How sweet it is: NC State women hang on to beat Tennessee, 79-72, advance to Sweet 16
N.C. State head coach Wes Moore reiterated a quirky message to his team entering its NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament game against Tennessee on Monday.
“I’ve said this a million times: It’s a butt game,” Moore said on Sunday. “You better get your butt back. You better get your butt between them and the rim. You better get your butt on them and box ‘em out.”
Aziaha James took Moore’s message to heart as she sat on the floor — on her butt — putting on her shoe and smiling at her teammates after taking a charge in the third quarter with 7:59 remaining.
A lot rode on the Wolfpack’s last ride this season in Reynolds Coliseum, and the team made it a fun — and a little stressful — outing. It put on one of its best first-half performances of the season to earn the program’s 16th Sweet 16 bid.
No. 3 seed N.C. State defeated No. 6 seed Tennessee, 79-72, on Monday afternoon in the women’s NCAA Tournament Round of 32.
“I’m just very happy and very grateful that we went out with the win, regardless of my performance or anyone else’s performance,” Wolfpack forward Mimi Collins said. “As long as we came out and fought hard, and we understood what we wanted, I just think that’s the overall goal.”
NC State (29-6) will next play No. 2 seed Stanford on Friday in Portland, Oregon.
“We have a special team here. We knew it before the season even started,” said guard Saniya Rivers. “Getting started against UConn was a big spark for us, so we knew it was going to be great. We weren’t even ranked coming into the season. I think we’re proving a lot of people wrong right now. I think people are getting nervous — and they should be.”
NC State and Tennessee (20-13) entered the game evenly matched in most major statistics, including a dead-even 32.1% on 3-point attempts. The biggest difference came down to turnovers. Tennessee averages 15.1 turnovers per game, while N.C. State averages 12.8.
Both teams got out to a quick start; there was one tie and three lead changes within the first five minutes of play. The Lady Volunteers eventually led by as many as six points with 2:14 remaining in the first quarter, with Rikea Jackson scoring 14 points in the first period.
Then, N.C. State stepped on the gas and sped up and down the court, outscoring Tennessee 25-8 in the second quarter. It added four forced turnovers, scoring seven points off the miscues, and only allowed one make out of the Lady Vols’ final nine shots of the first half. Jackson was held to two points.
The Wolfpack took an 18-point lead into the locker room.
“It was tough in that first half,” said Tennessee coach Kellie Harper. “I didn’t think we executed great in the first quarter. We just made shots and we didn’t get those same shots in a second.”
Tennessee didn’t go down easily, though. It showed the same resilience against the Wolfpack that it did just two weeks ago when it was down by 23 to South Carolina, and N.C. State didn’t have an answer for the better part of the half. Instead, the Wolfpack watched a double-digit lead dwindle to just two points — essentially blowing its largest halftime lead of the year.
Until it didn’t.
The Wolfpack picked up the pace once again in the final three minutes, scoring 14 points down the stretch to secure the victory.
“I’m just really proud of these young ladies. After jumping out to a nice lead at halftime; I thought we played extremely well that first half, we knew they were going to make a run,” Moore said. “They’ve got so much talent, they’re so well-prepared, well-coached, that we knew it was going to be a battle.
“After they made the run, these young ladies somehow found the grit and competitiveness to find a way to get it done.”
Four N.C. State players finished in double figures, led by James. She recorded 20 points, three rebounds and seven assists, just one off her career high. Freshman Zoe Brooks added 16 points on a career high-tying seven field goals.
Jackson led all scorers with 33 points and 10 rebounds.
“What a player. They’re saying she’ll be second or third pick in the draft, and it’s easy to see why,” Moore said. “She’s a matchup nightmare. If you put size on her, she’s going to step out, shoot the three or take you off the bounce. If you go small, she’s going to inside and post you up. The coaches there do a great job of recognizing the matchup and exploiting it.”
The Lady Vols finished with 10 turnovers, while the Wolfpack committed just four.
N.C. State extended its home winning streak to 60 games over non-conference opponents and 15 straight over an unranked opponent. It also moved to 4-0 over No. 6 seeds in the NCAA Tournament.
“I‘m at a loss for words. It’s almost emotional, because I’ve been to a Sweet 16 before, but I didn’t really feel like I was an impactful player,” said Rivers, who won a national title with South Carolina in 2022. “It was just like I went in and I did some things I was supposed to do, but actually starting, going from tip to the end of the game — I just feel like I’m doing something, making an effort and contributing to the win. It feels really good going to the Sweet 16 with these teammates that I love on and off the court.”
This story was originally published March 25, 2024 at 6:52 PM with the headline "How sweet it is: NC State women hang on to beat Tennessee, 79-72, advance to Sweet 16."
