Getting a second chance, an NC State guard follows in Saniya Rivers’ footsteps
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Qadence Samuels transfers from UConn to N.C. State to reclaim playing time.
- Coaching staff and teammates cite defense, rebounding and hustle as value.
- Samuels frames move as redemption and identity fit under coach Wes Moore.
The N.C. State women’s basketball roster has a Saniya Rivers-sized hole on it this season. The beloved guard became a first-round WNBA Draft pick in April, alongside teammate Aziaha James, after three years with the program.
While no one can truly ever replace Rivers, transfer guard Qadence Samuels feels like she’s following a path laid just for her.
Samuels committed to N.C. State after spending two years at Connecticut, where she was part of a national championship team. The junior didn’t really fit into the system and her playing time dropped dramatically from Year 1 to Year 2. Similarly, Rivers transferred from a championship-winning South Carolina team after her freshman season, not quite fitting what the program needed.
The two spoke before Samuels made her decision.
“She was just telling me, I would be a great fit here,” Samuels said. “Wes Moore, he trusts all his players and I would have great experience here. … I’m basically just going through her footsteps.”
Searching for an opportunity
Coming to N.C. State was about redemption and finding a place to belong.
Samuels wants fans to recognize her by her work ethic, hustle plays and fearlessness.
In three outings for the Wolfpack, Samuels has contributed 4.3 points, 3 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.
“I just want to show that I do have talent and redeem myself from sophomore year,” Samuels said. “I really didn’t get that much playing time. This year, I want to show I’m actually a good player and why I should be on the court.”
Samuels averaged five points and 2.6 rebounds per game during her freshman season at UConn, playing 443 minutes due to injuries on the roster. She added 17 assists, 16 steals and 10 blocks.
Her best career game came in Reynolds Coliseum, scoring 14 points and shooting 4 of 8 from 3-point range off the bench in UConn’s loss to N.C. State. Both of her parents accidentally wore red, much to the chagrin of the other parents.
“Q has a whole lot of confidence,” former UConn guard Paige Bueckers said in November 2023. “I don’t think a lot of things waver that and shake her.”
Looking back, Moore said it might’ve been foreshadowing.
Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma, later that season, called Samuels a tough competitor after she helped the Huskies make the Final Four.
“Q’s dying to play. She’s like a caged lion in there,” Auriemma said. “She’s just fidgeting on the bench all the time. She wants to get in and play.”
Except Samuels didn’t have many other highlights during her time in Storrs.
Her usage last season dropped drastically. Samuels played 182 minutes and averaged 1.3 points per game. Stuck far down the depth chart with a loaded backcourt that featured Bueckers, Azzi Fudd, KK Arnold, Ashlynn Shade and Kaitlyn Chen, Samuels was one of the last options off the bench in crunch time of blowouts.
Her position wasn’t expected to improve, even without Buckers and Chen going pro.
“It just made me realize, ‘Oh, they probably don’t need me anymore, and I can be great somewhere else,’” Samuels said. “Then, I decided to transfer.”
Samuels’ path to NC State
Samuels, from Forestville, Maryland, started playing basketball as a child at the urging of her father, Qwanzi Samuels Sr., and after watching her older brother Qwanzi Samuels Jr. during his high school career. She is the second-oldest of seven children.
She didn’t immediately take to the sport. It took time for it to grow on her. And even though she didn’t play other sports as a kid, Samuels didn’t approach the game with the same intensity that other college athletes had at a young age.
“I didn’t think that I could get recruited by colleges at first,” Samuels said. “Basketball was just playing games and all that. When I was playing AAU, I was just basically playing for fun.”
She didn’t understand recruiting or really what it meant when she received her first offer. That issue was resolved quickly as Samuels received attention from some of the best teams in the nation. Initially, the guard wanted to play at Baylor, Tennessee or Miami but chose UConn because of its championship pedigree.
It just didn’t work out. She never really fit into the system nor really developed into the player she believes she can be.
N.C. State’s coaching staff showed interest in Samuels years ago; one of the first. Moore began recruiting Samuels, before the regulations changed, back when she was in seventh grade.
When the time came to go through the recruitment process again, N.C. State was at the top of the list. The junior felt comfortable with the program, the way Moore approaches the game and the fact he already knew her style of play. She also believed the Wolfpack coaching staff would provide the development she sought.
“I just think she was looking for an opportunity,” Moore said. “You know, I’ve talked to Geno. He had good things to say about her.”
This summer, Moore said liked Samuels’ ability to score from various spots on the floor, her athleticism and energy. Even though she hasn’t produced very many points yet, Zoe Brooks concurred. Samuels is a strong rebounder, which helps other players score, and plays hard.
Brooks and Zamareya Jones shook their heads affirmatively on Tuesday after the team’s 66-47 win over Maine when asked if she has the potential to be like Rivers.
“For sure,” Jones said. “She’s long, athletic, the same kind of build as Saniya. Her defensive presence, rebounding, she [does] for sure.”
Why does Qadence Samuels have a blue eyebrow?
When Samuels steps onto the court, she normally has blue makeup on one eyebrow. It’s something she’s done since the end of middle school, when her grandmother passed away. They were best friends. This is a way to remember her.
Samuels didn’t get to sport the blue eyebrow when she was with Connecticut, but it’s made a return since she arrived in Raleigh. It seems small, but that was a reason she chose N.C. State and a reason she wants to succeed with the Wolfpack.
If Rivers could transfer from a championship team, become an elite player and be appreciated for her distinct style and personality, Samuels thinks she can, too.
“I appreciate the coaching staff here at N.C. State for accepting me and who I am, because I couldn’t wear it at UConn,” Samuels said. “Here, they love the eyebrow and all that. I’m the girl with the blue eyebrow, the girl with the two puffs. [I can] show my real identity and who I am.”
