Written by Amanda Pavelka
The Indiana Women’s Basketball season unofficially tips off in 11 days with the Hoosiers’ first exhibition game. The Hoosiers will face Missouri S&T on Monday, October 27th at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. New for this season at Hoosier Huddle is the Countdown to Tip-off which will feature each member of the men’s and women’s basketball squad as we await the season. Today we feature an important addition from the transfer portal this offseason, Zania Socka-Nguemen.
Name: Zania Socka-Nguemen
Height/Weight: 6’3”
Hometown/High School: Silver Spring, Maryland/Sidwell Friends HS
Class: Sophomore
Position: Forward
Zania Socka-Nguemen, also known by her nickname “Z”, made her return to Bloomington as a sophomore transfer after being heavily recruited by Coach Teri Moren and staff out of high school. The 2024 McDonald’s All-American committed to UCLA, where she spent last year behind Lauren Betts.
Having had an impactful official visit to IU her senior year of high school, it didn’t take her long to commit to Coach Moren and the Hoosiers after she entered the transfer portal.
The 6-foot-3 forward saw the floor in 16 games in her freshman season for UCLA and averaged 5.2 minutes, 1.5 points and 1.5 rebounds per game, according to IUHoosiers.com. Moren spoke with IUWBB play-by-play broadcaster Austin Render on his podcast, The Dribble Drive Podcast, about Z’s potential impact this season. “Z is athletic. She has been,” Moren said, “We recruited her like crazy before she ended up going to UCLA and we’re so happy (and) grateful that she found her way back to us. Her time at UCLA was well-spent for her. I do think she has a tremendous foundation and that’s credit to the staff at UCLA.”
As a member of USA Women’s Basketball U19 team this summer, Socka-Nguemen spent quality time with Coach Moren since she was back as Team USA Head Coach. She averaged 3.1 points and 3 rebounds per game on their journey to winning gold. “I think the summer with me, although she played spot minutes for us off the bench, she came back to Bloomington a whole different kind of player” Moren told Render. “I think that’s one of the things about USA basketball, you know, it gives you a lot of different experiences but I think it also can give you a big dose of confidence when you get selected and you’re playing with some of the best in the country. I think for Z that really rang true for her. She came back, she’s more aggressive than ever. She’s really stood out.”
Even as a sophomore, Moren expects Z to be a leader on the team this season, “The thing that I’m most impressed with Z is her voice.” Moren said. “She is a high level communicator. High level on both sides of the ball. Her ability to run the floor, her ability to get off the floor and get rebounds but also be efficient around the glass is going to be critical to us having a balanced attack. She’ll be our anchor down low. There’s no question.”
The Maryland native joined the team for summer access and has secured her spot as the starter at center. “I feel like everyday she gets a little bit better.” Moren explained on The Dribble Drive Podcast. “She and Paul (Miller) have worked religiously down there with each other in her player development sessions, just the two of them, and she’s added to her game. She looks more comfortable than ever. I think playing with a really high, high level of confidence which is what we need from her.”
The Hoosiers open the regular season vs Lipscomb at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on November 4th.
Learn more about Zania Socka-Nguemen in the new “Meet the Hoosiers” social media series here. Also check out her dunk video!
Discover more from Hoosier Huddle
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.