NC State Hangs On Against Syracuse in Crucial League Bout
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RALEIGH — NC State was thoroughly outclassed in its last effort against No. 9 Duke. The medicine the Wolfpack needed came in the form of a trip home to Reynolds Coliseum to face Syracuse in a crucial game in the ACC standings, with the winner gaining the upper hand in the battle for a double bye in the ACC Tournament.
The Wolfpack jumped all over the Orange in the first half, ultimately surviving a third-quarter surge from the road team to win 82-69. It was a much stronger effort from Wes Moore’s squad just a few days after he challenged them to provide more energy in crunch time of the season.
Very different start to the game
NC State struggled to generate offense as a team in Thursday’s loss to No. 9 Duke. There were no such issues in the first quarter against the Orange, as the Wolfpack jumped all over the visiting Syracuse squad. Rebounding was an area of particular stress after being dominated on the glass by the Blue Devils. The Pack didn’t allow that to happen two games in a row, outrebounding the Orange 10-7 in the opening 10 minutes.
The defense clamped down on Syracuse, holding the Orange scoreless for nearly half of the first quarter. That allowed a much-improved offense to embark on a 20-2 run that stretched into the second quarter. Zoe Brooks set the tone with eight quick points, breaking down Syracuse defenders in the half-court.
TILDA AT THE BUZZZER pic.twitter.com/6tc6exvss7
— NC State WBB 🐺🏀 (@PackWomensBball) February 22, 2026
By the end of the opening quarter, NC State led Syracuse by 12, hoping to build even more on the strong start after Tilda Trygger buried a mid-range jumper just before the horn sounded at the end of the period. After totaling just five assists in the loss to Duke, the Wolfpack racked up nine before the end of the first half of Sunday’s matchup.
While the Pack didn’t shoot quite as well in the second quarter, it maintained a sizable lead. By the time the halftime buzzer sounded, NC State led by 17 points after shooting 52% from the field over the first 20 minutes. Trygger, Brooks and Khamil Pierre combined for 36 of the Wolfpack’s 46 first-half points.
The rebounding battle
About to get going in the second half
— NC State WBB 🐺🏀 (@PackWomensBball) February 22, 2026
📺 The CW pic.twitter.com/tX41CoQ2cU
The Wolfpack hauled in just 25 rebounds in the loss to Duke. Syracuse entered the matchup as one of the best offensive rebounding squads in the ACC, so there were some obvious concerns after such a problematic game in that category a few days before. NC State improved its effort on the glass, with Trygger and Pierre experiencing a total turnaround against the Orange.
Syracuse came down with just a pair of offensive rebounds in the first half, as Pierre and Trygger either moved them out of the way for the guards to clean up or hauled in the ball themselves. They combined for 22 rebounds.
The Orange flattened the rebounding margin down the stretch, but NC State still finished the game with a solid rebounding advantage. The Wolfpack never let the Orange take control of the offensive glass, instead turning the tables and hauling in 14 of their own, matching Syracuse. The Pack finished with 43 total rebounds to the Orange’s 36.
Third quarter blitz
ZOE FOR THREE 🤪🤪🤪 pic.twitter.com/9Vb5UPzxrd
— NC State WBB 🐺🏀 (@PackWomensBball) February 22, 2026
It was only a matter of time before Syracuse found some more offense. It came in the third quarter. The Orange hit a pair of timely 3-point shots and increased its tempo to try and tire out the thin NC State rotation, a strategy used by several opponents of the Wolfpack over the last month.
Syracuse cut the 19-point lead all the way down to six points on multiple occasions in the third quarter. In need of a spark, Pierre came down with an offensive rebound midway through the period, but found herself battling senior forward Journey Thompson for the ball. They fought over it through the whistle, resulting in a flagrant foul for Pierre and a technical for Thompson.
https://t.co/JOgwvi7jcz pic.twitter.com/sylvCah3JH
— NC State WBB 🐺🏀 (@PackWomensBball) February 22, 2026
With the offsetting punitive fouls, Reynolds Coliseum was collectively disappointed, but re-engaged in a key moment where the Wolfpack needed a little extra juice. Moore called a quality play out of the timeout, with the ball eventually landing in Brooks’ steady hands. She cashed in with a 3-pointer to push the lead back to 10.
The Wolfpack regained some of the momentum to end the quarter, only losing that 10-minute segment by four points. Syracuse failed to score in the final 2:19 of the period, allowing NC State take a 13-point advantage.
Final word
WOLFPACK WINS 🔥@BMWUSA pic.twitter.com/bDVzBuNkd0
— NC State WBB 🐺🏀 (@PackWomensBball) February 22, 2026
Elite individual performances from Brooks and Pierre drove the Wolfpack to success. The former finished the game with 20 points, five rebounds and four assists, while the latter scored 25 and hauled in 15 rebounds. The play of sophomore guard Zam Jones propelled the Wolfpack across the finish line, as she scored eight of her 14 points in the fourth quarter.
With the victory, NC State holds the tiebreaker over the Orange with two games left on the schedule. The Wolfpack jumped into fourth place, as it also holds the tiebreaker over Virginia, another 11-5 team in the ACC. Moore’s squad finishes the season with matchups against Wake Forest and Pitt, two of the worst teams in the league.
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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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