SAN MARCOS, Texas – Jada Boyd scored 15 of his 18 points in the second half to help the top seed in the state of North Carolina overcome a slow start and win by 79-58 over the 16 seeded NC A&T in the first round of the NCAA women’s tournament on Sunday.
NC State (21-2) is making his fourth consecutive appearance in a tournament and 26th overall, but won the No. 1 ranking for the first time. Wolfpack will face South Florida, eighth, in the second round.
The Aggies led by up to six in the second quarter. But NC State took advantage of a great race to gain a seven-point lead at halftime, before Boyd scored the first six points of the second half to 50-37, with 7 and a half minutes to go for the third.
“We didn’t look particularly like No. 1 or anything like that in the first half,” said NC State coach Wes Moore. “But I hope it was just a situation that we have been out of for so long … and maybe that will help us to take some of the rust off and maybe take it off and have a little bit of confidence. “
Wolfpack increased the lead to 15 at the end of the third before ending the quarter with a streak of 7-2, highlighted by 3 from Boyd, to make 64-44 at the entrance to the fourth.
Moore praised Boyd’s performance.
“She does that a lot,” he said. “She is so athletic and long. We needed a ride. We needed an injury and I thought she really gave it to us.”
Chanin Scott’s 3 points reduced the lead to 17 with about six minutes remaining. NC State then scored nine consecutive points in the next two minutes to extend the lead to 77-51 and Moore cleaned up his bank shortly thereafter.
Boyd wasn’t sure if Wolfpack’s early fights were more a product of NC A&T playing well or of his fights.
“A&T they came out hitting all the shots, so it may have been a little bit of both,” she said. “Two weeks is a long time to go without playing, so it was difficult, but we ended up getting together. “
Elissa Cunane, the best scorer in the NC State, at 1.83 m tall, scored 12 points, despite fighting in almost constant teams. Cunane was stepping out of an MVP performance by leading Wolfpack to a second consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference tournament title, scoring 70 points in three games.
NC A&T (14-3), who won the title of the Middle East Athletic Conference, was making his fifth trip to the tournament and his third in six seasons. The Aggies dropped to 0-5 in the tournament and 0-10 against NC State. They were led by Scott, who had 23 points and seven rebounds.
NC A&T coach Tarrell Robinson was asked about the difference in his team in the first and second halves.
“Their intensity, our lack of focus,” he said. “What I talked to our girls about teams like NC State, we haven’t played a team like this all year, is that they take their first one. You may have scored out of them, but the next possession will not be there. “
NC State led by three in the second quarter before the Aggies scored the next nine points to take the 35-29 lead with about five minutes remaining from the fourth. D’mya Tucker started that race with a 3-point basket and added a steal between Scott’s four points.
Wolfpack moved on, ending the quarter with a 15-2 streak to take a 44-37 lead into the break. Kai Crutchfield made a 3-point basket, caught a steal and finished with a tray to close the NC State score on that stretch. She had 14 points.
BY NUMBERS
Wolfpack surpassed the Aggies 40-22 in painting. … NC State scored 28 points on 13 NC A&T turnovers. … The NC State bank overtook the Aggies 33-15 bank. … Wolfpack also had the advantage in the 13-3 second chance points.
WOUNDED JONES
Senior star Kayla Jones did not play in the second half after hurting her knee in the second half. Moore does not think it is serious, but he is not sure if it will be available on Tuesday.
“She is going to do an MRI tonight and see what is going on,” he said. “We don’t think it is an ACL, but it is very sensitive.”
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