Raleigh, North Carolina — Others stepped up to No. 8 for North Carolina when star point guard Diamond Johnson was injured.
Johnson scored 14 points in the first half before spraining his right ankle, and the short-handed Wolfpack combined ample offense with tenacious defense to beat South Florida 65-57.
“We all know each other,” said center Camille Hobie.
With Jakia Brown-Turner scoring 13 points and Hobby adding 10, NC State (9-1) played their first home game in almost a month.
Johnson made 6-of-10 and was ejected. The Wolfpack maintained her 27–18 lead with her four minutes remaining in the first half after she scored her 11 of her 19 points in North Carolina State’s first.
“Don’t worry,” North Carolina State coach Wes Moore said. There are a lot of people who can pick up the slack.”
Johnson returned to the bench late in the third quarter in walking boots. His sophomore transfer from South Carolina reserves Sanya his rivers scored his nine points in his career-high 34 minutes.
“We all know that anyone who steps onto the court is ready to play,” said Brown-Turner.
The Wolfpack won five straight titles.
Elena Tsineke scored 17 points in South Florida (8-3) against top 25 opponents for the fourth year in a row. Sammy Puisis added 14 points, Carla Brito his 11, and Darcie Fanham Menjiadew his 10 points and 17 rebounds.
The Bulls were looking to recreate their most recent game, a road win at No. 22 Texas on December 2nd.
South Florida coach Jose Fernandez said, “We’ve never gone this empty on so many trips. We tried (13) more shots than they did.”
North Carolina State’s lead slipped to five points early in the third quarter before extending to 50-39.
“We cut it down to a few, five, six,” Fernandez said. “We were just changing baskets. No stops.”
With the Wolfpack leading 34-25 at halftime, the Bulls only managed eight points in the second quarter, including three at the buzzer from Puisis.
South Florida hit three 3s in the first quarter to take a 17-11 lead. Johnson posted his next eight points of the game, giving the Wolfpack an unrenounced lead.
“She took over, and that’s what makes it hard to see her (leave),” Moore said. “She definitely makes a difference when she’s there.”
8 is enough
NC State only had eight players available by the end of the game.
Senior forward Jada Boyd missed two straight games with an ankle injury. She is averaging her 10.9 points per game.
The Wolfpack Reserves are outscoring South Florida’s backup 19-3.
“They all have scholarships, so they have to earn it,” Moore said. “We need them.”
big picture
South Florida: The Bulls did a commendable job attacking the offensive board, which allowed them to stay close by. The Bulls have been thrown off balance at times by NC State’s ability to drive balls into the lane and find opener shooters from there.
North Carolina: Wolfpack found another way to win the tough part of the schedule. Since the team’s win over visiting Charlotte on 16 November, he has played five straight games away from home, all of them against Power against his conference opponents. His last two matches came with victories in true road games in Iowa and Georgia earlier this month.
tip in
Puisis and North Carolina State Reserve Center River Baldwin were teammates at Florida State a season ago. … NC State won its only previous conference victory in the second round of the 2021 NCAA Tournament in San Antonio.
next
South Florida: Wednesday vs. Marshall
North Carolina: Thursday vs. Davidson
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AP Women’s College Basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter .com/AP_Top25
