Key Takeaways from One-on-One interview with Wake coach Megan Gebbia

ACC media day gave us our first chance to hear about this new-look Demon Deacon roster

Oct 6, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; Wake Forest head coach Megan Gebbia answers questions from the media at The Hilton Charlotte Uptown. Mandatory Credit: William Howard-Imagn Images | William Howard-Imagn Images

The new college basketball season is upon us in less than a month, and at the ACC Tipoff (media day) in Charlotte, women's basketball took center stage. Wake Forest women's head coach Megan Gebbia shared some thoughts on the outlook of this year's team with us.

Last year was a struggle for the Lady Deacs as they finished with a 9-20 record and only two conference wins. However, Coach Gebbia shared some key reasons for optimism going into the upcoming season with a very new-look roster.

Scoring and Size Rienforcements

Coach Gebbia spoke very highly of Wake's incoming players for this year's roster. Those players consist of five freshmen and a handful of transfers. Two of these freshmen include Milan Brown and Grace Galbavy, who Coach said will be great creators for this new-look offense. These two can score the ball at will as well as get others involved, which is important considering the offensive output lost from last year's team. Colorado transfer Grace Oliver should give the Deacs a playmaker with experience from the Power 5 level, which will be key.

The Lady Deacs are also bringing in two Australian forwards. Savannah Metcalfe, standing at 6'5 ", brings more size than the Deacs have had in recent years, and she is joined by 6'3" Opal Bird. These two will bring some serious depth to a frontcourt that was lacking in that department in prior years.

Finishing Games in the Fourth Quarter

Coach Gebbia emphasized that despite only two conference wins, the Lady Deacs were in a significant number of the conference games they competed in last year. Even though things did not fall into place at the end of these games, it does not take much to flip some of those close losses from last season to wins this season.

Coach Gebbia said that they are more heavily emphasizing fourth-quarter play in practice by doing more intense scrimmaging at the end of practice. This way, the team can get used to competing hard even when tired, like in an end-of-game situation. These practice adjustments should allow Wake to finish strong in close games.

Revitalized Offense

The Lady Deacs are fortunate to get their starting PG, Aurora Sørbye, back from last season's squad. This should give the team some added confidence. Coach talked about in past years, it has been that the defense has been stronger than the offense, but this year might be flipped.

This year's team is going to more heavily emphasize ball movement, including getting the ball inside to take advantage of the new size added to the squad this offseason. The Deacs also added some nice three-point shooters, including Mary Carter. Overall, Gebbia believes the combination of inside and out play will allow the team to run a more efficient offense this season.

Coach Gebbia also emphasized the youth of this squad in her interview. The Lady Deacs only have four upperclassmen on the squad. However, the non-conference schedule should give the young team a chance to get some wins under its belt before taking on a challenging ACC slate. It will certainly be exciting to see what kind of improvements Coach Gebbia and the Lady Deacs make this season!

Coach Gebbia's One-on-One Interview at ACC Tipoff

After the main stage press conference, Coach Gebbia met with Wake Forest On SI for a one-on-one conversation about the upcoming season. Here is that full interview: