Women’s NCAA bracketology: NC State in good shape for a seed near top of bracket
The women’s NCAA basketball tournament is less than a month away and only four regular season games remain. For some teams, that’s a great thing. For others, that means the time to boost their resumes for the postseason is dwindling.
Several websites list the N.C. State women as one of the top teams and look to be locked into hosting the first and second round games. This is the second year with the NCAA’s new format, which allows the top 16 seeds to host the first weekend, before teams head to one of two regional sites.
The Wolfpack (23-4, 11-4 ACC) came in at No. 6 overall and a No. 2 seed in the NCAA bracket preview last week. N.C. State was placed in the Albany regional 2 in that bracket projection.
Ohio State came in at No. 1 in that bracket, with Southern Cal and LSU rounding out the top four.
The NCAA’s other2 seeds were as follows: No. 5 Iowa in Portland regional 4, No. 7 UCLA in Albany regional 1, and No. 8 Texas in Portland regional 2.
South Carolina earned the overall No. 1 seed and was placed in the Albany 1 bracket. Stanford (Portland 2), Ohio State (Albany 3) and Colorado (Portland 4) rounded out the one seeds.
On Thursday, ESPN bracketology expert Charlie Creme listed N.C. State in the same spot as the NCAA bracket. His bracket, however, places the Pack in the Portland 4 region. South Carolina, Stanford, Iowa and Ohio State arethe top seeds in the most recent update after Colorado picked up a second straight loss last Friday.
The Wolfpack would play No. 15 Jackson State — the projected Southwestern Athletic Conference automatic qualifier — and then the winner of No. 7 Michigan State and No. 10 Tennessee, according to the network’s projections.
Creme’s bracket actually gives the Wolfpack a number of positive potential matchups, despite the far travel. Iowa has looked great this year, but it’s been beaten. Plus, the Pack beat the Hawkeyes — and Caitlin Clark — on the road last year. Who’s to say the squad can’t do it again?
N.C. State already has wins over Duke, Notre Dame, Oklahoma and Colorado this season; all of which are in the Portland regional. It hasn’t played LSU, but the Tigers rank No. 60 in SOS (N.C. State is at No. 35) and lost by 12 to the Buffs.
HerHoopStats.com lists the Wolfpack as a No. 2 seed in the Portland 4 region, but has Washington State in the No. 10 spot, instead of Tennessee. Its regional bracket features Iowa at No. 1, then Southern Cal, LSU and Louisville rounding out the top five. There’s a bit more uncertainty with the matchups with this version, but the Pack’s resume — with half a dozen Quad 1 wins — speaks for itself.
ESPN and Her Hoop Stats both list Virginia Tech in the Albany 1 regional, alongside South Carolina, Gonzaga, Utah and Nebraska. For the Wolfpack, that would be the most advantageous situation considering two of its three losses came to the Hokies. Give someone else a chance to deal with them.
Both brackets have Duke as a No. 8 seed, with Her Hoop Stats placing the Blue Devils in the Albany 1 regional with South Carolina.
UNC is listed at No. 6 in the Her Hoop Stats bracket and headed to the Albany 3 regional. The Tar Heels were picked as a No. 7 seed in ESPN’s bracket and placed in Portland 2. Both teams could improve their seeding based on the final games of the regular season and ACC Tournament, but it’s unlikely the committee would place either high enough to host.
Meanwhile, N.C. State could potentially improve its seeding if it can pick up a few more Quad 1 wins. It would likely need to get lucky, as well, with losses by some of the other top teams.
The Pack is in a good position, though; there’s nothing wrong with being a a No. 2 seed.
This story was originally published February 23, 2024 at 6:00 AM.
