Here are the matchups for NC State, Duke and UNC in the NCAA Women’s Tournament

Jadyn Watson-Fisher
·5 min read

The 2024 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament bracket is set, and N.C. State, Duke and North Carolina have their work cut out if they want to make a run.

N.C. State leads the Triangle as the No. 3 seed in the Portland 4 regional, with plenty of teams vying to take it down.

The Wolfpack (27-6) opens the tournament on Saturday against No. 14 seed Chattanooga (28-4). The Mocs won the Southern Conference and enter the game on a five-game winning streak.

Chattanooga’s resume includes a single Quad 2 win over Mississippi State in December, while most of its wins were against teams of NET rankings 100 or higher. It played Marshall and Richmond, two NCAA Tournament teams, in the non-conference season and lost both games by five points or fewer.

Jada Guinn averages 19.7 points per game at a 52.8% clip for the Mocs. She is coming off back-to-back 30-point games in the SoCon Tournament and has more games with 20 points or more (13) than points in single digits (1).

“I’m excited because I’m familiar. I played against Wes (Moore) for a number of years when I was at Virginia Tech, and I’m sure a few things have changed but that’s mostly just personnel,” Mocs head coach Shawn Poppie said in a statement. “I’ve been in the arena; I know how to prepare. It gets loud but there’s a comfort level there for me that I think can spread to the rest of our group.”

If the Wolfpack defeats Chattanooga, it would play the winner of No. 6 Tennessee (19-12) and No. 11 Green Bay (27-6).

Tennessee, led by former N.C. State coach Kellie Harper, earned its 42nd straight March Madness bid. It nearly took down No. 1 overall seed South Carolina (32-0) during the SEC Tournament but also has losses to Notre Dame, Ohio State, LSU, Indiana, Florida State and Middle Tennessee.

Tennessee, however, is 0-7 against teams in the NET top 25.

Lady Vols center Tamari Key, sister of North Carolina’s Teonni Key, returns to her birthplace in this tournament draw.

“We are excited for our program to once again be playing in the NCAA Tournament,” Harper said. “We have an experienced group that has grown tremendously as a team throughout the course of this season, and we look forward to taking the next step of our journey together.”

N.C. State’s side of the bracket includes No. 1 seed Texas (30-4), No. 2 Stanford (28-5), No. 4 Gonzaga (30-3) and ACC opponent No. 9 Florida State (23-10).

Kelly Gramlich, former Clemson Tiger and a women’s hoops broadcaster, said on the selection show that the Portland 4 regional is wide open. She would not be surprised to see any of the top 4 seeds, including the Wolfpack, advance into the later rounds.

Where do NC State, rest of the ACC land in NCAA Women’s Tournament bracket?

UNC may have short tournament

No. 8 North Carolina (19-12) has a tough road to the Final Four. It opens against No. 9 seed Michigan State (22-8) on Thursday.

The Tar Heels face a Spartans squad that defeated multiple mid-level tournament teams and lost by three on the road at Iowa. Prior to its loss in the Big Ten Tournament, the Spartans were on a five-game winning streak. They’re led by Julia Ayrault, who is averaging 15.4 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.

Michigan State holds a higher NET ranking (22) than Carolina (37), but the Heels have a higher strength of schedule (16) than the Spartans (60).

North Carolina’s Deja Kelly drives past South Carolina’s Te-Hina Paopao during the first half of the Tar Heels’ 65-58 loss on Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023, at Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill, N.C.
North Carolina’s Deja Kelly drives past South Carolina’s Te-Hina Paopao during the first half of the Tar Heels’ 65-58 loss on Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023, at Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill, N.C.

South Carolina is a national title favorite and expected to defeat itsNo. 16 seed opponent, either Presbyterian (17-14) or Sacred Heart (22-9). If UNC handles business in the first round, it would likely face the undefeated Gamecocks for the second time this season. They beat the Tar Heels by seven points in Chapel Hill.

The rest of Carolina’s bracket has some favorable teams like No. 5 Oklahoma (22-9) and No. 2 Notre Dame (26-6), two teams it beat this year, but it has to get past the first weekend. Based on how the Gamecocks have played all season, that might be a tall order.

Duke head coach Kara Lawson speaks with her team in the huddle during the first half of the Blue Devils’ game against N.C. State on Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024, at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C.
Duke head coach Kara Lawson speaks with her team in the huddle during the first half of the Blue Devils’ game against N.C. State on Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024, at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C.

Can the Blue Devils advance to Portland?

Lastly, No. 7 Duke heads to Columbus for its first weekend. The Blue Devils (20-11) face No. 10 Richmond (29-5), who they beat, 83-53, in the home opener. ESPN Analytics gives Duke an 82% chance of winning.

Duke struggled early in the season with consistency, but at this point in the year, it’s taken significant steps forward that should put them in the Round of 32.

The Blue Devils would then likely face No. 2 Ohio State (25-5) on the Buckeyes’ home court. Their resume features seven wins over tournament teams, including Iowa and Indiana, and 12-5 record against teams in the NET top 50.

Duke could potentially face ACC foe Virginia Tech in the Elite Eight, if both advance that far into the Portland 3 region. The Devils split the regular season series, with their win coming at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

UNC kicks off the Triangle’s tournament play at 11:30 a.m. Friday on ESPN2.

Duke follows on the same day at 2:30 p.m. on ESPNEWS.

N.C. State kicks things off at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Reynolds Coliseum. Links for tickets can be found on each host team’s website.