N.C. State head coach Wes Moore speaks with Aziaha James during the second half of the Wolfpack’s 104-95 overtime win over Notre Dame on Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, N.C.
Kaitlin McKeown
The News and Observer
RALEIGH
The ACC announced its annual All-Conference honorees and individual awards Tuesday evening.
Players from N.C. State, North Carolina and Duke made the list.
N.C. State picked up two individual awards, three first-team honors, and one selection to the All-Defensive team and All-Freshman team. North Carolina had a player named to the first team, defensive team and freshman team. The Tar Heels also had two named to the second team. Duke earned one individual award, while adding a player on the first team, second team, defensive team and freshman team.
Notre Dame, Florida State and N.C. State led the league with three All-ACC first team selections.
N.C. State’s Wes Moore won Coach of the Year honors and Zoe Brooks nabbed the Most Improved Player distinction.
Moore earned ACC Coach of the Year honors for the fourth time in his career, the last coming in 2022. He led the team to its seventh ACC regular season title and second time as head coach. Under his guidance, the Wolfpack went 24-5 overall and 16-2 in the ACC, earning the No. 1 seed in the upcoming conference tournament and co-regular season champion recognition.
N.C. State’s Zoe Brooks drives to the basket past Notre Dame’s Sonia Citron and Liatu King during the second half of the Wolfpack’s 104-95 double overtime win on Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, N.C. Kaitlin McKeown The News and Observer
Brooks is the first N.C. State player to be named Most Improved Player. As a sophomore, Brooks averaged 14.5 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game in the regular season. Those numbers jumped to 15.8 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game in conference play. She finished the regular season with 24 games of at least 10 points. Brooks recorded a career-high 33 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and two blocks in the Pack’s double overtime win against Notre Dame. From freshman to sophomore year, Brooks bettered her scoring by more than five points, her field goal shooting increased 5 ½ percentage points this year.
Duke forward Toby Fournier earned Rookie of the Year after her standout freshman season, the first for the Blue Devils since Shayeann Day-Wilson earned the award in the 2021-22 season. Fournier is the nation’s only freshman to average at least 14 points, a 55% shooting efficiency, five rebounds and one block per game. She has recorded nine 20-point games and recorded double figures 19 times. Most recently, Fournier scored a career-high 28 points to lift Duke past Florida State in the regular season finale.
Duke’s Toby Fournier works against North Carolina’s Maria Gakdeng during the first half of the Blue Devils’ 68-53 win on Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, N.C. Kaitlin McKeown The News and Observer
Brooks, Saniya Rivers and Aziaha James earned first-team honors for N.C. State.
Rivers averaged 11.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocks per game this season, scoring in double figures 19 times and pulling down 10 or more rebounds seven times. To help the Pack clinch the No. 1 seed, Rivers contributed four points, 13 rebounds and a career-high 11 assists in the win over SMU. In addition to the first-team honor, Rivers was named to the All-Defensive team for the second year in a row.
James picked up her second All-ACC first team honor after averaging 18 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.2 steals this season. She ranks No. 6 in the ACC for scoring and has finished in double figures in all but one game this season. She ranks No. 7 in program history for 3-pointers made.
James and Rivers surpassed 1,000 career points earlier this season.
Fournier also represented Duke on the first team. She is the 26th freshman in Duke history to earn All-ACC First Team honors and the first since Elizabeth Williams received the nod in 2012.
North Carolina’s Alyssa Ustby shoots over Duke’s Jadyn Donovan during the first half of the Tar Heels’ 53-46 overtime victory on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, at Carmichael Arena in Chapel Hill, N.C. Kaitlin McKeown kmckeown@newsobserver.com
Alyssa Ustby was the only Tar Heel to make an appearance on the first team. She is averaging 10.7 points, 9.4 rebounds and three assists per game. Ustby ranks No. 2 in UNC history with 1,211 career rebounds and No. 8 with 133 blocks. Ustby recorded nine double-doubles this season. This is the second season that Ustby has earned first-team honors and fourth consecutive season to receive conference recognition.
Duke’s Ashlon Jackson and UNC’s Maria Gakdeng and Reniya Kelly landed on the All-ACC Second Team.
