WRAL Sports Fan

Final Score: (23) North Carolina State 78, Boston College 73

Chestnut Hill, MA (Sports Network) - Scott Wood made clutch shots down the stretch -- scoring all 12 of his points in the final four minutes -- and No. 23 North Carolina State held off Boston College, 78-73, to begin Atlantic Coast Conference play.

Wood converted on 6-of-6 from the line and sank two important 3-pointers to help the Wolfpack (12-2, 1-0 ACC) stay ahead late in the contest. Rodney Purvis scored 19 points on 7-of-10 from the field to extend NC State's winning streak to eight games.

Richard Howell came through with 12 points and 11 rebounds, while Lorenzo Brown donated 14 points and eight assists in the victory.

"We are happy with the win, but not happy with how we played," said NC State coach Mark Gottfried. "We can play a lot better. I thought at times, we were our own worst enemy, whether it was defensively, taking drives away, losing 3- point shooters, whatever."

Despite leading most of the contest, Boston College (8-6, 0-1) went cold from the field in the final minutes and had its five-game winning streak snapped. Ryan Anderson posted 22 points and 13 rebounds and Joe Rahon contributed 18 points in the defeat.

The Eagles had a chance to tie the game with just seconds remaining, but Rahon misfired on an open look from long distance, allowing the Wolfpack to hold on for the win.

The young Boston College squad came out with more energy than the opposition and opened up a 22-15 advantage just past the midway point in the first half.

However, NC State came alive late in the session, with Purvis scoring three straight buckets for the Wolfpack to tie the game at 24-24.

He swished a triple between two jumpers and T.J. Warren followed with a layup, giving NC State its first lead since the early moments of the game.

Despite not making a field goal over the final nine minutes of the half, Boston College stayed within striking distance, trailing just 29-28 at the break.

The Wolfpack came out of the locker room and grabbed a 37-30 edge early, but after the Eagles ripped off a 10-2 run to take a slight 40-39 lead, they stayed in front for the next 9 1/2 minutes.

They led by as many as six, with Dennis Clifford's putback score putting them ahead 53-47, but following a Purvis triple, Howell knocked down a pair of free throws to put the Wolfpack back on top, 59-58, with 6:01 left to play.

With game knotted at 64 following a pair of Rahon free throws, Wood knocked down a shot from beyond the arc to keep the Wolfpack on top. Then, after Anderson sank a pair from the line to pull the Eagles within 69-68, Wood came off a screen and buried a 3-pointer from the top of the key to give NC State a 72-68 cushion with 43.5 seconds remaining.

The Eagles pulled within one twice more, but never went back on top the rest of the way, as Wood scored the Wolfpack's final six points at the charity stripe to seal the victory.

Game Notes

NC State's eight-game winning streak is the team's longest since beginning the 2004-05 campaign 8-0 ... There were 11 ties and nine lead changes throughout the contest.