VIRGINIA BEACH (WTKR) — As Aziaha James kept sinking shots for NC State in the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament this weekend, Darnell Dozier started getting texts and phone calls.
"When she first started coming on during the regional, my phone would ring as soon as the TV comes on," the Princess Anne girls basketball coach said. "'Isn't that the kid that you used to play with you?'"
"I said, 'If you ever paid money to come to a game, you should know.'"
James has shown she's worth the price of admission with the Cavaliers and now with NC State. The guard has taken the national stage by storm, helping guide the Wolfpack to the Final Four for the first time since 1998.
The junior scored 29 points in a Sweet 16 win over Stanford, then hit a career-high seven three pointers and posted 27 points in NCSU's victory over Texas in the Elite Eight on Sunday.
"I'm not surprised at all because she used to do that right here, but now she's on another level," Dozier said.
While together at Princess Anne, Dozier and James won four state championships while James earned a pair of all-state selections and the 2020 5A Player of the Year. Their bond started well before those titles were raised.
"When she was in the sixth grade, I saw her hit a shot from halfcourt and I went, 'OK,'" Dozier remembered. "Her mother played for me and that made things even better for me."
Dozier believes James is the first of his former players to make a Final Four appearance. NC State will face unbeaten South Carolina on Friday in Cleveland, and the Princess Anne legend will be watching every moment has his former star takes the sport's biggest stage.
"It'll be just like I'm sitting courtside. I'm going to be yelling and hollering and carrying on," he said. "I'm going to be praying for her as well."
When her college career does come to a close, Dozier believes the sky is still the limit for James.
"I do think she's going to go to the pros, I really do," he said. "I've had some kids that are really good, but they're not Aziaha James."
