Veteran NC State women’s basketball guard expected to return for 2026-27 season
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- Zoe Brooks plans to return for 2026-27, giving NC State a veteran floor leader.
- Brooks averaged 16 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists while earning All‑ACC honors.
- Her season ended with a foot injury; recovery timeline and surgery needs remain unclear.
One of N.C. State women’s basketball’s key leaders is expected to return next season.
Junior guard Zoe Brooks intends to play her senior year with the Wolfpack.
She posted on Instagram Wednesday night with the caption, “Been through a lot of ups and downs but never stopped trusting God’s plan for me,” and used the hashtags #BackSoon #Year4Loading.
ESPN broadcaster and N.C. State alumna Debbie Antonelli posted on X that Brooks told her she would return to the Wolfpack.
In Brooks’ junior season as one of N.C. State’s veteran leaders, she averaged 16 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game. She bettered her scoring this season by two points per game, while her rebounding stayed relatively consistent from last year. Brooks earned back-to-back All-ACC First Team honors for her contributions.
Prior to the season’s second meeting with the Lady Vols, Brooks reached double figures in eight straight games. This year, she reached 20 points in nine contests. Her best game took place in the Wolfpack’s 78-76 overtime win at Virginia, scoring a career-high 37 points.
Brooks’ season ended on a low note when she left the Wolfpack’s NCAA Tournament game against Tennessee with a foot injury. She did not play against No. 2 seed Michigan in the second round.
N.C. State head coach Wes Moore said after the loss on Sunday that he was not sure what Brooks’ recovery time would look like or if she’d need surgery.
Brooks, a Plainfield, New Jersey, had one of the best all-around freshman seasons in school history, having put up numbers in the top 15 in nine categories for first-year players, including No. 1 in games played by a rookie (38) and No. 2 in assists by a freshman (130).
The guard also recorded a triple-double in her first career start, when the Wolfpack played Liberty on Dec. 10, 2023. She is the second player in program history to achieve the feat, and first since 2001.
Brooks went to the NCAA Tournament Final Four as a freshman, Sweet 16 as a sophomore and Round of 32 this season.
Brooks came to the program as a five-star prospect and the No. 9 overall player in the class of 2023. She was a McDonald’s All-American and Naismith Girls High School All-American. SB Live named Brooks as the 2023 National Player of the Year.
The junior was invited to Kelsey Plum’s “Dawg” class last season, which provides mentoring and training for 12 standout college guards.
Brooks’ announcement comes after sophomore guard Zamareya Jones and junior center Mallory Collier announced they plan to enter the transfer portal.
Following the departures of Saniya Rivers and Aziaha James, Brooks and Jones were tabbed as their replacements and expected to continue the program’s success in the backcourt.
This story was originally published March 26, 2026 at 2:28 PM with the headline "Veteran NC State women’s basketball guard expected to return for 2026-27 season."
