BETHEL — Zamareya Jones will always remember the celebration and hoopla of breaking the Bethel (N.C.) North Pitt school scoring record.
Jones knew she was closing in on mark, and finally reached 2,156 points on the last of her 25-point evening. North Pitt called timeout and saved the basketball for historical purposes.
Jones, who has signed with NC State is ranked No. 17 overall in the class of 2024 by ESPN's HoopGurlz, helped North Pitt roll to a 66-18 blowout victory.
Statistics
Jones went 10 of 26 from the field, 1 of 12 on three-pointers and 4 of 6 on free throws to score 25 points. She flirted with a quadruple-double with nine rebounds, seven assists and seven steals, plus one block and one turnover in the win.
Video
Observations
1. Jones didn’t have her fastball from the perimeter, missing her first eight three-pointers before connecting from the left corner in the second half. She finished 1 of 12 on three-pointers, but it didn’t matter as much because she made the necessary adjustments to dominate the game in other ways.
Jones’ passing was on point with seven assists, and what made that even more impressive was that her lone turnover came on a double-dribble call. She had the majority of her seven steals in the first quarter in setting the tone. She was active enough around the basket to get nine rebounds and one block. Her trust in her teammates in this game was obvious.
2. I’ve always called Jones a streaky shooter rather than a pure one, and Friday night’s game reinforced that. She had open looks, the form looks solid and she gets good extension on her jumper at 5-foot-7 or so, which is needed.
Sometimes she takes tough three-pointers and that will affect her shooting percentage. However, most college players put in the time and become competent shooters. NC State wing Madison Hayes is a good example of that where her shot wasn’t broken by any means, but she has improved from trying just 16 three-point attempts in 2021-22 in her first year at NC State (at 31.3 percent), but is stroking it at 45.8 percent this season, which is a major increase from both her sophomore year, but also her junior year (36.4 percent).
3. Freshman point guard Jordan Speller (see below video) has taken some of the playmaking duties away from Jones, but Jones wanted to take on more of a point guard role in this game and her passing was impressive. It wouldn’t be surprising if her role as a freshman at NC State is to be a jolt of energy coming into games, pushing the pace on offense and being a quick-handed pest on defense.
It remains to be see if Jones and current freshman guard Zoe Brooks log a lot of minutes together, but when they do, it’s going to be fun to watch, and the other team will need their track shoes on.
Bonus video
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