Jackson averages 12.1 points per game, ranking No. 2 on the team, and leads the program in 3s this season (69). She also ranks No. 5 in the ACC for 3s this season. This year, Jackson scored in double figures 19 times and had four games with 20 points or more.
Gakdeng averaged 11.6 and 7.3 rebounds per game this season. During ACC play, she averaged 12.8 points and 8.1 rebounds per outing. Gakdeng pulled down 3.3 offensive boards per game, ranking No. 4 in ACC play.
Kelly averaged 10.1 points per game and 2.3 assists. She tied her career high three times with six assists. Kelly scored in double figures 11 times, including a career-high 23 points against N.C. State.
Jadyn Donovan earned All-Defensive Team recognition for the Blue Devils, capping off the ACC awards for Duke. Donovan is the program’s 26th All-Defensive honoree, which leads the league. She averages 6.9 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and 1.5 steals per game. Donovan finished 18 games this season with at least seven rebounds and seven games with 10 or more boards.
Duke’s Ashlon Jackson drives to the basket past North Carolina’s Lanie Grant during the second half of the Blue Devils’ 68-63 win on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025, at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C. Kaitlin McKeown The News and Observer
In addition to Fournier, Carolina’s Lanie Grant and N.C. State’s Tilda Trygger landed on the All-Freshman team.
Grant averaged 8.3 points per game in ACC play and notched a career-high 19 points in the Tar Heels’ comeback win over Louisville. She recorded a career-high six rebounds against N.C. State. She played in 31 games and started two this season.
Trygger averaged 6.6 points and 4.8 rebounds this season, with those numbers jumping to 8.6 points and 6.1 rebounds in conference play. She added three double-doubles this season and contributed a career-high 19 points in the Wolfpack’s double overtime win over then-No. 1 Notre Dame.
Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo won ACC Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, while Dani Carnegie from Georgia Tech earned Sixth Player of the Year.
Kaitlin McKeown The News and Observer
All-ACC Honors
Player of the Year: Hannah Hidalgo, So., G, Notre Dame
Defensive Player of the Year: Hannah Hidalgo, So., G, Notre Dame
Rookie of the Year: Toby Fournier, Fr., F, Duke
Coach of the Year: Wes Moore, N.C. State
Sixth Player of the Year: Dani Carnegie, Fr., G, Georgia Tech
Most Improved Player: Zoe Brooks, So., G, N.C. State
All-ACC First Team
Hannah Hidalgo, So., G, Notre Dame
Ta’Niya Latson, Jr., G, Florida State
Olivia Miles, Gr., G, Notre Dame
Aziaha James, Sr., G, N.C. State
Makayla Timpson, Sr., F, Florida State
Sonia Citron, Sr., G, Notre Dame
Kymora Johnson, So., G, Virginia
Saniya Rivers, Sr., G, N.C. State
Alyssa Ustby, Gr., F, North Carolina
Khadija Faye, Gr., C, Pitt
Zoe Brooks, So., G, N.C. State
Kara Dunn, Jr., G, Georgia Tech
Toby Fournier, Fr., F, Duke
Jayda Curry, Sr., G, Louisville
O’Mariah Gordon, Sr., Florida State
North Carolina’s Reniya Kelly reacts after knocking down a basket during the first half of the Tar Heel’s game against UConn on Friday, Nov. 15, 2024, at First Horizon Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C. Kaitlin McKeown kmckeown@newsobserver.com
All-ACC Second Team
Haley Cavinder, Sr., G, Miami
Ioanna Krimili, Gr., G, California
Ashlon Jackson, Jr., G, Duke
Liatu King, Gr., F, Notre Dame
Maria Gakdeng, Sr., C, North Carolina
Tonie Morgan, Jr., G, Georgia Tech
Reniya Kelly, So., G, North Carolina
Nunu Agara, So., F, Stanford
Tajianna Roberts, Fr., G, Louisville
Nya Robertson, Jr., G, SMU
N.C. State’s Saniya Rivers strips the ball from Notre Dame’s Olivia Miles during the first half of the Wolfpack’s game on Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, N.C. Kaitlin McKeown The News and Observer
