March Madness: No. 10 Princeton holds No. 7 NC State scoreless for final 5 minutes in comeback win
The first round of both March Madness terms were mighty fun for Princeton.
One day after the men's team, a No. 15 seed, shocked No. 2 seed Arizona, the women's team upset No. 7 seed NC State in a wild comeback win to cap off the first day of their tournament.
NC State, playing without leading scorer Diamond Johnson due to a lingering ankle injury, seemed to have the game firmly in control when it took a 63-55 lead with 5:41 remaining in the fourth quarter. Those would be the final points the Wolfpack scored for the remainder of the game.
The Princeton defense forced five turnovers and held NC State to 0-for-5 shooting over the next 10 possessions as its offense slowly pulled the team back into the game, all the way up to a Grace Stone 3-pointer for the lead with 4.7 seconds left.
PRINCETON WITH A ONE POINT LEAD - 4.7 SECONDS REMAIN#MarchMadness x @PrincetonWBB pic.twitter.com/SSMttRu4CW
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 18, 2023
A few moments later, Princeton had the win.
Stone finished with 22 points on 7-of-18 shooting, tied with teammate Kaitlyn Chen for the game lead. The Tigers' defense was relentless, recording 13 total steals and five blocks. Five steals and four blocks came from two-time Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year Ellie Mitchell, who also had 4 points and 11 rebounds.
Princeton's reward is advancing to face No. 2 seed Utah in the second round on Sunday.