Moore Praises Lawson After Facing Off in Durham
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DURHAM, N.C. — Wes Moore and NC State went into Cameron Indoor Stadium in an unfamiliar position on Thursday. The Wolfpack entered the matchup as a fairly significant underdog, as Kara Lawson had her Duke Blue Devils off to a blistering 14-0 in conference play and ranked No. 9 in the nation. Duke proved it was worthy of that reputation, beating the Pack 83-65.
Moore's reaction to the loss was one more about acceptance than anything else. Lawson's Blue Devils appear to have surpassed the Wolfpack as the premier program in the ACC, continuing the upward trajectory after being crowned champions of the conference in the 2025 ACC Tournament. Even so, the two coaches held each other in incredibly high regard after Thursday's head-to-head matchup.
The best coach in the conference
The connection between Lawson and Moore extends well beyond their recently developed ACC rivalry. When Lawson was a player for legendary Tennessee coach Pat Summitt from 1999 to 2003, Moore coached just down the road at Chattanooga and knew Summitt well. After her Blue Devils beat Moore's Wolfpack on Thursday, Lawson revealed a conversation she and Moore had after the game.
"One of the greatest compliments I've gotten as a coach came from Wes. He actually said it to me again tonight," Lawson started. "He said, 'Your teams remind me of Coach Summitt teams.' From another coach who coached against those teams in that era, I don't know that I could get a higher compliment. ... A compliment coming from him is as high as you can get for me."
After his team was drubbed in three of four quarters against the Blue Devils in Cameron, Moore offered a quote from a classic moment in NFL history from former Arizona Cardinal head coach Dennis Green.
"They are who we thought they are," Moore said, referencing Green's viral rant from 2006. "Kara Lawson has done a great job of getting this program -- I think Pat Summit... Would be proud of her. They defend and they rebound."
Even in a season where things haven't gone exactly to plan, Moore is battling to get the most out of his senior-less group. Since taking over the Wolfpack in 2013, he's been named the ACC Coach of the Year four different occasions, making the NCAA Tournament every year but one. That won't change with the up-and-down nature of the 2025-26 Wolfpack. Even Lawson knows that and wasn't afraid to praise a person she considers to be a mentor of sorts.
"I have a lot of respect for Wes," Lawson said. "I think he's the best coach in the conference. I think what he has done at NC State and how hard they are to play and how hard to beat every year, no matter the players he has, we have a hard time with them always. The other thing about him that I really respect is he shoots you straight and he's unafraid to give you a compliment."
While the ceiling might not be as high as it was for some of Moore's best teams to wear the Wolfpack uniform, Lawson knows, as do most of the other coaches in the ACC, that they haven't heard the last of NC State, potentially even in the remainder of this season.
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Tucker Sennett graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Sports Journalism from the esteemed Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. A former basketball player, he has gained valuable experience working at Cronkite News and brings a deep passion for sports and reporting to his role as the NC State Wolfpack Beat Writer On SI.
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