NC State womens basketball shocks No. 2 Notre Dame in ACC opener

Wolfpack women pull off stunner in Reynolds to end Irishs 35-game conference win streak

Eamon Queeney—The North State Journal
The stadium stands for the playing of the national anthem before the college basketball game between the North Carolina State Wolfpack and the Tennessee State Tigers at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh

RALEIGH — The Old Barn may be renovated, but the Reynolds magic is still alive and well. That magic was on full display Thursday night in NC State’s win over Notre Dame in the women’s basketball ACC opener.Not only were the Irish the No. 2 in the country, but they’ve suffered just two losses — both to UConn — in the regular season over the last two years. NC State’s win also snapped a 35-game conference winning streak and was only the second loss in the ACC since Notre Dame joined the league in 2013-14.”This is something that they’ll cherish,” NC State coach Wes Moore said. “All night long on ESPN, [the score] is going to be going across the ticker. I may just go home and sit in front of the TV for an hour and watch it.”The Wolfpack moved to 11-3 (1-0 ACC) while Notre Dame dropped below .500 for the first time ever in ACC play. NC State also moved to 9-0 in Reynolds this season after never trailing against the Irish.Dominique Wilson led the Wolfpack with 18 points with three 3-pointers and two steals. Miah Spencer added 17 points and six assists while Jennifer Mathurin tallied her second double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 boards.After losing resume-building wins against Kansas State, LSU and Tulane due to struggles in the second half, Mathurin wasn’t going to let this triumph slip away.”We have a tendency to let up in the fourth quarter,” Mathurin said. “We learned that with Tulane and LSU, those were huge games for us that we let slip in the last minutes. That was the emphasis the whole time — Miah would say all the time to stay focused and get the win.”NC State’s road doesn’t get much easier after taking down the No. 2 team in the country, however. The ACC gauntlet continues Monday against No. 7 Florida State in Tallahassee before facing No. 11 Miami at Reynolds next Thursday.