PORTLAND, Ore. — Aziaha James was accurate from all over the court despite mismatched 3-point lines.
James made a career-high seven 3-pointers and scored 27 points, helping North Carolina State secure its first Final Four appearance in the women’s NCAA Tournament since 1998, defeating top-seeded Texas 76-66 in a game with differing 3-point lines.
River Baldwin contributed 16 points for N.C. State (31-6), which will play unbeaten South Carolina in the national semifinals in Cleveland on Saturday. The Gamecocks defeated Oregon State in Albany, New York, earlier Sunday.
James chuckled when asked if the different perimeter markings affected her.
“Not at all,” she said. “Not at all.”
Madison Booker, the Big 12 Player of the Year and a top freshman, along with Southern California’s JuJu Watkins, finished with 17 points to lead the Longhorns (33-5), who were aiming for their first Final Four since 2003.
Before the Portland 4 Region final, Texas coach Vic Schaefer and N.C. State’s Wes Moore spoke with officials about a visible difference between the 3-point lines. One appeared to be too close to the basket at the top of the key.
The NCAA acknowledged a discrepancy but said both coaches agreed to play on. Four previous games in Portland were played without anyone saying anything publicly about the issue. The court will be corrected before Monday’s Elite Eight game between USC and UConn, the NCAA said.
Following the game, Schaefer said the difference was “about a foot.”
“You want to know how if I think it had anything to do with the game? Probably not,” he said.
James finished 7 of 9 on 3s. She said the players were not informed about the discrepancy before the game.
“I just allowed the game to come to me, and it went well for me,” she said.
N.C. State led by 18 points in the first half, but Texas closed within 54-48 on DeYona Gaston’s jumper late in the third quarter. James responded with a 3 to put the Wolfpack ahead by nine heading into the final period.
Booker’s three-point play moved Texas within 63-55. The Longhorns maintained their pressure with Taylor Jones’ three-point play to narrow the gap to 65-58 with 4:41 to go. Another 3 by James kept Texas at bay.
Baldwin’s jumper that made it 72-62 with 1:50 left all but sealed it for the Wolfpack. With 28 seconds left, James walked into a timeout with her arms raised to elicit cheers from the fans behind the bench.
“Everybody doubted us,” James said as her teammates celebrated. “We weren’t even ranked before the season, and now we’re going to the Final Four.”
The Wolfpack’s last Elite Eight appearance in 2022 ended with a double-overtime loss to UConn. N.C. State was stopped by Louisiana Tech in its only previous Final Four appearance.
That loss haunted coach Moore, who said, “I didn’t know if I’d ever get another chance.”
Texas won its lone national title in 1986, going 34-0. But it’s been 21 years since legendary coach Jody Conradt took the team to its last Final Four.
Booker stated that the Longhorns displayed their resilience after losing junior point guard Rori Harmon to a torn ACL in December.
Booker explained that despite setbacks and doubts from others, the team persevered and made people believe in them by continuously fighting against the odds.
James scored 10 points in the first quarter, helping N.C. State to an early 19-14 lead, and they ultimately extended their lead to 40-22.
At halftime, Gisella Maul made a 3-pointer for Texas, reducing the Longhorns’ deficit to 43-31.
Schaefer mentioned, “We outrebounded them, with 14 offensive boards and 13 overall, and we took 20 more shots than they did. The first half was a struggle defensively. We're all disappointed; the locker room atmosphere is tough.”
