The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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2020-2021 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL PREVIEW do over the next couple of years," Moore said. "Especially this year right now, I think she'll take it to another level." Three-Point Shooting By Committee Now that last season's leading three-point shooter, Konig, has graduated, the Wolfpack will rely on a by-committee approach from beyond the arc. It will be a big gap of production to fill. Konig left NC State as the second-leading three-point shooter in program history with 294 career made triples. A 35.7-percent pe- rimeter shooter as a senior last season, her 80 makes from deep led the team and was tied for third in the ACC. She was also the go-to option when the Pack needed a big shot in tight contests. "Ace was a volume three-point shooter," Moore explained. "She wasn't afraid to take the big shot. The championship game for instance, she was 1 for 6 on threes in the first half, but I just told her at halftime to keep shooting it — and sure enough, she hit three big threes for us in the second half and a couple of them really late in the game. "We're going to miss that. Just being able to turn to her, she got her shot off so quick that she could get a shot whenever she had to." The Wolfpack's perimeter shooting was one of the big reasons it was so successful last season. NC State led the ACC in both three-point shots made and shooting percent- age from behind the arc. The team's 270 suc- cessful treys were 38 more than anybody else in the league and tied for 12th in the country, while its 36.2 field goal percentage from long range ranked 24th among Division I teams. Senior guard Kai Crutchfield, senior for- ward Kayla Jones and sophomore wing Ja- kia Brown-Turner all return with at least 37 made three-pointers while shooting 35.7 percent or better from deep in 2019-20. The Pack also added point guard Raina Perez, a graduate transfer from Cal State Fullerton that was the Big West Conference Player of the Year last season, after she aver- aged 19.8 pointers per game and shot 35.5 percent from the perimeter. "I think it will be by committee," Moore said of this year's three-point shooting. "Kai Crutchfield has got three years of experience and she seems to step up in the big games. Ja- kia Brown-Turner is a great shooter herself. "Raina Perez … I think she too is going to take up some of that slack for us. Kayla Jones, we're playing her more on the perim- Newcomer To Watch Graduate Transfer Raina Perez Adds Experience And Scoring Prowess Though fifth-year senior point guard Raina Perez stands just 5-4, she brings a big game and much-needed skill set to the Wolfpack in 2020-21 from Cal State Fullerton. The Goodyear, Ariz., native was named the Big West Player of the Year in her redshirt junior season after averaging 19.8 points per game. The starting point guard at Call State Fullerton for two years, after transferring in from Northern Arizona, Perez proved she was ready for the big stage when, in addition to her scoring, she posted clips of 5.4 re - bounds and 4.2 assists per game. Additionally, she shot 46.2 percent from the floor and 35.5 percent on three-pointers. "I'm definitely glad we have Raina here, just from an experience stand - point," head coach Wes Moore said. "She just has a real high basketball IQ, hard-nosed kid, competitor and can obviously score it." Perez will contend for the starting point guard role along with senior Kai Crutchfield. The Pack will also have reserve options with sophomore Ken - dal Moore and true freshman Genesis Bryant. "Kai can definitely play some point for us as well as the wing," Moore said. "Raina could probably play both as well; she's picked things up really quickly. "Kendal and Gen are both doing well, working hard, but they're still relatively young. Obviously Gen's a freshman, so she's doing a lot of good things as is Kendal. It is nice at that po - sition to have some experience." Moore prefers to play experienced point guards. He's already familiar with Crutchfield, who regularly started and rotated responsibilities at point with the graduated Aislinn "Ace" Konig and Kaila Ealey in 2019-20. Perez, however, provides a natural ability to score and was considered the No. 5 graduate transfer in the country this offseason according to ESPN. Considering Konig took 316 shots last season, second-most on the team and just two less than star center Elissa Cunane, look for Perez to be the point guard Moore goes to when the team needs points and a spark on offense. She may take some time to adjust to the level of ACC competition, but she should be able to find a rhythm this season considering her talent and experience. The opportunity to per - form on the highest level is one Perez worked for, after starting her career at Northern Arizona in the Big Sky Conference. "I do like Raina at the point guard quite a bit," Moore concluded. "She's having to learn a little bit about playing with so much talent around her at this level, but I'm very thankful we have her here to give us some options there." — Justin H. Williams 34 ■ THE WOLFPACKER Perez was the Big West Conference Player of the Year in 2019-20 at Cal State Fullerton after averaging 19.8 points per game, which ranked 14th nationally. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS