The NCAA Tournament gets underway on Friday. ESPN’s primetime matchup sees NC State take on Tennessee in a battle between storied women’s college basketball programs.
The No. 7-seeded Wolfpack are 1.5-point favorites over the No. 10-seeded Lady Volunteers on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Let’s dive into Friday’s First Round matchup, tipping off at 8 p.m. ET in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
NC State vs. Tennessee prediction, preview
Tennessee is the consensus second-best in women’s college basketball history behind the UConn Huskies. The Huskies have 12 national titles, the Lady Volunteers have 8, and no one else has more than 3. However, the days of Pat Summitt are long gone in Knoxville. The Lady Vols haven’t won a title since 2008, and they have been surpassed by South Carolina and LSU in SEC dominance. The conference had eight ranked teams in the final AP poll of the regular season, none of which were Tennessee. Still, the duo of Talaysia Cooper and Janiah Barker is dangerous in March. They combined for 30 points per game this season and could take this team on a deep run.
NC State also has a legendary women’s basketball program. The late, great Kay Yow is one of the top coaches that the game has ever seen. However, the program had been in a bit of a rut before Wes Moore came to town. Moore took over the program in 2013, four years after the Wolfpack’s last trip to the NCAA Tournament. He led the team to the Big Dance in his first season, and NC State has since made the tournament in 9 of his 11 seasons at the helm. Over the last seven March Madness tournaments, NC State has reached six Sweet 16s, including a run to the Final Four in 2024. This season has been a bit of a down year for the Wolfpack, finishing fourth in the ACC. However, they have all the necessary tools to get back to another Sweet 16, headlined by star forward Khamil Pierre — averaging 16.8 points and 12 rebounds per game — and one of the best coaches in college basketball.
NC State vs. Tennessee pick
My best bet for this game is on NC State to cover the modest 1.5-point spread. Wes Moore’s squad has only been knocked out of the first round once in its last eight trips to the NCAA Tournament,
These teams actually met in the first game of the season at the Ro Greensboro Invitational, where NC State pulled ahead for an 80–77 victory. The All-American Honorable Mention, Pierre, led the way for the Wolfpack with 21 points and 14 boards. With Pierre down low and Zoe Brooks running the offense, NC State is tough to beat. The Wolfpack should keep its excellent NCAA Tournament form and get a win over the Lady Volunteers.
