Latest news with #N.C.State
Axios
2 days ago
- Sport
- Axios
USC and N.C. State to meet in the 2025 Ally Tipoff in Charlotte
High-profile women's college basketball returns to Spectrum Center Nov. 9 when the USC Trojans take on the N.C. State Wolfpack in the Ally Tipoff. Why it matters: Interest in women's sports, particularly women's basketball, is booming. The big picture: Ally Tipoff's first two years proved fans will show up for elite women's college basketball in Charlotte. The games drew more than 15,000 fans in 2023 as well as in 2024. State of play: The Charlotte Sports Foundation and Ally Financial plan to bring the Ally Tipoff to Spectrum Center through 2026, as Axios previously reported. By the numbers: The 2023 Ally Tipoff generated $2.5 million in economic impact and $2.7 million in 2024, per CRVA. Zoom in: This will be N.C. State's second trip to the Ally Tipoff. They faced South Carolina in last year's Ally Tipoff double-header, which also featured Iowa and Virginia Tech. This will be USC's first time playing at Spectrum Center. Both USC and N.C. State ranked in the top 10 nationally.
Fox Sports
3 days ago
- Sport
- Fox Sports
ACC's new men's basketball scheduling model produces one NC State-UNC meeting, no Duke-Miami matchup
Associated Press CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Instate foes North Carolina and N.C. State will meet just once next year while Duke won't play the Miami team now coached by former Blue Devils assistant Jai Lucas in the Atlantic Coast Conference's reconfigured scheduling model. The ACC announced its second set of home-and-away partners Wednesday after announcing earlier this month that it would cut a 20-game men's basketball schedule to 18 as part of its efforts to boost the sport amid recent years of dwindling NCAA Tournament bids. The league had previously announced primary partners guaranteeing annual home-and-away matchups to create some protection for long-running series, such as famed rivals Duke and UNC or instate opponents Virginia and Virginia Tech. The second set of partners will change every year, while teams will play one game against 14 of the remaining 15 teams and miss playing one league school each year. The league's secondary partners for 2025-26: Boston College-Miami, California-Georgia Tech, Clemson-Pittsburgh, Duke-Louisville, Florida State-SMU, UNC-Syracuse, N.C. State-Virginia, Notre Dame-Stanford and Virginia Tech-Wake Forest. As for the Tar Heels and Wolfpack, they're separated by about a half-hour drive within the same area code, but the lone matchup this year will come on the Wolfpack's home court in Raleigh. That will mark the first time UNC won't have a home game against N.C. State since 1919 after a long history of playing twice per year. ___ AP college basketball: and recommended
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
ACC's new men's basketball scheduling model produces one NC State-UNC meeting, no Duke-Miami matchup
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Instate foes North Carolina and N.C. State will meet just once next year while Duke won't play the Miami team now coached by former Blue Devils assistant Jai Lucas in the Atlantic Coast Conference's reconfigured scheduling model. The ACC announced its second set of home-and-away partners Wednesday after announcing earlier this month that it would cut a 20-game men's basketball schedule to 18 as part of its efforts to boost the sport amid recent years of dwindling NCAA Tournament bids. Advertisement The league had previously announced primary partners guaranteeing annual home-and-away matchups to create some protection for long-running series, such as famed rivals Duke and UNC or instate opponents Virginia and Virginia Tech. The second set of partners will change every year, while teams will play one game against 14 of the remaining 15 teams and miss playing one league school each year. The league's secondary partners for 2025-26: Boston College-Miami, California-Georgia Tech, Clemson-Pittsburgh, Duke-Louisville, Florida State-SMU, UNC-Syracuse, N.C. State-Virginia, Notre Dame-Stanford and Virginia Tech-Wake Forest. As for the Tar Heels and Wolfpack, they're separated by about a half-hour drive within the same area code, but the lone matchup this year will come on the Wolfpack's home court in Raleigh. That will mark the first time UNC won't have a home game against N.C. State since 1919 after a long history of playing twice per year. ___ AP college basketball: and
