Seniors propel Wolfpack women over Virginia Tech: Three takeaways from NC State’s win

Aziaha James flexed both biceps and flashed a smile while she ran backward to get on defense. A few minutes later, she smiled and lifted her hands in celebration after Saniya Rivers hit two free throws to reach 1,000 career points.

James gathered her teammates at halftime and told them Rivers was six points from the accomplishment. And when Rivers stepped to the line for those free throws, James told her she’d better make them.

“She was like,’ Na Na, you literally need these two points, and you’ll have a thousand points,’” Rivers said. “I was just like, ‘Wait, how do you know, and I don’t know?’”

Fans gave the senior a standing ovation when the announcement was made. Several already had signs made in preparation.

Rivers, who spent her rookie season with South Carolina, got a little emotional and said she might cry with her family.

“I’m just happy that I got a second opportunity, coming out of my freshman year to play for another program,” Rivers said. “(Coach Wes Moore) didn’t have to take me in. He always says that I made a mistake not coming the first time. I guess we’ll never know, but I’m happy now. This thousand points, it’s just another accomplishment, and I know many people aren’t fortunate to get it, but I’m blessed. I’m just gonna keep going, keep striving.”

N.C. State defeated Virginia Tech, 85-57, on Sunday night at Reynolds Coliseum, thanks mostly to its seniors. They combined for 54 points and led the Wolfpack to its fifth straight win — 12th of its last 13 — and 17th consecutive victory at home.

James was the primary catalyst on offense, scoring 18 points in the first 12½ minutes of play. The reigning National Player of the Week finished with 25 points, her ninth 20-point game of the season, five boards and four assists. She has scored double figures every game this season.

Last year, James averaged a little more than 16 points per game but wasn’t quite as consistent. She has focused on being more reliable this time around.

“You gotta show up every night,” James said. “Don’t matter if you’re sick, hurt or anything, you gotta show up for your team. My team is counting on me, so just gotta do work for them.”

Rivers added 17 points and six rebounds, while Madison Hayes notched 12 points and six boards.

On a somewhat quiet night for the underclassmen, N.C. State needed its seniors to jumpstart its efforts on both sides — and they more than delivered.

The Wolfpack took a 17-point lead at the end of one quarter and stretched that to a 28-point advantage at the end of three. N.C. State struggled to shoot the ball at several points this season, but that didn’t seem to be the case against Virginia Tech (14-6, 5-4 ACC).

N.C. State (16-4, 8-1 ACC) started 6 of 7 from the field and went on a 16-2 run in the first. Its scoring slowed down in the second, but its defense and strong start allowed the Pack to maintain a double-digit lead at halftime.

After the break, N.C. State looked like it did in the first quarter: wildly efficient. It carried that into the fourth, even when several starters were pulled for younger players.

The Pack shot 56.3% from the field and 40% from the perimeter.

N.C. State needed to control the boards for a win. It is one of the best rebounding teams in the nation, averaging 29.3 defensive rebounds and 41.5 total per game. Those figures rank second and third in the ACC.

Virginia Tech’s rebounding was one of its greatest weaknesses. It ranked No. 16 in offensive rebounding (9.7) and No. 17 in total rebounds per game (36.7).

The Wolfpack out-rebounded the Hokies, 42-31, overall and only allowed the Hokies to pull down six offensive rebounds.

Virginia Tech leading scorer Carleigh Wenzel contributed 18 points on a 7-of-18 performance for the Hokies.

“We definitely needed this win, because Syracuse; that was very embarrassing. That wasn’t Pack basketball,” Rivers said. “Good win, but, obviously, we’re more happy with this one here.”

Here are three takeaways from N.C. State’s big win.

Wolfpack takes advantage of thin Hokies defense

N.C. State loves to score in the paint where it averages roughly 33.8 points, or half of its scoring average, in the lane. On Sunday night, it dominated the Hokies in the lane with ease and took a double-digit lead five minutes into the game.

The Wolfpack led Virginia Tech, 15-6, in the first timeout of the opening period and 12 of its points (80%) came in the paint.

“They got out in transition and played fast, like they can and do, and, you know, I thought they got to their strengths,” Hokies head coach Megan Duffy said. “A ton of opportunities they had in the paint, easy baskets, and then we were a little bit on our heels and got into some foul trouble because of that.”

At halftime, N.C. State had scored 28 of its 44 points (64%) in the paint. Meanwhile, the Pack defense held the Hokies to 10 points in the paint and only 29 total.

The team finished with 50 points in the paint.

N.C. State didn’t score inside solely because of toughness. That was certainly part of it, but the players also recognized holes in the Hokies’ defense. For example, James scored several baskets through the double team due to her ability to read the spacing between the defending players. She wasn’t the only one, though. Zoe Brooks, Saniya Rivers and Madison Hayes all made easy buckets, Virginia Tech looked completely unprepared to stop the slick Wolfpack offense.

“I didn’t think we were the aggressor, and, obviously, we couldn’t stop the bleeding early enough,” Duffy said. “Give them credit, I think they stuck to all their strengths. And, unfortunately, we didn’t have an answer.”

Pack gets out and runs

The Wolfpack, like many teams, finds much of its scoring success in transition. However, the team hasn’t always been the most consistent.

N.C. State’s best transition game took place at Boston College on Jan. 5, where it scored 33 fast-break points. Its worst performance came one week later at Stanford. The Pack defeated the Cardinal, 81-67, but it went scoreless in transition.

On Sunday, N.C. State scored 16 first-half fast break points, approximately three points higher than its season average of 13.1 points

“When we get stops, we’re able to get out and run, and if it’s one on one, I want to attack,” Moore said. “Sometimes we get one on three, and we’re still attacking. But, like I said, I think our defense led to offense.”

The Wolfpack can credit its defensive pressure for the success in transition. It recorded six steals in the first half and narrowly out-rebounded the Hokies, 20-17.

N.C. State wasn’t quite as active with its fast break in the second half, but it still finished with 20 on the night.

Disruptive defense

Virginia Tech entered the game scoring 73.3 points per game in ACC play and recording 16 assists per game. It also shoots, on average, more than 46% from the field.

The Hokies finished far below its season averages, making just 39.3% of their shots and recording just eight assists.

Additionally, four VaTech players averaged double digits before the game. The Wolfpack’s defense stifled VaTech’s offensive flow for virtually the entire game.

Wenzel and Carys Baker were the only Hokies to eclipse 10 points.

Ten different N.C. State players pulled down a defensive rebound, six contributed a steal — freshman Lorena Awou received props from Rivers for a tough steal on a 50/50 ball — and the team was generally aggressive all night.

The Wolfpack finished with nine steals, one block and 34 defensive rebounds. N.C. State forced 13 turnovers and scored 16 points off the VaTech miscues.

Even when the Pack led by 20 points, it didn’t allow complacency to set in and maintained tough defensive pressure for the big conference victory.

Moore said the staff showed the team about 30 clips of defensive breakdowns from the Syracuse game. N.C. State put together one of its better defensive performances against Virginia Tech.

“We’ve got to put 40 minutes together in this league,” Moore said. “Our schedule is fixing to get so brutal, and we can’t afford to be lackadaisical on the defensive end. … I think we can score some points, but we got to be able to stop some people.”