By Mitchell Northam

Associated Press

RALEIGH  — Jakia Brown-Turner scored 13 points and No. 3 North Carolina State bounced back from a loss to beat Florida State 68-48 on Thursday night.

Raina Perez added 11 points and a season high-tying eight assists to help N.C. State (20-3, 11-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) rebound from a loss at No. 20 Notre Dame on Tuesday night.

“I was just reading the defense better today and my teammates were just knocking down shots,” Perez said. “I think in the Notre Dame game, we didn’t really read the defense and we didn’t really play inside-out. I think this game, we pushed the ball a little bit more.”

Elissa Cunane had 11 points and six rebounds, and Kai Crutchfield added 10 points for the Wolfpack.

Cunane’s points didn’t come easy though, as Florida State (10-10, 4-6) focused early on denying entry passes to the All-American in the post. She finished with seven shot attempts, making five of them. When Cunane didn’t get the ball, N.C. State utilized its 3-point weapons and shot 47.8% from deep. “We were going to take away Cunane first and we did that,” Florida State coach Sue Semrau said. “They’re so hard to guard because every one of them can shoot the 3. That spreads them out and you got to pick your poison.”

O’Mariah Gordon led Florida State with 12 points. Morgan Jones had nine points, three rebounds and three blocks.

The Seminoles jumped out to an early five-point lead, but the Wolfpack ended the first quarter on a 20-3 run. Perez had six points and four assists during that stretch.

N.C. State kept Florida State at bay for the rest of the game, never allowing the Seminoles to cut the deficit to less than five points in the final three quarters. The Wolfpack took their largest lead of the game at the 3:56 mark in the fourth quarter, starting the final period with an 8-2 run to pull ahead by 22 points.

“Good effort on a quick turnaround,” Wolfpack coach Wes Moore said. “When we set the tone like that, I just think it’s contagious. Everybody feels more confident and comfortable. So, hopefully we continue to do that.”

N.C. State’s 3-point shooting improved massively from its loss to Notre Dame. The Wolfpack shot just 5 of 20 from behind the arc against the Irish. On Thursday, N.C. State made six 3s in the first quarter, and finished with 11 makes from deep, tied for its second-most in a game this season.

N.C. State   hasn’t lost an ACC game at home in nearly two years.

N.C. State sophomore Diamond Johnson played just 14 minutes and finished with zero points on three shot attempts.

The Wolfpack hosts No. 12 Georgia Tech on Monday.

UNC’s coach Banghart gets 300th career win

WINSTON-SALEM — Alyssa Ustby had 18 points and 10 rebounds and No. 24 North Carolina outscored Wake Forest 40-15 in the first half en route to a 78-59 victory on Thursday night. North Carolina coach Courtney Banghart reached 300 career wins.

North Carolina opened the second quarter on an 8-0 run and led by at least 14 points the rest of the way. Wake Forest was just 6-of-29 shooting (20.7%) in the first half with 12 turnovers. The Demon Deacons finished with 20 turnovers and shot 32.1%.

Kennedy Todd-Williams added 14 points and Deja Kelly had 12 points for North Carolina (17-4, 7-4 ACC). Jewel Spear scored 13 points and Niyah Becker added 11 points for Wake Forest (12-10, 2-9).

Men’s games

Winthrop 64,  NC A&T 54: D.J. Burns Jr. came off the bench to score 15 points to lead Winthrop   over North Carolina A&T.

Sin’Cere McMahon had 13 points and six rebounds for Winthrop (14-8, 7-2 Big South Conference). Drew Buggs added eight assists.

Marcus Watson had 11 points for the Aggies (9-14, 4-5), who have lost four games in a row. Demetric Horton added 10 points and eight rebounds.

Western Kentucky 78, Charlotte 59: Camron Justice scored 22 points as Western Kentucky got past Charlotte. Josh Anderson added 20 points for the Hilltoppers. Anderson also had eight rebounds and five steals.

Dayvion McKnight had 14 points for Western Kentucky (11-11, 3-6 Conference USA), which snapped its five-game losing streak. Luke Frampton added 11 points. Jahmir Young had 17 points for the 49ers (11-9, 4-4). Austin Butler added 14 points. Robert Braswell IV had 13 points.

Texas State 68, Appalachian State 66: Caleb Asberry tossed in 16 points and Texas State edged Appalachian State.

Shelby Adams had 11 points and six rebounds for the Bobcats (14-6, 5-3 Sun Belt Conference), who have won four straight at home. Mason Harrell added eight assists. Adrian Delph had 22 points for the Mountaineers (14-10, 8-3), whose six-game winning streak was snapped.

Donovan Gregory added 17 points. James Lewis Jr. had nine rebounds.

Elon 78, UNC Wilmington 65:  Darius Burford matched his career high with a season-high 27 points as Elon topped UNC Wilmington.

Burford hit 13 of 17 shots. Hunter McIntosh had 17 points for Elon (7-16, 4-6 Colonial Athletic Association). Michael Graham added 15 points and 11 rebounds.

Jaylen Sims had 18 points for the Seahawks (15-6, 9-1), whose 12-game winning streak came to an end. James Baker Jr. and Mike Okauru added 12 points apiece.