Greensboro, NC – No. 1-seed NC State fell to No. 3-seed Duke, 76-62, in the 2025 ACC Tournament Championship game on Sunday at First Horizon Coliseum. NC State came out strong, leading by as many as 14 in the first half, but the Pack was outscored 47-26 in the second half by Duke. The Pack was led by Aziaha James’ 18 points.
NC State was outrebounded 44-28 in the game and was held to 32.3 percent shooting in the second half. The Pack won the battle in points off turnovers (16-10).
Four members of the Pack were named to the ACC All-Tournament Team. James, Saniya Rivers and Zoe Brooks were tabbed to the All-Tournament First Team and Madison Hayes was named to the All-Tournament Second Team.
NC State came out strong to jump to an early 7-0 lead. After a James 3-pointer, Duke called a timeout at the 7:47 mark. Duke responded with a quick 5-0 run out of the break, but NC State answered right back. Madison Hayes and Saniya Rivers knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers and NC State closed the first quarter with a 19-10 lead, while holding Duke to 4-of-15 shooting.
James kept the momentum going in the second quarter, opening with a jumper and a 3-pointer to extend the lead to 24-10. Duke managed to chip away at the lead, outscoring the Pack 19-17 in the second quarter, including a 3-pointer before the buzzer. At the break, NC State held a 36-29 advantage.
Duke cut the deficit to three to open the third quarter, but Rives responded with a triple. The Blue Devils answered right back, and before the media timeout, the Blue Devils took its first lead of the game, 44-42, with 3:57 left in the third quarter. NC State tied up the game twice thereafter, but Duke closed out the quarter on a 7-0 run. The Blue Devils outscored NC State 24-10 in the third quarter to lead 53-46.
Duke extended its lead to double digits to start the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer. James broke a four-minute scoring drought with a layup and Rivers followed with her third triple of the game to bring the Pack within seven at 60-53. That was the closest the Pack would get for the remainder of the game, as Duke outscored NC State 23-16 in the fourth quarter. The Pack fell 76-62.
PACK FACTS
- James led the Pack in all three games, including Sunday with 18 points and two assists
- Brooks logged 17 points, two boards and two steals
- Rivers registered 16 points, five boards, four assists, two steals and one block
- Tilda Trygger led the Pack on the boards with seven
- Devyn Quigley registered her first postseason points, finishing with four points off 2-of-2 shooting
UPCOMING
Selection Sunday is Sunday, March 16, in which NC State will find out its NCAA Tournament fate. The show will air at 8 p.m. on ESPN.