One of the many enjoyable things about the NCAA tournament is getting to see your school match up with teams it wouldn’t typically see; there’s a fresh-air aspect to the postseason that I really—
Wait a minute. You said the women’s team is also getting a regular season rematch in the first round? For the love of Jefferson-Pilot Sports, what the hell is going on around here?
NC State is the No. 7 seed in Regional Three (Fort Worth) and will open against Tennessee, the very same Tennessee that State beat
by three points to begin the 2025-26 season. NC State and Tennessee also met in the 2024 NCAA tournament. Could the committee not simply have slotted one of the other 10-seeds that NC State has not played (Colorado or Villanova) here instead? Fine, whatever, great, fine.
NC State and Tennessee will play in Ann Arbor, where No. 2 Michigan is hosting. No. 15 Holy Cross rounds out the pod. Texas is the top seed in the Fort Worth Regional. There are two other ACC teams in this regional as well: No. 3 Louisville, No. 9 Virginia Tech.
The Volunteers are No. 24 in Torvik, while State is No. 25.
