Terquavion Smith scored 25 points to lead North Carolina State to a 78-66 win over Georgia Tech on Tuesday in Atlanta, extending the Wolfpack’s winning streak to four games.
Smith, the Atlantic Coast Conference’s scoring leader, shot 9-for-17 from the floor and also had five assists and two blocks. The sophomore posted his fifth straight game with at least 20 points, his 21st career 20-point game. Smith scored 26 against Georgia Tech in last season’s meeting.
It was the second straight win in the series for the Wolfpack.
NC State (15-4, 5-3 ACC) also got 19 points and eight rebounds from Jarkel Joiner, who wen 9-for-9 from the foul line. Casey Morsell added 12 points and nine rebounds, and D.J. Burns Jr. had 10 points and six rebounds. The Wolfpack played without 6-foot-11 Ebenezer Dowuona, who was ill and stayed home.
Georgia Tech (8-10, 1-7) was led by sophomore Jalon Moore, who scored a career-high 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Rodney Howard, Miles Kelly and Lance Terry each scored nine, and Howard pulled down seven rebounds. The Yellow Jackets have lost four straight and six of their past seven.
Georgia Tech scored the first five points and took a quick 16-6 lead. The Yellow Jackets held the lead until the Wolfpack closed the half with a 12-2 stretch and took a 42-37 edge into the break.
The Yellow Jackets never got closer than three points in the second half. The fast-paced Wolfpack pushed the lead to double digits with 12:25 left on a pair of free throws from Morsell that upped the lead to 55-44.
Georgia Tech got within six points with 6:16 remaining on a Javon Franklin three-point play, but NC State responded with another 12-2 run to put the game away.
The Yellow Jackets struggled from 3-point range, going only 2-for-21, and from the line, making only of 8 of 19 free throws.
Both teams play again on Saturday. NC State travels to North Carolina and Georgia Tech hosts Syracuse to complete a three-game homestand.
–Field Level Media