Looking to rebound from a second-half collapse at the hands of Notre Dame on Thursday night, the Virginia Tech women's basketball team was looking to bounce back at home against North Carolina State on Sunday afternoon in Blacksburg. This was a big game with a trip to Northern California on tap for next weekend.
After the Hokies knocked down some of their shots early, the Wolfpack buckled down defensively and turned it on offensively in the decisive second half to blowout Virginia Tech. The loss is the second straight for Megan Duffy's team, with a daunting trip to Stanford and California coming up. With the loss, the Hokies are now 8-5 in ACC play and 18-7 overall.
NC State dominates second quarter to run away from Hokies
The game was tied early in the second quarter, 23-23, before the Wolfpack turned it up defensively and never looked back. NC State outscored Virginia Tech, 21-4, over the final eight minutes of the quarter to take a 44-27 lead into halftime. The Hokies were just 3-for-16 from the field in the quarter.
Simply put, there just wasn't enough offense from Virginia Tech. Carleigh Wenzel had 11 of the Hokies' 16 first-half points, and that is just not going to get it done against a very good Wolfpack team. Falling behind by 17 points at home after the opening 20 minutes was less than ideal for Duffy and the Hokies.
Huge trip coming up
There is no other way to put it, the Hokies are facing a huge trip to Stanford and California next weekend. They need to stop the bleeding from a two-game losing streak and pick up at least one, if not two, wins. Two losses could be devastating to Virginia Tech's NCAA Tournament bubble.
This was a Quad 1 lost opportunity again for Duffy and the Hokies. There is a lot more work that needs to be done to get on the right side of the bubble safely. They'll have a Quad 1 opportunity at Stanford on Thursday night.