The Hokies started slow but rallied from their early deficit to beat East Tennessee State 73-55 in Cassell Coliseum on Sunday afternoon.
“A really good win by our team,” Virginia Tech head coach Megan Duffy said. “ETSU and Brenda [Mock Brown] do a great job, the way they are scrappy, they share and move the ball. They’re coming off a nice win. With everything going on with finals, kind of getting to the end of the semester, I was just really proud of the way our team made a couple big runs in the game … and made some big strides.”
Tech (9-3, 0-1 ACC) trailed 16-10 after the first quarter after early offensive struggles (3-for-14, 21%). However, it righted the ship in the second quarter, led by five at halftime (32-27) and eventually pulled away from the Buccaneers (4-8).
The Hokies outscored ETSU 47-25 in the second and third quarters, which started on the defensive end. They forced 10 miscues in the second, jumping passing lanes and forcing sloppy passes, which created transition opportunities, and they finished 12-0 in fastbreak points.
“It started with our defense,” Tech forward Carys Baker said. “I think we were talking about it a lot in the huddle before Coach Duffy got in, we just needed to pick up our pressure because that’s what we’re really confident in, just pressuring the ball and getting our confidence starting there, and I think that’s what opened up stuff on offense.”
Baker sparked Tech’s turnaround. Trailing 20-17, she knocked down the team’s first 3-pointer to knot things up and jumpstart an 11-0 run, where Carleigh Wenzel also chipped in a three to force the Bucs to call timeout. Transition layups from Leila Wells and Mackenzie Nelson pushed the margin to eight.
After a three-point play from ETSU’s Daniela López cut it to four a minute into the second half, Baker triggered another run with a jumper and a three. Once Mel Daley tacked on four points, Baker got two more baskets down to extend the lead to 17 and force another timeout. She tacked on two free throws on the other side of the break to cap off a 15-0 stretch.
“I think it was just my teammates finding me,” Baker said.
The West Hartford, Conn., native finished with a game-high 22 points on 7-for-11 shooting — along with a 6-for-8 mark from the foul line — while grabbing eight rebounds. It was her second-best output of the season behind her 23-point, 10-board double-double vs. Oregon State.
“I want to give a big applause to Aniya Trent,” Baker said. “… Coming into this game, she was opening a lot of stuff up for me, which was helping a lot, and getting offensive rebounds for us. Huge props to her. She’s only a freshman, so the ceiling, she hasn’t even touched it yet.”
Trent provided the Hokies crucial post depth, racking up seven rebounds, three assists and two blocks in 21 minutes. After her playing time fluctuated in November, she’s totaled 20 points, 16 rebounds, four assists and three blocks while shooting 9-for-13 (69%) in four December games.
“I thought Aniya did awesome,” Duffy said. “She’s one of those players for us coming off the bench that just do small things that are huge for us. She had two or three blocks, just kind of protecting the paint for us. Grab a couple offensive rebounds, big defensive rebounds when they were crashing hard, so for a young player getting some good minutes, I’m really proud of the way she’s handling herself and continuing to improve.”
Baker was joined in double figures by Mel Daley and Samyha Suffren. Daley, who also grabbed four rebounds, was 7-for-11 from the stripe and accounted for 13 points. Meanwhile, Suffren tallied four steals and was 5-for-11 for 12 points.
Tech point guard Mackenzie Nelson dished out a game-high eight assists to accompany seven points. Wenzel added eight points and six rebounds while Kilah Freelon contributed seven points and five boards.
The Hokies only gave it away nine times, a stark difference from ETSU’s 17 miscues, and they outscored the Bucs 19-4 on points off turnovers. They also won the rebounding battle 44-38, which included 17 offensive boards — good for 25 second-chance points.
López paced East Tennessee State with 14 points while Meghan Downing dropped eight points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Jaidyn Harper also posted 10 points.
For the game, Tech shot 40.6 percent (26-for-64) while ETSU made a 33.3 percent clip (19-for-57).
The Hokies jump back into ACC play on Thursday when they travel to Tallahassee to face Florida State (6 p.m. ET). The Seminoles are 4-8 (0-1 ACC) and dropped their league opener to Notre Dame by 35.
FSU also played Florida earlier this season and lost by 22. Tech beat the Gators by four on Dec. 4.
“I’m really looking forward to going down to Florida State,” Duffy said. “It’s kind of strange where you have an ACC game, you go two non-conference and you go back to an ACC game. So instead of getting in the emotional battle of this and that, we’re just literally taking it one day at a time. … And you have to bring a different toughness on the road.”
Box Score: Virginia Tech 73, East Tennessee State 55