Virginia

Kitley, Amoore help No. 16 Virginia Tech sweep No. 3 NC State with 72-61 road win

Published

9 months ago

February 8, 2024

Kitley, Amoore help No. 16 Virginia Tech sweep No. 3 NC State with 72-61 road win

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — No. 16 Virginia Tech didn’t need any last-second drama to beat third-ranked North Carolina State again.

Elizabeth Kitley had 25 points and 13 rebounds while the Hokies hit 11 3-pointers to beat the Wolfpack 72-61 on Thursday night, earning a season sweep in a matchup of top Atlantic Coast Conference contenders.

“We’re always constantly trying to get better, trying to get better, trying to get better,” Hokies coach Kenny Brooks said. “So we’re going to be critical of ourselves and we know we can do certain things. But throughout the game, from start to finish, I thought they had an attitude that was really good.”

Georgia Amoore had 12 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds for the reigning league champion Hokies (19-4, 10-2 ACC), who earned a fourth straight win against N.C. State (20-3, 8-3) and only the program’s second road win against the Wolfpack in 14 tries.

The Hokies won the first meeting on Kitley’s last-second layup after the then-unbeaten Wolfpack blew a 13-point lead. This time, Virginia Tech pushed ahead for good midway through the second quarter then completely controlled the third to build a double-digit lead and stare down rowdy red-clad crowd growing more frustrated by the second.

The Hokies nearly doubled the Wolfpack in third-quarter scoring (20-11), hitting more 3-pointers (five) than N.C. State had total baskets (four) while using zone looks to keep the Wolfpack off stride.

“We’ll admit it, we’re not the best 1-on-1 defenders, but we’re going to help each other and push people to spots,” Amoore said, adding: “It might not be flashy and we might not be getting steals or flustering people like that, but I think we’re doing a pretty good job.”

The quarter ended with Kitley passing out of a double team and Carleigh Wenzel whipping the ball from the top to Amoore for a clean wing 3 and a 57-44 lead just before the horn on the way to a sixth straight win.

Madison Hayes scored 20 points for the Wolfpack, who shot just 35.6% and made 6 of 18 from 3-point range. That included Aziaha James going scoreless after a 17-point first half, and the Wolfpack tallying just four assists.

“They came in here and they were confident and they were tough,” Wolfpack coach Wes Moore said. “They came up with the rebounds, the loose balls, they were flying around.”

BIG PICTURE

Virginia Tech: This was a huge win in the ACC regular-season race, keeping the Hokies slightly ahead of No. 15 Louisville (9-2) with five teams holding at least eight league wins as of the final horn. Virginia Tech still has road games against the Cardinals (Feb 18) and No. 12 Notre Dame (Feb. 29) ahead.

N.C. State: The Wolfpack had beaten then-ranked rival North Carolina and then Louisville on Monday to start a stretch of three straight games against ranked foes — only to hit a thud of an ending.

CLEAR EDGE

The Hokies dominated the action up front beyond just the 6-foot-6 Kitley, a two-time ACC player of the year.

N.C. State’s starting bigs of River Baldwin and Mimi Collins combined for six points on 1-for-11 shooting with eight rebounds, a boards total matched by the 5-foot-6 Amoore as well as 6-5 freshman center Clara Strack.

The Hokies outrebounded the Wolfpack 48-31, including 15-5 on the offensive glass.

UP NEXT

Virginia Tech: The Hokies host Boston College on Sunday.

N.C. State: Pittsburgh hosts the Wolfpack on Sunday.

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AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball

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Virginia

Obituary for Virginia Frances Stoots at Beckley Peace Chapel

Published

1 hour ago

November 19, 2024

Press Room

Obituary for Virginia Frances Stoots at Beckley Peace Chapel

Virginia Frances Stoots, age 81, of Beckley, WV received her heavenly promotion to be eternally with the Lord on Saturday, November 16, 2024. Born in Hotchkiss, WV on May 11, 1943, she was the daughter of the late Arnold Hatfield and Margaret Archie. Virginia was a retired manager from Ginos

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Virginia

15-year-old accused of shooting teen near Lake Edward in Virginia Beach

Published

9 hours ago

November 18, 2024

Press Room

15-year-old accused of shooting teen near Lake Edward in Virginia Beach

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — A 15-year-old boy is charged with shooting a teen over a week ago near Lake Edward in Virginia Beach, police say.

