Noles Outlast Demon Deacons in Overtime, 77-74

WINSTON-SALEM, NC - The Florida State women's basketball team closed out the regular season on a high note with a 77-74 overtime victory over Wake Forest on Sunday afternoon at LJVM Coliseum in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

The Seminoles (10-20, 5-13 ACC) improve to 35-20 all-time over the Demon Deacons (14-16, 4-14 ACC). Florida State's last win in overtime was against Clemson, 82-79, on March 3, 2024 and the last overtime victory on the road was at Houston, 79-73, on Nov. 19, 2022.

Florida State out rebounded Wake Forest 49-39, as the Seminoles corralled 16 offensive rebounds and scored 20 second-chance points. Every Seminole contributed to the victory, as each player recorded at least two points, and a rebound with the Garnet and Gold bench contributing 28 points.

Four Seminoles landed in double figures, with senior guard Sydney Bowles leading the effort with 17 points on 6-of-14 shooting. She would also earn three assists and six rebounds, as well as one steal. Junior guard Emma Risch followed with 13 points, sinking two threes. Risch posted a career-high in steals with three against the Demon Deacons and tied her high in rebounds with seven.

Graduate forward Allie Kubek and graduate guard Jasmine Shavers each registered 11 points to round out the quad. Kubek went 5-of-10 from the floor while also leading the team in rebounds with eight, and picked up a block and a steal. Shavers added two threes and posted a strong 5-of-6 mark at the stripe, while reaching a career high with a team-leading six assists.

Freshman guard Mari Gerton contributed 15 strong minutes, adding a career-high three assists, four rebounds and a steal.

Wake Forest jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter, but Florida State never let them get too far ahead. Bowles converted a turnover for the first pair of points about a minute in, followed by a three by Shavers on the next possession. Senior guard Amaya Bonner and Kubek contributed second-chance baskets in the paint, while Risch showed off the shooting with back-to-back jumpers in the same minute with under three to go.

While the offense got to work, as did the defense: three different Seminoles recorded a block, and Florida State nearly doubled Wake Forest's first quarter rebounds with a 13-7 edge on the glass. A well-fought layup under the basket by junior forward Avery Treadwell would cap the first frame, FSU trailing 21-19.

A pair of free throws by Bowles in the first minute of the second quarter would tie it for the first time all game, and freshman guard Mari Gerton would strip the lead in favor of the Seminoles with a second-chance basket in the paint. Junior center Pania Davis padded the lead with a spin-move finish in the paint just 30 seconds later. A deep three by Bowles would contribute to a 9-0 scoring run for Florida State, forcing Wake Forest into a timeout at 7:12.

Wake Forest would answer, and force another lead change at 2:25 with a run of their own. A three by Risch with under a minute to go would round out the scoring for either side as Florida State once again trailed by a possession, 39-37.

Florida State shot a strong 44.1 percent as a team, going 15-of-34 from the floor through the first half. Bowles led the scoring at the halfway mark with nine points, followed by Risch with seven. Shavers led the rebounding effort with five boards while Kubek, Gerton and Risch pulled down four each.

Davis opened the third quarter with a defensive rebound and subsequent layup to tie the contest, and Greene would wrestle the lead back for the Seminoles with two made free throws at 8:24. Bowles broke into double digit scoring with a second-chance layup and added a three hardly two minutes later.

While the Demon Deacons would strip the lead back with 2:47 to go, a clutch jumper by sophomore guard Tatum Greene and another quarter-closing three-pointer by Risch with five seconds to go would give the Seminoles the edge heading into the fourth, 54-53.

Kubek was the star of the beginning of the final frame, putting up six points in under two minutes to break into double digits herself while fiercely defending the lead. With several more ties throughout the quarter, it came down to second-chance points as the deciding factor. A turnaround jumper by Risch brought the Demon Deacons' lead to one point at 2:26, and it would be a clutch put-back by Bowles in the paint to strip the lead with 15 seconds remaining, going ahead 66-65.

A single free throw from Risch would make it a two-possession game, but a timely layup by Wake Forest with five seconds to spare would send the game to overtime, tied 67-67 at the end of the fourth.

A barrage of threes would open the overtime period, but Shavers would be the first to get one to fall. Wake Forest sank a triple in response, but a layup by Greene would firmly turn the lead back over to the Seminoles. Free throws by Bowles, Shavers, Bonner and Greene maintained key distance on the scoreboard as the Seminoles bested the Demon Deacons 77-74.

With the regular season coming to an end, Florida State will head to Duluth, Georgia to compete in the Ally ACC Women's Basketball Tournament on Wednesday, Mar. 4 at GAS South Arena. The Seminoles will take on Georgia Tech in the opening round.

For more updates on FSU women's basketball, follow the team on Instagram (FSUWBB), X (FSUWBB) and Facebook (FSUWomensBasketball).

Noles Outlast Demon Deacons in Overtime, 77-74

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Team Stats

Sydney Bowles

Emma Risch

Allie Kubek

Jasmine Shavers

Players Mentioned

Amaya Bonner

Sydney Bowles

Pania Davis

Mari Gerton

Tatum Greene

Allie Kubek

Emma Risch

Jasmine Shavers

Avery Treadwell

Florida State University Athletics