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RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Big Dance comes back to Raleigh this week. Reynolds Coliseum will play host to Chattanooga, Tennessee and Green Bay alongside No. 3 seed NC State in the first two rounds of this year's tournament.
The action doesn't start up until Saturday, but we've got you covered for the scouting report on all three schools coming to town to try to nix the Pack's title aspirations. From Wes Moore's former program in the Mocs to a sneaky good 6-11 matchup between the Vols and Phoenix, here's everything you need to know about who's playing in the Old Barn.
Chattanooga
The Wolfpack knows all too well what it gets in a round one game against the Mocs. After all, Moore took Chattanooga to nine Southern Conference titles in 15 seasons before joining the Pack in 2013-14. After a five-year drought, the Mocs return to March Madness under the leadership of a strong coach of their own in former Virginia Tech assistant Shawn Poppie.
In his first two years at the helm, Poppie's led Chattanooga to back-to-back conference titles, notching the program's first 20-win seasons since 2016-17, the last time the Mocs went dancing. Poppie won SoCon Coach of the Year in both his seasons at Chattanooga, so round one will feature a veritable coaching chess match between him and Moore.
As for the players on the floor, the key to beating the Mocs is stopping their one-two punch of Jada Guinn and Raven Thompson. A grad transfer from Tennessee Tech, Guinn rocked with the Mocs to an All-SoCon First Team selection and Most Outstanding Player in the conference tournament this year. The 5-foot-8 guard leads the team with 19.7 points per game. Though not really a threat from three -- Guinn shoots only .273 from beyond the arc -- her ability to attack the rim makes her the driving force of the Moc offense.
Thompson anchors the frontcourt for Chattanooga, averaging 14.3 points and a team leading 7.1 rebounds per game. Though comparatively undersized at 5-foot-10, the sophomore forward provides some impressive oomph on the glass as a fellow First Team All-SoCon selection.
The Mocs have a couple other interesting names. Sigrun Olafsdottir, a junior guard from Iceland, earned All-Socon Defensive Team honors with 1.1 steals per game. Addie Porter, though standing all of 5-foot-4, crashes the boards well with 5.4 rebounds per game. She pulled down nine boards in a win over Mississippi State -- a top 50 NET team that just missed the tournament -- back in December. Hannah Kohn earned All-Socon Freshman team honors as the team's third-best scorer at 7.7 points per game.
But at the end of the day, the Mocs' success or failure runs through Guinn and Thompson. The duo accounts for over and at least near half of the team's points, rebounds and field goal attempts. NC State needs to limit Guinn's ability to drive to the lane and use its size advantage over Thompson to take care of business in round one.
Tennessee
The No. 6 seed in the Raleigh region, the Vols (19-12, 10-6 SEC) carry enough talent to give NC State a run for its money should the two meet in round two. Led by former Wolfpack skipper Kellie Harper, Tennessee boasts a battle-tested squad out of the SEC. The Vols have come as close as anybody in the country to knocking off undefeated South Carolina, only undone by a buzzer-beater three by Kamilla Cardoso to beat Tennessee in the conference tournament semifinal.
The Vols hold strong team depth with nine players averaging double-digit minutes in conference play, but hoists their share of star players as well. All-SEC First Team selection Rickea Jackson leads the charge for Tennessee, averaging 19.4 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. Despite missing eight games early in the year due to a leg injury, Jackson reached the 20-point watermark 11 times, including a season-high 31 against ACC foe Florida State. She also carries the banner in the paint, leading a strong group of Vols rebounders to 2.4 offensive boards per game.
Tamari Key serves as Tennessee's main interior defender. The 6-foot-6 center from Cary averages 1.6 blocks per game, which actually registers as a down year for Key. Her 344 career blocks rank sixth all-time in the SEC and first among active players. If NC State wants to score at all inside, it'll have to find a way past her.
In the backcourt, Jasmine Powell plays the facilitator role very well for Tennessee. The fifth-year guard ranks sixth in the SEC with 4.1 assists per game while contributing 9.4 points of her own. If NC State disrupts Powell's ability to move the ball around, the Pack will better limit the damage weapons like Jackson can cause.
The Vols don't emphasize the three ball all that much, shooting only .319 from beyond the arc, but their primary perimeter shooter takes the form of a familiar face for the Pack. Former Wake Forest Demon Deacon Jewel Spear shoots a .371 clip from three as part of her 13.3 points per game. Tennessee's leading scorer not named Rickea Jackson, Spear looks to finally come out on top against NC State with the Vols. In her four career matchups against the Pack, Spear has averaged 9.0 points and 3.7 rebounds per game and has made six three-pointers on 25 attempts. Tennessee boasts a lot of weapons, but limiting Spear's impact once more would go a long way towards a Wolfpack win.
If the Pack get the job done against Chattanooga and Tennessee does against Green Bay (more on them in a bit) then a Wolfpack-Vols matchup will feature a battle for the ages on the boards. NC State and Tennessee rank ninth and 12th in the country in rebounds per game, respectively, with plenty of height and length on both sides. If NC State wants to make it past the second round, it must win the rebounding war against the Vols.
Green Bay
The Horizon League champs lived up to their Phoenix moniker this season, returning to the dance for the first time since 2017-18 with the program's best offense in over a decade. Legendary head coach Kevin Borseth -- whose 794 career wins rank 20th all-time -- oversees a talented Green Bay squad which earned a top 50 spot in the NET, finishing right at 50th. In Borseth's 37th season with the program, the Phoenix boasts a veteran squad averaging over 70 points per game for the first time since 2011-12 and moving the ball extremely well.
Green Bay's attack starts with All-Horizon First Team member and conference tournament MVP Natalie McNeal. The junior guard leads the team with 13.4 points and 6.8 rebounds per game, making her living by attacking the rim often. She enters the NCAA Tournament fresh off a career high 32 points against Cleveland State -- last season's representative from the Horizon -- in the conference tournament championship game.
Bailey Butler joins McNeal in the backcourt as one of the nation's best pure passers. Her 5.5 assists per game rank first in the Horizon and her 181 total assists place 18th nationally. Butler also makes herself a problem for opposing passers, averaging 2.2 steals per game in her second straight second as an All-Horizon Defensive Team selection. If she disrupts passing lanes enough for Green Bay to upset Tennessee, NC State will need to dial in on taking care of the rock to avoid the same fate.
Factor more than 2.0 assists per game from Phoenix's other double-digit scorers -- Maddy Schreiber and Cassie Schiltz -- and you get the No. 7 team in the land in assists per game. Green Bay also performs well from the free throw line, ranking 12th in the country at a .784 clip. That efficiency from the charity could make a huge impact if the Phoenix draws enough calls against a physical Tennessee squad. Similar to accounting for Butler's elite passing, NC State will need to keep the Phoenix off the free throw line if they meet in round two.
The road to the Final Four in Cleveland begins Saturday, March 23 when the Wolfpack takes on Chattanooga. Tip off is slated for 2:30 p.m. in Reynolds Coliseum following the Tennessee-Green Bay game.
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