Coming off its first ACC Championship since 1991 and returning a loaded roster, expectations were high for this NC State women’s basketball team. A 93-65 win over North Florida to open the year did nothing to dispel those expectations. 

The Wolfpack got balanced contributions across the lineup and dominated from start to finish.

Here’s some key takeaways from this one: 

Balanced Scoring

We knew going in that this team would be balanced with a lot of scoring options, and the first game of the season did nothing to dispel that, with four players and four of five starters hitting double figures: Kai Crutchfield, Jada Boyd, Elissa Cunane, and Jakia Brown-Turner. 

The Wolfpack also used a balanced approach to starting the game 7-for-13 from three in the first half, with four players hitting a triple. 

Last year, the Pack could count on Crutchfield for big shot after shot. That hasn’t changed, as the senior started the season at point guard in game one of the post-Aislinn-Konig era, posting 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the floor and a blistering 4-of-5 from long range. Crutchfield was perfect from beyond the arc in the first half, hitting all four of her attempts.

“I was really happy,” said head coach Wes Moore. “I thought [Crutchfield] shot the ball extremely well. I know she’d been putting a little extra work in. It was good to see that pay off. We need Kai Crutchfield to be consistent. She has had some big games for us. She’s had some big games in some big games. She’s really stepped up in some of those important games. We need her to do that consistently, day-in, day-out, and be someone we can count on, that we know is going to get us certain things every game. So it was a great start for her, I’m excited about it, and hopefully it’s something she can build on.” 

After the efficiency she showed as a freshman in limited minutes, Moore said he wanted to get Jada Boyd more involved this season. Making the first start of her career, Boyd showed her ability to score from multiple areas of the floor and finished the game with 15 points while also adding 10 boards for a double-double. 

“She played pretty well,” Moore said. “The big thing we keep talking about with her is urgency, especially on the defensive end, not relaxing. I thought she did a pretty good job of that. She was guarding [Jazz Bond] quite a bit today, and Bond’s a great player. She didn’t have a really good day, so I’ve got to attribute some of that to Jada Boyd, so that’s good to see. I thought she did some good things, obviously she hit two out of three 3’s, and that’s probably where a lot of people think that maybe because of her athleticism they need to back off a little bit and try to contain her, but that’s going to keep people honest.  So I thought she had a great game.”

Brown-Turner showed her ability to impact all three phases of the game coming off her strong freshman season, flirting with a triple-double with 11 points, seven rebounds, and six assists. 

Cunane, surprise, surprise, also finished in double figures. About that...

Milestone for “Big Smile”

It was no surprise to see Cunane, the Wolfpack’s best player and one of the best in the country, off to a strong start with 12 points in the first half and 12 for the game (she sat out for a bit after picking up her third foul). She displayed her versatility by hitting a three from the top of the key and also showing off her trademark ability to finish in the paint. 

Cunane has taken a quick pass from a guard for an easy score inside hundreds of times throughout her career. But there was something special about her finish late in the second quarter. Cunane laid one in to notch the 1,000th point of her career, hitting a key milestone – remarkably quickly – in just the first game of her junior season.

“It means a lot,” Cunane said. “Some people don’t know when they’re going to hit it, but I knew last year that I was close towards the end of the season. But then when COVID hit, I knew that I wasn’t going to get it. So coming into today’s game, I was a little nervous knowing it in my mind. But I think it’s cool that the bucket I got it on was an assist from Raina Perez. So I think all the points I have amount to how good my teammates are at getting me the ball and hitting shots around me to open me up inside.”

With her junior season just beginning, the sky should be the limit for what Cunane can accomplish at NC State. 

Pregame Show Of Unity

Throughout the summer and fall and winter seasons, NC State’s student-athletes have been very active in the fight for social justice and racial equality through the Pack United movement. NC State displayed a show of unity before this game, with every player on the roster taking a knee together during the national anthem. 

Moore said that, for the players, the show of unity was “what was on their hearts,” and something the players decided on amongst themselves, and they had the coaching staff’s support. 

“It was just using our platform that we have as student-athletes,” Crutchfield said. “With the connections and networking that we have as student-athletes here at NC State, I feel like it’s important for us to show that we are aware of the social injustices going on right now. I feel like with us doing that, it’s the simple way for us to use our voice.”

Freshmen Get Involved Late

With the game comfortably in hand, Moore was able to get his bench involved late, and several players, including redshirt freshman Elle Sutphin and freshmen Rebecca Demke, Dontavia Waggoner, and Genesis Bryant, all made their debuts and combined for 19 points, led by Waggoner with seven.