CHARLOTTE, N.C., — You can’t spot one without the other. Last week in red and white striped overalls they hyped up Carter-Finley Stadium with chants of “Wolfpack” before NC State football’s game against Wake Forest. Earlier in the summer they attended Kelsey Plum’s DAWG Class and did pilates with pups.

Off the court, they’re inseparable. On the court, they make up one of the best guard duos in women’s college basketball. Senior guards Aziaha James and Saniya Rivers are entering potentially their final seasons with NC State and are looking for an encore after a dream run to the Final Four last season.

James and Rivers’ emergence came as a surprise to many last season — even head coach Wes Moore. It was their first season starting and while both had success off the bench, especially Rivers, who was the ACC Sixth Player of the Year her sophomore season. There were questions about how they’d handle starting roles, so much so that NC State was picked to finish eighth in the ACC.

“We knew they were going to be great players and have special years,” Moore said. “But to say I knew they were going to do exactly what they did — I think Saniya had a great year. And then Aziaha, I think she just took off and got so hot in the NCAA Tournament. I thought she was a big reason that we were able to make that run.”

Rivers didn’t take long to let the world know who she was. In the Wolfpack’s second game of the season against then-No. 2 UConn on national television, she scored a career-high 33 points to go along with 10 rebounds and five assists, outperforming UConn guard Paige Bueckers, one of the best players in the country.

Meanwhile, James was NC State’s leading scorer for the regular season but put her name on the map during the postseason. Across five NCAA Tournament games, James averaged 23.4 points on 47.5% from the field and 50% from beyond the arc. In the Sweet 16 against Stanford, James went off for 29 points along with five assists. She then followed that up with 27 points on 7-9 from beyond the arc in the Elite Eight against Texas to send NC State to its second ever Final Four.

While it took until last season for the college basketball world to realize who James and Rivers were, internally they saw this coming all along.

“I truly believe that we’re one of the best backcourt duos in the country,” Rivers said. “What we did last year proved it. We believed we were before this past season but now we’ve just shown it.”

For James and Rivers, last season was rewarding because of the patience and hard work they put in to accomplish what they did. James came off the bench her first two seasons despite being the No. 21 player in her class. Rivers was relegated to the sixth player her first season with the Pack, even though she was the No. 3 player in her class transferring from South Carolina.

Both could have transferred and got starting spots at a number of colleges, but decided to stick it out with the Wolfpack. It speaks to the culture that Moore has built at his program where players are willing to sit back and learn while waiting for a shot at a starting role.

“I’ve been here for four years and just the journey that I have been on, that felt so good,” James said on what last year’s starting nod meant to her. “It just shows me all the work I put in. It really paid off.”

“I think it was definitely well-deserved, well-earned,” Rivers added. “A starting spot is not something that’s given to you. It’s something that’s earned. It took three years to get here, and we’re definitely looking forward to keeping our spot because anybody can take it at any given time.”

No moment exemplifies the strong bond James and Rivers have more than what happened in the waning minutes of NC State’s Round of 32 win over Tennessee in Reynolds Coliseum last season.

In the final minutes of the fourth quarter, Rivers had two trips to the free throw line where she could’ve put the game out of reach but missed the front end of the attempts both times. Before she attempted her second free throw on both trips, James got in her ear and encouraged her. Rivers then sank her second free throw after James’ pep talk.

“I’m so happy that I came here and was able to make that relationship with Aziaha,” Rivers said. “She’s like a sister to me. We gelled quickly, whether it was with TikTok dances, going to grab food, like we just have the same hobbies. … So obviously that off the court bond quickly translated on the court.”

For James, who’s a little more laid back, Rivers has brought out an extroverted side of James that wasn’t seen in her first couple of seasons with the Wolfpack. Last year, James and Rivers were the hype women of the team, whether it was bumping chests with each other or hyping up the crowd, it was clear they fed off each other.

“Me and Saniya are irreplaceable,” James said. “So just finding each other on the court is very easy because of our bond.”

While Rivers and James will be starting alongside each other again this season, it’s going to look a little different than last year. Instead of starting in the backcourt next to James, Rivers will be playing anywhere from point guard to center with the departures of last year’s frontcourt of River Baldwin and Mimi Collins.

“I take pride in being a versatile player because I’m very unselfish,” Rivers said. “I want to be able to put my team in a position to win so whatever I need to do to help contribute to the wins, that’s what I’m going to do. So if coach needs me to control the team, then I’ll play at point. If coach wants to run five guards, then I’ll go to the post and wall up with the post. I got to be a little stronger. It’s a mentality switch as well.”

Of course James thinks Rivers is going to play this role perfectly. The belief they have in each makes Rivers and James one of the top backcourts in the country.

“Her game is going to excel even more after this,” James said. “It’s just the little things that make her a great player.”

Whatever position they play, Rivers and James won’t be catching any teams by surprise this upcoming season. They’ll be 1A and 1B on opponents’ scouting reports, but they understand that and are ready to step up to the challenge.

“Now we’re held at a higher standard,” Rivers said. “We have higher expectations for us individually but as a collective too so we have to keep playing off of each other, and I’m excited about what this season has to come.”