We are keeping our fingers crossed in the hope that we can return to a “normal” version of college basketball this fall: fans in the stands, announcers without masks, etc. Nobody knows exactly what is going to happen but we will try to restore some order with season previews featuring the best players/coaches in the country. We continue our coverage with South Carolina JR G Zia Cooke. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Zia about making the Final 4 last April and her expectations for this season.
You played several sports in high school including basketball/softball/soccer/track/cross country: which sport were you best at, and which sport did you enjoy the most? I was best at basketball but was pretty good at track as well. I did not really like cross country because it involved a lot of running but if I had not played basketball then track would have been my next option.
You played for team USA at the 2017 FIBA U-16 Americas Championship and 2018 FIBA U-17 World Cup: what did it mean to you to represent your country, and what did it mean to you to win a pair of gold medals? It was a childhood dream: I never thought that I would be able to win a gold medal or have “USA” on my chest. Having that opportunity showed a lot to me.
In the 2019 McDonald’s All-American Game you scored 9 PTS for the East in a win over the West: which of your fellow honorees impressed you the most (Fran Belibi/Aliyah Boston/other)? Just to be in the same room as a bunch of All-Americans was great: I was really happy to play with my future teammates in Aliyah Boston/Brea Beal and build some chemistry with them.
You were born/raised in Toledo and received offers from more than 60 colleges: what made you choose South Carolina? Dawn Staley! I built a relationship with her and the atmosphere here is great. The main thing I was looking for was a coach who I could come to about anything and she definitely fit that role.
What makes Coach Staley such a great coach, and what is the most important thing that you have learned from her so far? Just to stay patient because I cannot have everything at once so I just have to play my role. She has taught me a lot and I learn from her daily: 1 thing is to just look at my options. She does not sugar-coat anything and keeps it real: she tells us exactly what we need to do so it is easy for us to straighten out whatever we need to.
As a freshman you set a school record by starting 33 games for a team that was ranked #1 in the nation and were selected to the SEC All-Freshman Team: how were you able to make such a smooth transition from high school to college? The seniors on that team helped me out a lot so I learned from them. The coaching staff was always there to teach me everything that I needed to know. It was a hard transition but it was a great transition and helped prepare me for the SEC tourney.
Last year you were named 1st-Team All-SEC/Honorable Mention All-American: what did it mean to you to receive such outstanding honors? It meant a lot but I was never satisfied with anything that I ever had. I always say that I want more so this year I plan to stay the course and keep doing the things that I have been doing and hopefully the accolades keep getting better.
At the 2021 Final 4 you scored a team-high 25 PTS and tied a tourney-school-record with 5 3PM in a 1-PT loss to Stanford: what did you learn from your postseason run that will help you this year, and how excited are you for a chance at revenge when you host the defending champs in December? The run was really fun but I learned that we have to take care of our bodies: there are a lot of games throughout the season before you even get to the Final 4. It was a smooth ride but now that we have been there before we know what it is like. We have a ways to go before the rematch with Stanford but I want to play every team the same and have our intensity remain the same for each game so that we do not get hit by any surprises.
A lot of college players have started signing NIL deals during the past few months: are you planning to sign a deal, and if so then what kind of deal are you looking for? I have a lot of deals in the works and have probably signed about 5 deals so far. NIL is not my main focus right now: I let my agent take care of all that so I can just focus on basketball.
What are your goals for this season, and what are your expectations for this season? My goal is to win a national championship and keep growing as a team until we reach our peak together. I want to keep everyone happy so they get what they want. I am a junior now and a vet so I want to help my teammates out and grow as a player.