ACC TIPOFF: Wes Moore, Zoe Brooks, and Zam Jones Meet The Media

NC State head coach Wes Moore and guards Zoe Brooks and Zamareya Jones fielded questions from the podium at the 2025 ACC Tipoff in Charlotte.  Check out what the trio had to say!

NOTE: Click the video above to watch the press conference.

First you've got Oklahoma and TCU. Can you talk about how you went about scheduling for the season or is someone going to get fired for this?

WES MOORE: Yeah, right. I think these players would rather play great games, big games, be on the big stage than playing all directional school games or whatever. I think they like that challenge.

Then I think it prepares you. The ACC is unbelievable. It's so strong. 18 great programs, schools, universities in the league. You'd better find out early what your weaknesses are and what you need to fix.

Those things are going to get exposed when you're opening up with the schedule we have. I think three of our first four games are against teams that finished last year in the top 15.

Like I said, we'll learn early, and hopefully it'll help us down the road.

Wes, in recent years it seems like you've kind of mastered your team peaking at the right time. Last year you started off 4-3 before you really got things figured out and went on a run. Can you talk about that science of peaking at the right time?

WES MOORE: Well, again, I think when you play the schedule we play early, you can have some speed bumps in there. I think that was a big part of last year.

But yeah, I just think, again, the teams that are going to have successful Marches, they get better all throughout the season. You can't just say, okay, we've finished the preseason and now play games. You've got to keep getting better because everybody else is. I think that's the biggest thing.

I'm proud of this group. Again, 16-2 in the conference a year ago, regular season champs. To do that, you have to show up every day, and not just in the games. In practice you've got to show up and get better, and then in the games you've got to take everybody seriously because in this league if you don't show up you're going to get beat.

I think that all prepares you hopefully for March Madness.

Is there a certain player or team that you look forward to playing this year?

ZOE BROOKS: UNC.

ZAMAREYA JONES: I'd say the same thing, UNC.

ZOE BROOKS: And Duke.

WES MOORE: Local rivals.

Zamareya, I heard that you were in the gym a lot this off-season. What was the focus for you during these workouts?

ZAMAREYA JONES: I would say my biggest is probably conditioning. Going from freshman year to this year I know my minutes will go up, so I have to be in shape to be able to run down the court.

Also just my overall game, being smart with the ball, my midrange, three-point, definitely free throws. It wasn't the best last year but it's going to get better.

Zoe, you attended the Kelsey Plum camp this summer. What did you take away from that experience and what's the biggest thing we should see on the court because of that experience?

ZOE BROOKS: She's a great finisher for her size. She's smaller than me. She's like 5'5" and she's a really good finisher. She just really emphasizes and talks a lot about using our bodies as small guards and being able to finish against taller defenders.

Zamareya, this past WNBA season we saw Phee join Elena Delle Donne in the 50-40-90, becoming the second woman in that club. In your last game you shot 44.4 percent from the field, 100 from the line, and then three past the arc; you shot 60 percent. Is the 50-40-90 something you think about when you're playing.

ZAMAREYA JONES: I go with the hot hand. If I'm hot, I'm hot. If they say Zoe hot, she's hot. We design plays to go for the hot hand. We feel in that game, you're going to be one to get the ball, but when I'm training I just train to make shots in the game. I just train like a game like so in the game it comes easy to me.

Zoe, I want to know why you said UNC without hesitation, and why rivalries make playing against them special?

ZOE BROOKS: When I first got here when I was a freshman, I didn't understand the rivalry. I was like, why do we hate these people?

WES MOORE: We don't hate them.

ZOE BROOKS: What did they do to us? Why are they our rivals? Then as I got older I just kind of realized when we go to their place, their fans, they heckle us, and it just makes it more exciting. It gives us something to look forward to, I guess.

Wes, I asked this earlier, who would give the best Halloween candy out of the ACC coaches?

WES MOORE: Wow. Well, I don't know. Jeff Walz ought to give out good candy, because he's making a whole lot of money over there, so I hope he's giving out good candy.

