Demon Deacons Remain Unbeaten, Down Knights 65-60 in OT

SAN JUAN, P.R. – The Wake Forest women's basketball team moved to 8-0 overall, with a 65-60 overtime victory over the UCF Knights, Thursday afternoon at Coliseo Guillermo Angulo in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Wake Forest (8-0) now has its best start since the 2008-09 season when the Deacs had 12 wins to start the season.

The Deacs shot better from the field and three than the Knights (5-2) and were led by double-digit performances from freshman guard Caitlyn Jones and sophomore forward Grace Oliver.

Jones surpassed her career-high set the previous night with 17 points and shot 8-of-12 from the field. She was the closer for the Demon Deacons with 11 of her 17 points coming in the fourth quarter and overtime.

Oliver provided another consistent offensive showing, going 6-of-10 on field goals with 13 points and three steals. She hit a three later in overtime to put the Deacs up two possessions and they led for the remainder of the game, clinching the Deacs first Power-4 non-conference win since Nov. 30, 2022 at Minnesota.

With a team-best nine rebounds, redshirt-junior guard Raven Preston put up another outstanding performance for the Deacs, while also adding a team-high eight assists and six points in a near triple-double effort.

How It Happened

The game remained a tight battle, as both teams traded baskets throughout the first, with neither team leading by more than two points.
- Sophomore forward Kennedy Moore snagged the first points of the afternoon to make it 2-0.
- Following a UCF layup, sophomore forward Grace Oliver posted back-to-back layups in the paint to make it 8-7.
The Deacs led 14-9, and continued an 8-0 run into the second quarter.
- Freshman guard Caitlyn Jones made it 16-9 out of the timeout.
Despite UCF regaining some offensive footing, Wake Forest battled back with a pair of free throws from sophomore guard Aurora Sørbye to regain the lead, 21-20.
- A three-point jumper from junior guard/forward Mary Carter extended the Demon Deacons' advantage to 23-21.
With four seconds in the half, Jones posted a final layup in the paint to tie the game up, 25-25, entering the locker room.
The two squads remained neck and neck well into the third quarter.
- Junior guard Madisyn Jordan made it 33-30 with a three-point jumper with 6:34 left.
- After a second-chance layup from the Knights to put them ahead, Carter drained a three to push the Deacs back into the lead, 36-35.
- Jones worked a layup off a Knight turnover to make it 40-35 with 2:02 in the quarter.
Wake Forest trailed, 40-41, before the final quarter.
A layup in the paint from freshman forward Savannah Metcalfe began scoring for the Deacs in the fourth.
- Oliver responded to a UCF basket with two of her own to stay within sight of the lead.
- A second-chance layup by redshirt-junior guard Raven Preston pulled the Demon Deacons back in front and made it 48-47 with 5:22 remaining.
With 3:12 left in the fourth, the Knights went 2-for-2 at the line, but still trailed Wake Forest, 51-52.
An and one from Jones made it 55-53 with 1:27 remaining.
UCF hit a stepback jumper to send the game into overtime at 55-55.
Oliver opened up overtime with a layup at the 2:37 mark.
The Deacs surged ahead with jumpers from Oliver and Jones to hold its lead at 62-58 with less than a minute to go.
Jones nailed a jumper in the paint to hold the lead at 64-60 and 0:11 on the clock.
- Sørbye posted one final point at the stripe to secure the 65-60 victory.

Standout Stats

Wake Forest tallied 20 total assists on the night on 27 made baskets (74 percent). In eight games this season, the Demon Deacons have totaled 149 assists on 212 field goals (70.3 percent) which would mark the highest percentage in the Megan Gebbia era.
The Deacs forced the Knights into 14 turnovers on Thursday, and have forced 10 or more takeaways 75 times in the last 79 games, a stretch dating back to January of 2022.
The Demon Deacons had another excellent game in the paint, with 38 points posted inside.
- Across eight games, the Deacs have totaled 328 points in the paint.
Shooting 75 percent from the field (8-of-12 FG), freshman guard Caitlyn Jones led the Deacs with a career-high 17 points, surpassing her previous career-high, set the night before against Morgan State.
- 11 of her 17 points came in the fourth quarter and overtime including seven points in the fourth quarter alone.
Sophomore forward Grace Oliver went 6-for-10 for the floor with 13 points as well as four rebounds, three steals and two assists.
With a team-best nine rebounds, redshirt-junior guard Raven Preston put up another outstanding performance for the Deacs, while also adding a team-high eight assists and six points in a near triple-double effort.

From Gebbia
"This is the best start for us since 2008-09. Caitlyn Jones had an impressive performance and Raven Preston and Grace Oliver had great plays down the stretch to get us this one. We played well in tight situations. We did a better job of controlling the paint especially in the second half and overtime. We did a great job with our zone defense and low block principles. We did a lot of things right and still there is another level we can take it too which is exciting for this group." - Megan Gebbia

Up Next
The Demon Deacons play their final game of the Puerto Rico Shootout on Friday against Illinois State in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Tipoff is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. ET on FloSports ($).

Demon Deacons Remain Unbeaten, Down Knights 65-60 in OT

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Team Stats

Caitlyn Jones

Grace Oliver

Mary Carter

Madisyn Jordan

Players Mentioned

Mary Carter

Caitlyn Jones

Madisyn Jordan

Savannah Metcalfe

Kennedy Moore

Grace Oliver

Raven Preston

Wake Forest Athletics

Demon Deacons Remain Unbeaten, Down Knights 65-60 in OT

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Next Event

Team Stats

Game Leaders

Caitlyn Jones

Grace Oliver

Mary Carter

Madisyn Jordan

Players Mentioned

Mary Carter

Caitlyn Jones

Madisyn Jordan

Savannah Metcalfe

Kennedy Moore

Grace Oliver

Raven Preston

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