ETSU women’s basketball wins fourth straight

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Nov. 20, 2022) – ETSU women’s basketball is off to a 4-1 start for the first time since the 2017-18 season, leading wire-to-wire in a 54-35 victory over Morehead State inside Brooks Gym on Sunday afternoon.

The Bucs have won four in a row, marking their first four-game win streak since 2018. Meanwhile, Morehead State drops to an 0-4 record — ending a four-game road swing a Johnson City. The Eagles will now host five straight.

The ETSU defense caused problems for Morehead State all game, limiting the Eagles to just 35 points — the lowest score by an ETSU opponent since Converse College scored 35 on New Year’s Eve in 2019.

ETSU scored the first six points of the game and never looked back, as multiple players had career days in the win. Sophomore Nevaeh Brown (Charlotte, N.C.) led the charge with a career-high 15 points (NCAA games), shooting 7-15 from the floor and leading the team with 33 minutes despite coming off the bench. 

True freshman Journee McDaniel (New Bern, N.C.) also had her best collegiate game through five contests, grabbing 13 rebounds and eight points, including back-to-back triples in the fourth quarter to pad the lead.

For the first time this season, graduate guard Jiselle Thomas (Norwalk, Ohio) did not lead in scoring, but still posted strong numbers with 10 points and eight boards. She also made both of the team’s only two free throws today. 

In what proved to be a quick and clean game, ETSU and Morehead State combined for just 15 fouls all game. Both teams had only one trip to the free throw line and neither team had a player commit more than two fouls.

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Quarter: The Bucs started on a 6-0 run and did not allow Morehead State to score until midway through the first quarter. Thomas, Brown and Jakhyia Davis (Knoxville, Tenn.) each had four points in the opening frame, while point guard Kendall Folley (Lebanon, Ohio) fed a pair of assists.

Second Quarter: An early triple by MSU cut ETSU’s lead to four, but the Bucs proceeded on a 7-0 run to pull ahead 21-10. Brown began to take over for the Bucs, scoring seven points in the frame and 11 for the half. Her three-point basket at the 2:57 mark made it 27-17, pushing the lead to double-digits once again.

Third Quarter: The Eagles showed some life in the third quarter, using their own 7-0 run toward the end of the frame to pull within two possessions at 35-29. The run of over four minutes was ended by a clutch triple from Courtney Moore (Gainesville, Fla.) on a handoff from Brown with 1:07 remaining. After a traveling violation at the other end, Thomas sprinted down to the other end and executed a layup near the buzzer to end on a 5-0 run for ETSU.

Fourth Quarter: The run was extended to nine in the final quarter on early baskets by Folley and Thomas, putting ETSU up 44-29 within the first minute of the fourth. McDaniel heated up with a pair of trifectas, adding even more cushion for a 20-point lead. The pressure was off from that point on, as ETSU coasted to victory.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• No ETSU player had more than one foul all game. The Bucs only had six total fouls.

• Morehead State had just nine fouls, eight of which were drawn by Thomas or Jayla Ruffus-Milner (North Hills, Calif.) with four each.

• For the second straight game, ETSU pitched a shutout in one major statistical category. After not allowing any second chance points the last time out against Jacksonville State, the Bucs held Morehead State scoreless on the fast break.

• ETSU had a distinct advantage on the boards, winning the battle 49-29. The Bucs have outrebounded every opponent the last four games.

• The Bucs also dominated the paint with a 28-16 scoring advantage and a 19-11 advantage on the offensive boards. ETSU turned those into 16 second chance points.

• Both teams finished with six triples, with Moore and McDaniel each making a pair.

• ETSU held Morehead State to just 14-54 shooting for just under 26 percent, while finishing 23-60 for just over 38 percent.

• The Bucs led over 38 minutes and never trailed.

• Morehead State’s longest run was a 7-0 stretch in the third quarter to pull within six, but ETSU erased it with a 12-1 run and ended the game on a 19-6 run.

• ETSU allowed just 13 points combined in the first and fourth quarters.

• The Bucs outscored MSU in every quarter, including an eight-point margin in the final frame.

• ETSU improves to 7-5 in the all-time series with Morehead State.

COMING UP NEXT

The Bucs head West for the holidays this upcoming week, participating in the UNLV Thanksgiving MTE on Nov. 25-27. ETSU will face George Washington in the first round of the tournament on Friday at 4:30 p.m.

For more information on Buccaneer women’s hoops, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the women’s basketball page.