The question for NC State women’s basketball on Selection Monday was would they or would they not be a No. 1 seed?

It did not take long to find out.

The very first team revealed in the field was NC State as the No. 1 seed of the Mercado Region. The Pack earned the nod over Texas A&M, who was the No. 2 seed after winning the SEC’s regular season. The two were believed to be competing for the last remaining top seed.

It is the first time ever NC State is a No. 1 seed in the women’s NCAA Tournament.

"NC State deserved to take that No. 1 seed,” ESPN analyst Rebecca Lobo said. “This is a team that has had really big wins. They beat multiple No. 1 ranked teams throughout the course of the season.

"They won the ACC Tournament. They beat Louisville on their way to doing that, and the committee told us how you play in the conference tournament is the best representation of how you’re playing well.”

The Wolfpack enters the NCAA Tournament with a 20-2 record and fresh off winning a second straight ACC Tournament. The Pack also picked up road wins over then-No. 1 ranked teams South Carolina, who won the SEC Tournament and is a No. 1 seed itself in the NCAA bracket, and Louisville during the regular season. NC State knocked off the Cardinals in the ACC Championship game.

“We did have a lot of teams, a lot of discussion around who were the four that were just right for the one line. … NC State, they finished the season really strong, eight wins, four of them over top 50 NET teams, obviously won the ACC championship,” Nina King, senior deputy director of athletics at Duke and chairman of the selection committee, confirmed.

“Seeding is about how teams are playing now, and NC State really finished the season strong and we felt was really deserving to win a spot on the one line.”

In addition to NC State and South Carolina, Stanford and Connecticut were awarded with top seeds.

The Pack will play North Carolina A&T on Sunday at 4 p.m. on ESPN. The Aggies received a 16 seed by winning the MEAC Tournament with a two-point win over Howard University on Saturday in Norfolk, Va.

A&T went 14-2 during the season.

Should NC State avoid the monumental upset, it would play the winner of eighth-seeded South Florida and ninth-seeded Washington State in the second round.

The complete women's bracket is below. Click on the pic to view it larger.

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