NC State picks up tough 68-59 win at Davidson

Zam Jones provided the kill shot on Sunday afternoon, burying a three with 33 seconds to go and the shot clock winding down to give NC State a 65-59 advantage. It’s not surprising that she was up to the moment, as she played an outstanding game.

The Pack made the key plays in crunch time—a couple of free throws from Khamil Pierre to make the lead 62-59 with under 90 seconds left, then a big defensive stop, and then Jones’ dagger.

It looked like it might be a romp early, as Davidson could not hit the broad side of a barn in the first quarter as NC State ran out to a 20-4 lead, but the Wildcats are a good shooting team, especially from three (36.7%, 37th nationally), and they eventually found their footing. After an 0-7 start from three, they shot 10-23 the rest of the way to get back into the game. State’s 12-point halftime lead was just three entering the fourth quarter.

Charlise Dunn, a 31.9% three-point shooter on the year, caught fire and made 6-13 from beyond the arc to lead the rally. But NC State never trailed in this game and did enough in the fourth quarter to prevent Davidson from getting over the hump.

Jones was a big part of that, as was Khamil Pierre, who scored 23 points and grabbed 13 boards. Just another day at the office for her. Led by Pierre’s 10-16 shooting, NC State hit 52.7% on twos, while Davidson shot just 37% inside the arc. That was a key difference, since the Pack shot just 4-18 from three (and Zam had three of those makes).

This is a good win—a true road game against a top-55 opponent that has played several other P5 teams tough. The Wildcats took Baylor to overtime earlier in the season and only lost that one by a bucket. They’re projected by Torvik to go 14-4 in league play, so this victory should age well.

That’ll do it for the Pack in 2025; we won’t see them again until New Year’s Day against Stanford.