The shooting happened just before 7 p.m. on Sunday, November 10 in the 5000 block of W. Hastings Arch.

Police say officers responded to the shooting following an alert from ShotSpotter, which is technology that can detect gunshots.

Watch related coverage: Suspect arrested in deadly shooting at busy Portsmouth intersection

Suspect arrested in deadly shooting at busy Portsmouth intersection

Officers then found a 15-year-old boy from Virginia Beach who had been shot, police say. He was taken to the hospital with serious injuries.

Last Thursday, police charged a boy — also a 15-year-old from Virginia Beach — in connection to the shooting. He’s charged with malicious wounding and use of a firearm in commission of a felony, police added.

The shooting is still under investigation. Police ask anyone with information to call detectives at 757-385-4101 or Crime Solvers at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.

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Virginia

Bowl Projections: West Virginia’s Stock Takes Big Hit Following Latest Loss

Published

16 hours ago

November 18, 2024

Press Room

Bowl Projections: West Virginia’s Stock Takes Big Hit Following Latest Loss

Another wasted opportunity at home for the West Virginia Mountaineers this past weekend as they fell to the Baylor Bears, 49-35.

Much of the conversation entering the week was about who head coach Neal Brown would start at quarterback. He turned back to Garrett Greene, who had an okay day throwing the football but did add over 120 yards on the ground to help fuel the Mountaineers’ offensive attack. It wasn’t his best overall performance, but it was more than enough to win.

Unfortunately, West Virginia’s defense returned to its struggling ways, allowing 512 yards of offense, 329 of which came through the air. Baylor’s 35 first-half points were the most of any Big 12 team in a league game this season.

With the loss, the Mountaineers essentially eliminated themselves from a spot in the Big 12 championship game, and their bowl stock took a massive hit.

Action Network: Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl vs. Army

Athlon Sports: Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl vs. Tulane

CBS Sports: Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl vs. Army

College Football Network: SERVPRO First Responder Bowl vs. East Carolina

College Football News: AutoZone Liberty Bowl vs. Vanderbilt

ESPN (Kyle Bonagura): Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl vs. Washington

ESPN (Mark Schlabach): Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl vs. Louisiana

West Virginia On SI: AutoZone Liberty Bowl vs. Arkansas

The Mountaineers have two games remaining in the regular season and must notch one more win to become bowl-eligible. This week, they’ll play host to the UCF Knights, who were everyone’s dark horse to win the Big 12 back in August. After getting out to a 3-0 start, the Knights lost five straight.

Despite most sportsbooks opening this week’s game with UCF as the favorite, I like West Virginia’s chances to get the win. They are a run-heavy team, and that’s the one thing the Mountaineer defense does fairly well.

If they fail to collect win No. 6 this weekend, it’ll all come down to their trip to Lubbock the following week. Texas Tech has Oklahoma State this Saturday and will likely be gunning for win No. 8 when West Virginia comes to town. If the Red Raiders win out, that will be their best regular season finish since 2009.

1. Valero Alamo Bowl vs Pac-12, Saturday, Dec. 28, 7:30 p.m. EST, ABC

2. Pop-Tarts Bowl vs ACC/ND, Saturday, Dec. 28, 3:30 p.m. EST, ABC

3. TaxAct Texas Bowl vs SEC, Tuesday, Dec. 31, 3:30 p.m. EST, ESPN

4. AutoZone Liberty Bowl vs SEC, Friday, Dec. 27, 7:00 p.m. EST, ESPN

5. Guaranteed Rate Bowl vs Big Ten, Thursday, Dec. 26, 5:30 p.m. EST, ESPN

6. Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl vs. Pac 12, Saturday, Dec. 28, 9:15 p.m. EST, ESPN