LOCKER ROOM REPORT: Zam Jones and Zoe Brooks Discuss The Maine Win

NC State guards Zam Jones and Zoe Brooks met with the media after the Wolfpack's home win over Maine. Check out what all they had to say!

NOTE: Click the video above to watch the interview.

What did coach say at halftime/what kind of changed in the second for y'all to really get the enjoyment? 

Zoe Brooks: It was more just about our defense, just playing together. He wanted us to push the ball in transition and really move the ball. Share with each other and get the easiest open looks we could get.

He knew shots would fall in the second half. I guess it happens sometimes, shots weren’t falling in the first half. 

Can y'all be a good shooting, three-point shooting team? It hasn't happened so far. I'm asking just how can you get there if you feel like this isn't the peak of what y'all are? 

Zam Jones: I'm not going to say keep shooting. We know shooting is going to shoot at the end of the day. We're getting the jumpy extra hours to make sure we're shooting, but we're not going to miss nothing out for sure.

Do you feel like the quality of shots are there? It's just something that was not documented?

Zam Jones: Some of them are iffy, but, at the end of the day, we swing the ball, you miss an open shot, nobody's in there. It's an open shot. 

Even though Q has gotten out to a slow offensive start as well, you know, what does she kind of bring to the team that no one else has? 

Zoe Brooks: I feel like she's a great rebounder, especially offensive. I feel like that gets us going and gets us second chances when she goes and she plays really hard. I feel like that helps our energy as well. 

Two players who have played with Saniya Rivers, does she kind of give you the idea that maybe she could be like Sania in the future? 

Zam Jones: Yeah, for sure. She's long, athletic, the same kind of build as Saniya. Her defense are present, rebounding. She can for sure.

State outscored them by 20 in the paint. Was that an emphasis going into the game? 

Zam Jones: For sure, because they have smaller defenders down there. 6'6", against what, 6'2". So, Coach Moore had us just working on getting the ball in the post, letting them score down there. 

Was it cool that you guys got to flip the SC game quickly? You didn't have to wait like three, four, five, six days? 

Zam Jones: Yeah, for sure. We couldn't sit on that L for long. 

Zoe Brooks: I lost sleep for like two days, so I'm glad I get to sleep good now. 

Khamil's third straight double-double. Talk about the impact she's had so far and the impact she'll have in the future in these upcoming games. 

Zam Jones: It's amazing. We knew what it was getting when she came from Vanderbilt. So we're just glad that she's still playing well, and I'm glad to have her on the team for sure. 

Zoe Brooks: I feel like she's a great offensive rebounder, defensive rebounder. She can score with such ease. She can run the floor great for a forward player. I feel like she's the piece that we were missing. 

What's it like being back in Reynolds?  Obviously you started with two neutral site games and now getting to come back home.

Zam Jones: I'm just glad to be home. Our fans, they're just amazing. They just love playing at Reynolds. They're always loud, so I'm glad to be back home for sure. 

Zoe Brooks: I thought they were going to leave after the first half. I was telling them, but no, they're great. And I feel like that's the energy we need when we have slow starts. We don't want to disappoint them, but we always want to put on a show so that they can keep coming back. 

Do you want to be a stat-stuffer player because you're getting a lot of numbers in the assists and the rebounds?

Zam Jones: For sure. That's been my goal. It's not all about scoring. It's about, you know, rebounding, passing the ball. So I just, I'm not too worried about scoring. I mean, you can see I only had 10 points. I'm not really worried about that. I'm looking at me having seven rebounds and me having five assists. I got to get them turnovers down, but I'm looking just to fill my stat sheet up for sure. 

Would you do better as a team in the third quarter to get this, or second quarter as well, to get the separation? 

Zam Jones: I'd say move the ball. We had some possessions where we didn't swing the ball down the court, and Coach Moore always told us, like, you get the ball swinging, somebody's going to end up open, so I guess just swing the ball. 

Now you have several days off, and it's after a win, so I guess that makes you feel better at least. But you got TCU, another good one coming in. Speak to that game and speak to how you got to keep the Mojo going forward. 

Zoe Brooks: I feel like they're great at everything. They're great perimeter shooters. They're huge. They have, like, three girls that are, like, 6'8". I don't know how much they all play, but they have great sizing, and that's going to be a tough game, but I think it's going to be very exciting as well. I'm looking to play them at home. I remember last year we lost by, like, maybe two or three, and so it'll be good to play them at home and try and get revenge.