WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Graduate guard Alondes Williams posted a triple-double to lead Wake Forest to their third-straight victory as the Demon Deacons earned a 79-53 win over USC Upstate on Saturday night at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
Williams’ historic performance consisted of a team-high tying 16 points, team-high 14 rebounds and 10 assists as the Milwaukee, Wis. native recorded the first triple double by a Demon Deacon since Tim Duncan in 1996.
Williams posted the 35th triple-double in ACC history and the second by an ACC player this season.
Additionally, his 14 rebounds and 10 assists marked new career highs for Williams.
Carter Whitt and Dallas Walton also reached double figures as the Demon Deacons have had at least three players reach 10 points in every game this season.
Whitt notched a career-high 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting, highlighted by a career-high four triples. Walton finished with 14 points with six made baskets as well as four blocked shots.
How It Happened
Alondes Williams found Jake LaRavia for a dunk for the first bucket of the game to put the Deacs up 2-0 just seven seconds into the game.
USC Upstate connected on their second three-pointer of the game to take a 6-4 lead with 17 minutes remaining in the first half.
Moments later, the Demon Deacons regained the lead (8-6) after a layup from Williams.
Williams followed it up with his first made three-pointer of the game, giving Wake Forest an 11-6 lead with 14 minutes left.
The Deacs pushed their lead back to five after a Dallas Walton dunk.
Wake Forest claimed an eight-point lead (16-8) after Khadim Sy recorded his first three-pointer of the game with just under 12 minutes remaining.
After a timeout, USC Upstate went on a 5-2 run to bring the Deacon lead back to within five (18-13) with just over seven minutes remaining.
Isaiah Mucius netted his first three-pointer of the game to give the Deacons their first double-digit lead of the game (24-13).
Mucius’ three-pointer was the fourth different Deacon to record a three-pointer in the half.
After a 4:54 scoring drought, USC Upstate capitalized on a layup after a steal to make it 24-15 with 2:43 remaining in the first half.
Wake Forest took a 29-18 lead into the halftime break as the teams traded buckets in the final two minutes.
The Deacons outscored the Spartans 14-8 in the paint in the opening half of game action.
Wake Forest held USC Upstate to 22 percent shooting from the field and forced seven Spartan turnovers in the first 20 minutes.
Additionally, Wake Forest blocked four shots, led by Walton with two.
Wake Forest forced USC Upstate to take a timeout after the Deacs began the second half on a 10-5 run to make it 39-23 with 16:21 left in the game.
During the run, Walton became the first player to reach double-digit scoring in the game.
A jumper from Sy extended the Wake Forest lead to 20 with 14 minutes remaining in the game.
After Williams recorded his tenth rebound, he notched his first ever double-double on the ensuing possession after netting a pair of free throws with just over 12 minutes remaining.
Williams later recorded his first ever triple-double.
The triple-double is the first since Tim Duncan recorded (14 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 blocks) against Maryland on January 13, 1996.
Carter Whitt netted four three-pointers in the span of 5:36 to keep the Deacons distanced from the Spartans. Wake Forest held a 30-point lead at the seven-minute mark.
The Spartans forced a Wake Forest timeout after going on a 10-2 run in the span of 3:38. Wake Forest led 71-49 with 3:22 left.
RJ Kennah recorded his first points of the season after making a free throw with 2:02 remaining.
Wake Forest secured a 79-53 victory over USC Upstate for their third-straight win.
The Deacons shot 45 percent from the field and outscored the Spartans 38-22 in the paint.
Three Deacs tallied double-digit points. Willams and Whitt each recorded 16, while Walton added 14.
Defensively, Wake Forest outrebounded the Spartans 47-34.
Key Moment
With 5:31 left in the game, Dallas Walton received a pass from Alondes Williams and connected on a layup for Williams’ 10th assist of the night and secured the first Wake Forest triple-double since Tim Duncan in 1996.
Stat of the Game
Alondes Williams’ 16 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists cemented the first triple-double since 1996.
The triple double is the first since Tim Duncan recorded (14 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 blocks) against Maryland on January 13, 1996.
Coach’s Comments
“The second half was much better than the first half. We defended well in the first half tonight though. We turned it up in the second half and played a lot better. Alondes (Williams) showed his unselfishness and showed how he can share the ball and that led to his triple-double. Dallas (Walton) and Carter (Whitt) played with confidence and we once again saw different people step up when it was needed.”
Up Next
Wake Forest will be back in action on Tuesday, December 14, for another home tilt against VMI.
Tipoff in LJVM Coliseum is set for 7 p.m. and the game will air live on Regional Sports Networks.
