No. 13 NC State women knock off No. 1 Notre Dame in 2OT thriller 104-95
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Zoe Brooks never panicked, flinched or hesitated. Not with the chance to take on the All-American guards leading the nation's top-ranked team.
"I like challenges," the N.C State sophomore said.
Looked that way, too.
Brooks had a career-high 33 points to help No. 13 N.C. State subdue top-ranked Notre Dame 104-95 in a double-overtime classic Sunday, ending the Fighting Irish's 19-game winning streak.
She swapped her typical role as wingman to touted backcourt teammates for breakout star of a thrilling game played in the national TV spotlight.
Brooks also had 10 rebounds for the Wolfpack (22-5, 14-2 ACC), while Aziaha James added 20 points. That included a highlight-reel transition layup from James in which she took the ball around her back to change hands and avoid a strip attempt by Olivia Miles, a smooth sequence that had the packed Reynolds Coliseum erupting in a roar.
By the end, though, the Wolfpack had hung on in a game featuring 21 lead changes while denying the Irish (24-3, 15-1) the chance to clinch the ACC regular-season top seed outright.
Brooks came in averaging 13.5 points and her previous high had been 21. But she blew past that in a high-pressure matchup against the Irish's backcourt of Hannah Hidalgo and Olivia Miles, staying on the off-dribble attack of the paint to put the pressure on Notre Dame's interior defenders as well as constantly getting to the foul line in a draining 47 1/2 minutes of work.
Hidalgo had 26 points for Notre Dame, while Sonia Citron added 23 points, including a tough 3-pointer over James with 0.6 seconds left in regulation to extend the game.
The Fighting Irish moved to No. 1 in the AP Top 25 for the first time under Niele Ivey to start the week. Their only two losses had come against TCU and Utah in November at the Cayman Islands Classic. But their stay at No. 1 looks like it will be brief.
The Wolfpack had won 15 of 16 before last weekend's loss at now-No. 9 North Carolina, though Wes Moore's club regrouped with Thursday's win at No. 20 Georgia Tech. This was an even bigger response, with five players in double figures while shooting 45.6% as a team and making 24 of 26 free throws.
Brooks made 9 of 20 shots overall and hit all 14 of her free throws while drawing a game-high eight fouls on opponents. She was unafraid to go right at Hidalgo, a first-team Associated Press All-American ranked second nationally in scoring (24.6) and a familiar opponent from their pre-college days.
Nor did she back off from driving against bigger defenders, like when she had her shot blocked in the paint by the 6-foot Liatu King but went right back up to snag the rebound and draw a foul. She responded by calmly sinking two more free throws for an 80-77 lead with 22.5 seconds left in regulation.
Sometimes she scored easily. Sometimes she ended up knocked to the floor. But in a game with slim margins of 21 ties and 21 lead changes, those big moments kept adding up until N.C. State was finally able to wrestle away control for good in the final (extra) five minutes.
"She got to the free-throw line 14 times individually, we didn't even have that many as a team," Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey said, referencing the Irish's 10 attempts. "So she did a great job of getting downhill, playing with a ton of confidence and it was one of those nights for her, having a career-high. Hats off to her, she played well."
N.C. State's 10-0 start to the second OT proved decisive, with Saniya Rivers finding Tilda Trygger inside for the go-ahead high-low finish. Brooks followed with a floater, and then James had her highlight layup to make it 98-92.
Notre Dame made just one basket in the second OT.
N.C. State got a huge performance from Trygger, a 6-foot-6 freshman, who came in averaging 6.4 points but matched her season high with 19 points while repeatedly finishing around the rim.
"Notre Dame deserves all the attention and all that they get," Wolfpack coach Wes Moore said of the Irish's guards. "But I like ours, too. We've got some pretty good ones."
Both teams return to action Thursday. The Irish return home to host Florida State, while N.C. State plays its home finale against Wake Forest.
The Wolfpack remained unbeaten at Reynolds Coliseum this year.
The day started with the Wolfpack players delivering doughnuts to fans lined up outside for hours to get in early on a day when ESPN's "College GameDay" was on site to highlight the matchup. By the end, Brooks was joining teammates in hopping around and celebrating on the court in front of a packed Reynolds Coliseum at the horn.
And it wasn't long before they took that party to the campus Bell Tower to celebrate with fans - the site where N.C. State marked the unexpected double Final Four by its men's and women's teams last spring.
The celebration came after the Wolfpack earned its first home win against a No. 1-ranked team since beating Wayland Baptist in 1978.
"It's amazing," Brooks said. "We're all tired. We're all banged up, all hurting. We just kept fighting. We wanted to win this game really bad and we did everything we could to win."
The Associated Press contributed.
