NC State
7-1,0-0ACC
#6/6 Indiana
5-2,0-0Big Ten
#2 Wolfpack Takes Care of Business in Rematch with #6 Indiana
12/2/2021 8:59:00 PM | Women's Basketball
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The second-ranked NC State women's basketball team (7-1) added another ranked victory to its 2021-22 resume on Thursday night with a 66-58 road win at sixth-ranked Indiana (5-2).
In what was a highly-anticipated rematch of last season's NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 game and the Pack's third top-10 matchup of the 2021-22 campaign, the Wolfpack came out on top to pick up its second ranked win of the year, its seventh decision in a row and its third-straight B1G/ACC Challenge victory.
Diamond Johnson once again led the Wolfpack in scoring with 19 points, but it was Kayla Jones who stole the show and fueled the team to its win. After missing last season's matchup against the Hoosiers, Jones scored 17 points, all in the second half, and added 11 rebounds for her ninth career double-double. Both she and Johnson knocked down a pair of threes.
Raina Perez (13 points) and Elissa Cunane (11 points) joined them in double figures, with Perez shooting a perfect 6-of-6 from the charity stripe down the stretch to put the game away.
The Wolfpack outscored Indiana 45-35 in the second half and closed out the outing by shooting over 40 percent from the field in the third (.412) and fourth (.538) quarters. On the night, NC State shot 23-of-55 (.418) and held Indiana to 22-of-65 (.338) in another solid defensive performance. The Pack also had a 43-35 rebound advantage.
Indiana drew within one multiple times in the fourth quarter, but Jones had an answer for them each time. At the 6:27 mark of the final period, Jones completed a three-point play after finishing through contact to put the Pack up 43-49. The Hoosiers then hit a three at the 3:41 mark to bring the score fo 48-47, but Jones answered with a three and a layup of her own to rebuild the lead to six.
The Wolfpack trailed by two at the half (23-21), marking just the second game this season that it has faced a deficit after 20 minutes. Indiana led by as many as five points (23-18, :50) in the second quarter, but NC State maintained its solid defensive presence and held the Hoosiers to 25 percent in the opening half (8-of-32) to stay within close reach.
Indiana matched its game-best five-point lead midway through the third quarter, but NC State scored 12 of the last 15 of the period to take a 38-34 lead into the fourth. The Wolfpack ended the third quarter on a 6-0 run, holding the Hoosiers without a field goal for the final three minutes of the period and forcing them into three turnovers in that same span of time. Once NC State took the 36-34 lead at the 1:37 mark of the third quarter, it never trailed again.
NC State returns home to Raleigh to host Elon on Sunday, Dec. 5. The game is set to tip off at 2 p.m. from Kay Yow Court inside Valvano Arena at Reynolds Coliseum, and it will be aired live on ACCNX.
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