But I don't know. Again, that's important. You've got to be able to -- it's kind of like coaching. Sometimes it's a treat and sometimes it's a trick. You've got to be prepared for all of it.

Zoe, I noticed you're sporting a new hairstyle. Any significance behind this?

ZOE BROOKS: No. I've had the bun since I was like seven years old. Everybody said that they wanted me to change it, and then one day in the summertime, something just clicked, and I started wearing this. But I do miss the bun. If I play bad with this hairstyle, the bun will be coming back.

WES MOORE: I hope you keep that 'do all year. (Laughter).

Zamareya, you primarily came off the bench a year ago and that was not something you were used to. Are there lessons learned from that that you think is going to make you a better ball player?

ZAMAREYA JONES: For sure. A lot of people say I don't like coming off the bench, but normally Coach Moore -- I enjoy coming off the bench. It's like you get the feel for the game while on the bench. You get to see what players are hot right now, what players are doing this.

So coming off the bench, I didn't have a problem with it, but when my name was called I was ready to go.

WES MOORE: You were a --

ZAMAREYA JONES: I was a dog.

For all three of you guys, like she mentioned earlier, there's been several Sweet 16 appearances in recent history for the NC State women's basketball program. What about this year's team is going to make the difference to get past that Sweet 16 and maybe compete for a championship?

WES MOORE: Yeah, again, these two players obviously give you a lot of confidence, and I might add, we've also -- six of the last seven years, these guys have finished top 10 in the country and only a couple other schools can say that.

I think these returning players have to make sure our culture and the way we do things, the process doesn't slip any, and then obviously as coaches it's up to us as well.

Hopefully, again -- and I think the players we added, we're excited about them. They're going to give us a lift, too. Hopefully it all meshes together. Unfortunately whoever made this dang schedule, we don't get to ease into it. You're going to jump right in the fire. Hopefully it comes together pretty quickly.

ZOE BROOKS: You didn't make the schedule?

WES MOORE: Yeah, I made it. (Laughter).

As we've established, y'all start the season off really light, no heavy hitters at all, especially Tennessee on November 4. Coach, how do you prepare for Coach Caldwell who famously changes her players out every two minutes to keep fresh legs, and what do you hope to learn?

WES MOORE: Yeah, again, they do, they play unique. People like to say they sub like a hockey line, five players at a time. We've stressed conditioning is going to be really important. You can't get caught up in it also. It's still basketball. You've got to go out and play.

That's the good thing about playing the first game of the year; we have been able to spend a little bit of time against the press because they'll pick you up full court on a make or a miss. They don't care, they're going to come at you.

Right now it's not looking very good. If we have guests come to our practices, they issue them all hardhats in case they were to get hit in the head with an errant pass. But hopefully in a few weeks we've got it figured and can handle it a little bit better.

I imagine they have a hard time getting a schedule because people don't like to play against something that's really different. It should be a great challenge for us.

Ladies, who on the team maybe the media aren't talking enough about but you think after a couple of games everyone is going to know this name?

ZOE BROOKS: I think Tilda. I think Tilda is a very important piece for us. She rebounds. She's a big that can shoot threes. She's 6'6" and can shoot the three really well. She also can rebound and block shots, so I think she's a very important piece for our team.

ZAMAREYA JONES: I think I would say Khamil. A lot of people know she came from Vanderbilt, but I don't feel like she got the recognition she really needed at Vanderbilt, so I feel like her coming here, she's definitely going to show people she's like that.

Zamareya, I hear you're really big into LEGOs. What's your favorite set?

ZAMAREYA JONES: I would say the Home Alone house is my favorite set.

Zoe, I've been told you're a gifted writer.

ZOE BROOKS: Who told you that?

I've got my sources. I can't reveal the source. What will the headline read when you guys cut down the nets for the ACC championship?

ZOE BROOKS: Like what would it say? NC State women's basketball is nice!

For all three of you, one word answer: When I say ACC women's basketball, what's the first word that comes to mind?

ZAMAREYA JONES: Competitive.

ZOE BROOKS: Different.

WES MOORE: Brutal.