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NC State coach Wes Moore ‘proud’ of Wolfpack earning No. 2 seed in NCAA Tournament

image_6483441 (3)by:Noah Fleischman•03/17/25•

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Wes Moore
NC State coach Wes Moore (Photo credit: Atlantic Coast Conference)

Good luck trying to book a hotel in North Carolina’s Research Triangle this weekend. NC State women’s basketball is hosting the opening rounds of the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in the last seven years, while Duke and North Carolina also earned top-16 seeds to do the same. 

Add in the men’s NCAA Tournament location at the Lenovo Center, and there will be 20 college basketball teams in a 30-mile radius of each other. The four hosting locations, the most in the area’s history, makes for hard-to-find lodging, but it also creates a basketball buzz in the hotbed for the sport. 

For Wolfpack coach Wes Moore, who has now guided NC State to nine NCAA Tournament appearances in his 12 seasons at the helm, being a focal point in the college basketball world is a good thing.

“It says a lot about the ACC and Tobacco Road,” Moore said on a Monday morning Zoom media availability. “It’s pretty neat because these are your traditional ACC teams, the footprint. It’s exciting. … I’m proud of where our players placed us. And then the eight men’s teams here as well for their regional. It’s pretty crazy.”

But NC State wasn’t sure if this would even be a possibility through its first seven games. The Wolfpack was 4-3 with all of its defeats at the hands of current NCAA Tournament hosts (No. 1 seed South Carolina, No. 2 seed TCU and No. 3 seed LSU). Looking for a way to earn a top-16 seed to host the first two games kept Moore up at night, he said, but soon enough, his team found a way. 

The Pack won 20 of its last 22 regular season games to clinch a share of the ACC regular season title as it surged deep inside the Associated Press Top 25, reaching as high as No. 7 in the poll. It’s safe to say the Wolfpack’s eight Quad 1 wins helped Moore sleep at night near the end of February and into March. 

“I’m proud of this team being able to secure a home bid,” Moore said. “That’s based on your body of work for the whole season, so every game is critical. I’m proud of this team of putting themselves in this position, but at the same time, it doesn’t guarantee you anything.”

NC State learned it will be a No. 2 seed and will host 15th-seeded Vermont, as well as No. 7 seed Michigan State and No. 10 seed Harvard this weekend at Reynolds Coliseum on Sunday night.

The Pack has its sole focus on the Catamounts, who won the America East title over top-seeded Albany. Vermont brings a stingy defense to Raleigh as it ranks fourth in the nation in points allowed (52.2). 

Moore is well-aware of the Catamounts, who have won 16 of their last 18 games, and their ability to slow down the game with their defense. Luckily for the Wolfpack, NC State has almost a week to prepare for Vermont. 

The Pack feels confident in the schedule that lies ahead of it. NC State had the identical opening weekend slate last season with a Saturday-Monday opportunity, and it swept the games before eventually reaching the Final Four. 

Now, with the extra day of rest, Moore believes his entire roster will be ready to go against Vermont. Senior guard Aziaha James was banged up at the ACC Tournament, momentarily leaving the championship game with a hip injury, while senior guard Saniya Rivers dealt with flu-like symptoms. 

Both players are rested and recovered after three days off last week going into the team’s game preparation in the coming days. After all, NC State will be comfortable with its home gym in its first win-or-go-home battles of the season. 

“I like the way we have it set up, so hopefully, we get some good results in the end,” Moore said.
“I think everybody’s in pretty good shape. … We’re ready to go.”

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