This is part of a 25-day series on PackWBB.com leading up to NC State women’s first tip at Reynolds against High Point. Each day gets one talking point. Today is Day 14: time for Brooks to be the unquestionable leader.

Five players left. That is scoring, size, and voices. The huddle does not run itself.

Pierre will work. Samuels has been here. Wooten is older. None of that changes the next sentence. This is Zoe Brooks’ team.

Brooks already plays like a leader. Usage is going up. The ball is going to be in her hands more. That is not enough anymore. The Pack needs her to take the room when a possession dies, when a freshman freezes, when the new mix starts looking around for instructions. She is the returning star. She is the engine. She is the one Moore will look at first.

High Point will not feel like Michigan. You can still see it. Who talks first after a turnover. Who walks people into their spots. Who the bench watches when the timeout starts.

The portal emptied the old voices. Brooks has to fill that space. Not as one of four adults. As the leader. No debate.