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
UNC basketball, NC State might not play twice each ACC season. Here's why
UNC basketball and N.C. State have played 249 times over the last 112 years, meeting twice every season since 1920 in one of the ACC's oldest rivalries. That streak could be coming to an end for the Tobacco Road rivals after the ACC announced May 7 that it's moving from a 20-game conference schedule to 18 games, starting with the 2025-26 season. Advertisement With the changes, the Tar Heels' annual home-and-away series with the Wolfpack could be in jeopardy. Each team will play one primary partner both home and away, as well as one variable partner home and away. The variable partner will be determined each season, according to the ACC. Teams will play one game, home or away, against 14 of the remaining 15 teams annually. NEW TAR HEEL: Jaydon Young, North Carolina native, joining UNC basketball. What can Tar Heels expect? LEADERS OF WOLFPACK: NC State basketball roster is coming together under Will Wade. Here are 5 important players UNC's 169 wins against N.C. State are the most by the Tar Heels against any opponent, but Duke is UNC's primary partner and Wake Forest is considered the Wolfpack's primary partner. Advertisement The ACC, which has rolled out a 20-game league schedule since the 2019-20 season, last featured an 18-game format from 2012-19. The change also allows teams the possibility of bolstering their nonconference schedules with two more games against quality opponents. 'As a league, we have been transparent about the importance of ACC Men's Basketball and specifically our commitment to ensuring it is best positioned for the future,' ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips said in a ACC-issued statement. 'Moving to an 18-game conference schedule is a direct result of our ongoing strategic review and analysis and provides our schools a better balance of non-conference and conference games, while also allowing them more autonomy in the scheduling process. This decision reflects our on-going prioritization to do what's best for ACC Men's Basketball, and we appreciate the thoughtfulness of our membership and the support from our television partners.' The decision comes after the ACC got four of its 18 teams in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. At 22%, it was the conference's lowest percentage of teams to make March Madness since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1985. Advertisement The league said a breakdown of 2025-26 opponents and a full league schedule will be announced at a later date. Rodd Baxley covers Duke, North Carolina and N.C. State for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his ACC coverage on X/Twitter or Bluesky: @RoddBaxley. Got questions regarding those teams? Send them to rbaxley@ This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: ACC men's basketball schedule could change UNC, NC State rivalry
Boston Globe
3 days ago
- Sport
- Boston Globe
After her mother's death, Connecticut Sun rookie Saniya Rivers needed someone to lean on, and Tina Charles was there
At the start of the season, no one needed a shoulder to lean on more than rookie Saniya Rivers . The six-week span from Rivers's Sweet 16 run with N.C. State to her WNBA debut last week felt like a blur. In between, she experienced the euphoria of being drafted eighth overall and the grief of losing her 47-year-old mother, Demetria , shortly after. At 22, Saniya had to process not only starting her career, but doing it without her mother. Advertisement 'Losing my mom has been the toughest thing I've ever faced in my life, and I'm playing for her,' Rivers said after making her debut against the Las Vegas Aces. 'I came out here to play for her and I know she's looking over me and protecting me in a different way.' Rivers received support from the coaching staff and the organization, but Charles consistently checked in. 'They've done so much for me, on and off the court,' Rivers said. 'I wasn't with them for like two weeks and Tina alone checking in on me every day. It's just amazing. She didn't have to. She was just on me every day. How are you? You need anything? 'You hear stories about other teams and you just don't know how it's going to be as the rookie and a vet. The fact that she just stepped up and played a big sister role just motivated me.' Advertisement Charles wanted to reassure Rivers. 