Rockin’ and rollin’ to a championship

Series history

Friday’s first Final Four game will be the 33rd meeting between these two schools. N.C. State has the 20-12 all-time advantage, with matchups dating back to December 1977 and the Gamecocks are 1-4 against the Wolfpack on neutral courts. The last time South Carolina saw N.C. State was in November 2021 in Raleigh, a 66-57 Gamecocks victory. South Carolina is 4-2 against the Wolfpack under coach Dawn Staley and 1-2 in the last three matchups.

Three things to know about the matchup

■ Back to the Final Four (again): South Carolina (36-0) has reached its sixth

Final Four under Staley, and fourth straight trip going back to the 2020-21 season.

■ Avenging last season: The Gamecocks last made it to the national championship game in 2022, when they won it all. They lost to Iowa in last season’s Final Four.

■ Wolfpack in the spotlight: N.C. State’s basketball programs have excelled in this year’s NCAA Tournaments, with Wes Moore’s team going from unranked to a Final Four appearance in back-to-back seasons. The Wolfpack (31-6) won six of their last seven games, only losing to Notre Dame in the ACC tournament. The N.C. State men’s team, meanwhile, is representing the school this weekend in that Final Four in Phoenix.

Series history

This will be the programs’ third historical matchup and the second time Iowa and UConn face off in the NCAA Tournament. The Huskies hold the 2-0 series advantage, including an 86-79 win in Portland, Ore., on Nov. 27, 2022. All three matchups will have taken place at a neutral site.

Three things to know about the matchup

Caitlin Clark vs. Paige Bueckers: Two of the biggest stars in the game will play head-to-head for the second time in their collegiate careers on Friday night. Clark, who’s averaging 32 points per game this season, hasn’t seen Bueckers since the two battled during that 2022 season.

Shooting deep: Clark broke the NCAA record for most career 3-pointers during Monday’s victory against over LSU on Monday, having made 540 in her career at Iowa (33-4). She made nine triples in the Elite Eight matchup with the Tigers.

Geno’s parade: UConn head coach Geno Auriemma advanced to his 23rd Final Four in his 39 seasons with the Huskies and first since the 2021-22 season. He’s in search of his 12th national championship at UConn (33-5).

SARAH STIER/GETTY Dawn Staley, who on Thursday was named Associated Press coach of the year for the second time, leads unbeaten South Carolina into its fourth straight Final Four.

ANDY LYONS/GETTY Iowa guard Caitlin Clark, winner of the AP player of the year award this season and last, looks to help the Hawkeyes take the final step and win their first national title.