NC State women humble Texas and head to Final Four

Aziaha James poured in 27 points and North Carolina State led most of the way in a 76-66 victory over Texas on Sunday in a region final in Portland, Oregon.

River Baldwin added 16 points – all in the second half – as the third-seeded Wolfpack (31-6) wrote themselves a ticket to next week’s Final Four in Cleveland. Saniya Rivers tallied 11 points, five rebounds and five assists, and Mimi Collins and Zoe Brooks each scored 10 points.

North Carolina State won the game at the 3point line, sinking 9 of 18 shots from beyond the arc while the Longhorns went 1-for-6. The Wolfpack also had a decided edge in free throws, making 19 of 25 attempts to 7 of 11 for Texas.

James was honored as the Portland 4 Region’s Most Outstanding Player. In Sunday’s Elite Eight contest, James connected on 9 of 17 shots from the field, including 7 of 9 from 3-point range. She scored 29 points in North Carolina State’s 77-67 win over Stanford in Friday’s regional semifinal.

“Aziaha stepped up big-time in both of these games,” Wolfpack coach Wes Moore said. “She worked so hard last summer. She used to hang her head when her shots didn’t go in. Now she’s a woman. She handles adversity and keeps coming back.”

James was 5-for-5 from 3-point range and 7-for-10 from the field in the first half.

“My confidence was going up as the shots were going in,” she said. “They [were] just hitting for me, so I kept shooting.”

Madison Booker’s 17 points led top-seeded Texas, which finished the season at 33-5.

Texas took 20 more shots from the field than North Carolina State but made only 39.7 percent (29-for-73). The Wolfpack made 24 of 53 attempts (45.3 percent). Booker, the Big 12 Conference CoPlayer of the Year, struggled to an 8-for-21 showing from the floor.

James went for 21 points prior to the break, and North Carolina State built an 18-point first-half lead before settling for a 43-31 advantage heading into intermission.

Texas made only 14 of 41 shots overall (34.1 percent) in the period. Booker was 4-for-13.

“NC State was good today,” Texas coach Vic Schaefer said Sunday. “James played well that first half and was ready to go. Their whole crew played well.

“It wasn’t our day. We struggled guarding them in the first half. We take great pride in being tough. Today we weren’t as tough as we’ve been in the past. It happens sometimes in athletics. It’s probably the worst we’ve played the past two months.”