 6:00 p.m. tipoff at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum can also be seen on ACC Network Extra.
Claim Your Spot for the 2023-24 Season
Claim your spot in Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum for what is shaping up to be another exciting season for Megan Gebbia's second season with the Demon Deacons! Season tickets for 2023-24 Wake Forest women's basketball season tickets are now open at GoDeacs.com/tickets with tickets starting at $60.Along with your purchase of a women's basketball season ticket package this season there are many added benefits exclusive only to those who buy season tickets. Admission to all home games for this price Additional perks include:
- A lunch opportunity with the Wake Forest women's basketball team
- Only season ticket holders can sit in floor level seats
- Access to The Blue Ridge Room for free light refreshments and snacks before and during each home game
- "Season Ticket Holder of the Game"
- A season ticket holder will be recognized at each game
- They will be brought onto the floor during a quarter break or timeout to be recognized
- They will be presented with a signed picture of the team
- They will also have video board graphics made for them as well
Team Stats
WF
FSU
FG%
.371
.436
3FG%
.261
.286
FT%
.643
.840
RB
35
39
TO
14
15
STL
10
6
Game Leaders
Pts
16
FGM
7
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Women's BasketballForward
/ Women's Basketball
Guard
/ Women's BasketballGuard
/ Women's BasketballGuard
/ Women's BasketballGuard
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