It's Crunch Time For The Deacs After Dropping Ranked Game

Demon Deacons drop to 0–3 in Big Four play; they haven't beaten a Tobacco Road rival since 2021.

Freshman guard Milan Brown attempts a contested layup against the North Carolina Tar Heel, Feb. 8, 2026. | X: WakeWBB

Coming off a much-needed road win, the Wake Forest Demon Deacons (13–12, 3–10 ACC) failed to contain the North Carolina Tar Heels (20–5, 9–3 ACC), losing 84–56. The Tar Heels' win at the Joel marks their seventh consecutive, and was their largest margin of victory during that stretch.

Now, with five games to go, we are officially in the witching hour. The path to the regular-season finish line isn't all sunshine and rainbows, so here is what to expect.

The ninth-ranked Louisville Cardinals (22–4, 12–1 ACC) have scored 80 or more points 15 times this season. Their best wins came against No. 21 North Carolina and No. 22 Tennessee. However, almost more impressively, their losses are against No. 1 Connecticut, No. 18 Kentucky, No. 3 South Carolina (by 2 points), and most recently, the Cardinals lost 59–58 to the No. 11 Duke Blue Devils (18–6, 13–0 ACC) on Feb. 5.

When the Demon Deacons played Duke at Cameron Indoor on Feb. 1, they were trounced 84–56. The Blue Devils have won five in a row in the series (three of which by 20 or more points).

Return Of The Wolfpack

Oklahoma Sooners forward Sahara Williams (6) drives between NC State Wolfpack forward Tilda Trygger (18) and guard Zoe Brooks (35) during a women's college basketball game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and the NC State Wolfpack at Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Okla., Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025. Oklahoma won 103-98. | BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Wake Forest's penultimate game—on Feb. 26—is on the road against the NC State Wolfpack (17–7, 10–3 ACC). The Deacs and Wolfpack met at the Joel on Jan. 15, and it was quite the game.

The Demon Deacons tied their program record for points in a quarter (33) and held a 49–43 edge over NC State at halftime. However, the Wolfpack blazed a 52–28 second-half advantage, en route to a 95–77 victory.

This contest proved that head coach Megan Gebbia's squad can hang around, but still has work to do. NC State's three ACC losses came at the hands of Clemson (17–8, 8–5 ACC), North Carolina, and Louisville.

The Lighter Side

The other three games left on the schedule are considerably more favorable than the aforementioned two.

On Feb. 19, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (15–9, 7–6) come to the Joel. Despite being more favorable than Louisville or NC State, the Fighting Irish took down North Carolina 73–50 last month.

Wake Forest's remaining two games are against Boston College (4–22, 0–13 ACC) and Florida State (8–16, 3–9 ACC), on February 22 and March 1, respectively. The Demon Deacons and Seminoles share two victories, against Pittsburgh and SMU. Florida State's third conference win came against Miami (87–70). Wake Forest lost to the Hurricanes in the final minute, 64–61, on December 18.