'If it's one thing I would tell her every day since that day, it's things are going to change throughout your career, but I'll forever be your vet,' Charles said. 'That will never change and I'm always here for you.' At 36 years old with 11 years of WNBA experience, Charles has seen a lot, but she acknowledged how difficult it was to put herself in Rivers's shoes. 'I don't know where I would be if I was that age — even at this age and this stage in my career,' said Charles. 'So, just the resilience and the endurance that she's showing, there's no reason why we're not able to build off it. I'm just really thankful for her, thankful to be able to even cross paths.' Related : The Sun started with four straight losses, but Rivers has been a bright spot — not only for averaging 8 points, 4 rebounds, and 2.7 assists in 27.2 minutes, but for the strength she's shown. She remembered the days after the draft when she and her mother visited Connecticut and met the coaches and staff. 'She was able to rest because she knew I was in good hands,' Rivers said. 'Even though it's hard, I think I know that I'm in good hands and I'm loved and I'm with a program that will care for me, look over me, help me in any way, shape or form.' Changes of scenery The Sun broke up the core that came within a win of the WNBA Finals last season. Some of the faces of that run are thriving in their new surroundings, others are still finding their footing. Advertisement Brionna Jones , for one, has embraced change. Under coach Karl Smesko , Jones's game is expanding out in Atlanta. It's no secret that Smesko doesn't see positions, he sees shooters. So when the Dream added Jones, it was a given that her game would stretch from the post to the 3-point line. 'I hope to bring not only more of my post presence that I'm known for, but also a little more versatility and just doing what the team needs,' Jones said when she was introduced in February. She's taken nine 3-pointers in five games this season after taking 29 in eight seasons in Connecticut. Jones is averaging 13.8 points and a career-high 11.6 rebounds. And at 3-2 — with wins over the Fever, Wings, and Sun — the Dream have a chance to put together their first winning season since 2018. Dream forward Brionna Jones is averaging 13.8 points and a career-high 11.6 rebounds. Terrance Williams/Associated Press Alyssa Thomas landed in Phoenix and things are working out. The Mercury entered Tuesday tied for the third-best record in the league (3-1 behind the undefeated Lynx and Liberty). She's attempting a career-high 13 shots per game and scoring a career-high 16.5 points while grabbing 7.8 rebounds and dishing out 6.5 assists. Veronica Burton has become a starter and catalyst for the expansion Golden State Valkyries. Burton is seizing the opportunity, giving Golden State career highs in minutes (26.7), points (12), rebounds (4.3), assists (3.7), and 3-point percentage (37.5). Advertisement Meanwhile, Ty Harris and DiJonai Carrington landed in Dallas, where the Wings are building around Paige Bueckers . Related : After averaging 28.8 minutes and 10.5 points in Connecticut, Harris is playing 18.5 minutes and scoring 5.8 points in Dallas. Carrington's minutes have dropped from 29.6 to 23 and her scoring is down from 12.7 to 8.8. DeWanna Bonner and Tiffany Mitchell are adjusting to different roles, but they're doing it for contenders in Indiana and Las Vegas, respectively. Take a seat Caitlin Clark , who set the league on fire last season (finishing fourth in MVP voting), After averaging 19.2 points, 8.4 assists, and 5.7 rebounds as a rookie, Clark was right back at it through four games, giving the Fever 19 points a night while upping her assist (9.3) and rebound (6.0) averages. The Fever will be without Caitlin Clark because of a strained left quadriceps. Charlie Neibergall/Associated Press Clark is one of just seven players who averaged at least 19 points as WNBA rookies. That list also includes A'ja Wilson , Arike Ogunbowale , Cappie Pondexter , Cynthia Cooper , Ruthie Bolton , and Seimone Augustus . The only one in that group who had a significant scoring spike in her sophomore season was Ogunbowale, who upped her average to 22.8 points per game. Clark's second-season speed bump is similar to one that Wilson experienced in 2019. Wilson averaged 20.7 points as a rookie for the Aces in 2018, then suffered an ankle injury midway through her second season that kept her out for four weeks. The Aces held down the fort, going 6-3 while she was out. Julian Benbow can be reached at
