Miami women’s basketball took care of business Thursday night against a struggling Wake Forest team in a 72-54 victory.
The Demon Deacons were able to hang around in the first half of play, but a dominant Miami second half led by a 50% shooting effort outscored Wake Forest by 15 in the final 30 minutes.
In the first 10 minutes of play, four ‘Canes put up points as Miami took a quick 16-11 lead. Jasmyne Roberts led first-quarter scorers with five points on 2-of-2 shooting and defensively added two steals and a block.
“I thought we struggled a bit in the third there to start, but I liked our looks … We got hot at the end and Shy kept us in it for a while until Jaida found her stroke,” head coach Katie Meier said.
A valiant defensive effort from Wake Forest in the second quarter helped it stay in the game. The Demon Deacons took their only first-half lead at 24-22. The Deacons shot 3-for-7 in the second quarter from behind the arc, but Miami outscored Wake Forest (4-17, 0-9 ACC) by 12 in points in the paint. The halftime score read 31-28 in favor of Miami.
Out of the gate, Miami went on a 12-3 run early in the second half and extended its lead to 12. Shayeann Day-Wilson found the hot hand as she added two threes, and Miami went into the fourth quarter with a 51-40 lead. Day-Wilson finished the game with 15 points. The Duke transfer has scored at least 15 points in five of her last six games.
Roberts’ second three-pointer of the game came early in the fourth quarter, as Miami started to pull away. Six fourth-quarter points from Arizona transfer Lemyah Hylton put the game out of reach in Winston-Salem.
“Jasmyne and Shayeann, we were riding them and I thought Latasha played great. But, it took everybody and in that fourth quarter we had some impressive numbers,” Meier said.
Miami (14-6, 4-5 ACC) had a big offensive night and a strong defensive effort from the forwards. The ‘Canes will look to use this momentum as they get into the last half of the season.
You can catch Miami back in action on Sunday when it takes on cross-state rival Florida State in Tallahassee. Tip-off is set for 11 a.m.