The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1466831
38 ■ THE WOLFPACKER And he probably wouldn't expend the resources to do so even if he had them. His top-seeded and top-five-ranked Wolfpack lost 91-87 in double-over- time to the Huskies in the Bridgeport (Conn.) Regional, and a season with so many unprecedented accomplishments came to an abrupt end on March 28. The players were back in Raleigh and in their own beds by 3 a.m. after the disap- pointing end of the season, putting to sleep their title dreams. The challenge that lies ahead for Moore and his program is to bounce back from the season's heartbreaking finale. That work is already underway. Moore pointed out even before the NCAA Tournament began that there are going to be some changes. "We know we're going to need some help from the transfer portal," he had said going into the tournament. "We are losing four starters. We have some good young kids who've got some experience under their belts, but we will need more. We have some holes to fill." In addition to the four seniors who have departed, two Wolfpack under- classmen chose to enter the portal, guards Genesis Bryant and Kendal Moore. Bryant landed at Illinois in mid- April, while Moore had yet to announce a new school. However, NC State has also been a beneficiary of the transfer portal in re- cent years, and the players it has landed, such as Johnson and sophomore guard Madison Hayes, have brightened its outlook going forward. Moore had heavily recruited Johnson out of Neumann Goretti High in Phila- delphia and was disappointed when she chose to stay closer to home for her first season. He was delighted that she opted to transfer in this past season, even though she was mostly blocked from the starting lineup by Perez, who was supposed to be a one-year fix from the Rising senior forward Jakia Brown-Turner averaged 9.8 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game last season. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS " We know we're going to need some help from the transfer portal. We are losing four starters. We have some good young kids who got some experience under their belts, but we will need more. We have some holes to fill. " Wes Moore