Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
5-0,0-0MAC
North Dakota State
6-1,0-0Summit League
Eagles Down NDSU, 73-55, to Remain Undefeated
12/1/2022 9:04:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Tayra Eke's double-double leads the way as Eastern moves to 5-0
Press Conference
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- Sophomore Tayra Eke (Madrid, Spain-IES Ortega Y Gasset-LIU) recorded her second-consecutive double-double while three of her teammates reached double-figures in scoring to help the Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team to a 73-55 victory over visiting North Dakota State University, Dec. 1, inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center. The Eagles (5-0) won the battle between undefeated teams as all players scored at least two points to help Eastern hand the Bison (6-1) their first loss of the season.
The Eagles had four players score in double figures, led by sophomore Lachelle Austin (Redford, Mich.-Wayne Memorial), who had 17 points and four steals. Eke added a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds and junior Ce'Nara Skanes (Oklahoma City, Okla.-Putnam City West) helped out with 14 points, eight rebounds, three steals and two blocks off of the bench. Sophomore ZaNiya Nelson (Oklahoma City, Okla.-Putnam City West) rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 points on the night.
The Eastern Michigan offense was very productive from beyond the arc, knocking down eight three's on 19 attempts. Austin and Nelson led the way as both were 2-of-3 from the three with four others hitting one each.
Eastern Michigan's defense held North Dakota State to only 32.8 percent shooting from the field, including 26.3 percent from beyond the arc. The Eagles also limited Heaven Hamling to 3-of-17 shooting and seven points in the game.
How It Happened
After playing to an 11-11 tie early in the game, Eastern Michigan went on a 7-0 run with 3:14 left in the first quarter, culminating in a bucket from Eke, to take an 18-11 lead. The Eagles then lost some of that lead, but still entered the quarter break with an 18-15 advantage. Eastern did most of its first quarter damage in the paint, scoring 12 of its 18 points close to the basket.
North Dakota State rallied to take a 28-24 lead before Eastern went on a 5-0 run starting at the 2:11 mark in the second period, highlighted by a three from senior Natalia Pineda (Miami, Fla.-John A. Ferguson), to take a 29-28 lead. The Bison then came roaring back to take a 30-29 lead heading into halftime.
The Eagles then outscored North Dakota State, 18-13, in the third period to overtake the Bison and grab a 47-43 lead heading into the fourth. Eastern Michigan played well near the basket, scoring 14 of its 18 points in the paint.
Eastern Michigan kept widening that lead, expanding it to 55-47 before going on a 12-0 run to grow the lead to 67-47 with 3:43 to go in the contest. The Bison narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Eagles still cruised the rest of the way for the win. The Eagles fired away from deep in the quarter, knocking down four shots to account for 12 of its 26 points.
Game Notes
» Eastern Michigan had four players in double digit points against the Bison's defense (Austin, Eke, Skanes, Nelson). It was the fifth consecutive game in which the team has registered three or more players in double-figures. Additionally, it was the third contest with four players in double-digits.
» Austin opened the night with a bucket from the three point line. It was her sixth triple of the season, earning the sophomore at least one bucket from beyond the arc in each contest she has participated in, thus far.
» Austin tied her career-high of four steals for the third time in her career, the most recent being at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville, Nov. 13. She has had a steal in every contest she has appeared in this season.
» Eke's 15 points and 10 rebounds led her to her second double-double in as many games. Additionally, the Spainard's 15 points tied her season-high, set against Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, Nov. 23.
» Eastern's 13 steals on defense was the most steals EMU has had as a team in the young season, besting a previous high of 12 steals at SIUE, Nov. 13. As a team, the Eagles have posted six or more steals in every game this season.
» The Green and White have tallied 27 total blocks in the 2022-23 campaign (5.4 per game), placing the Eagles atop the entire conference and in the top 25 within the nation. Additionally, Eke leads the league in blocks per game with 2.2 and ranks second in total blocks with 11. The sophomore has now recorded a block in each game so far this season.
» Eastern Michigan won the defensive rebound battle 30-25. It marks the fourth time in five games that Eastern Michigan outrebounded its opponents defensively.
» The Eagles scored 18 points in the first quarter. It marked the fifth consecutive game that EMU has secured 16 or more points to open play with the most coming against Florida A&M University, Nov. 19 (22). In the 2021-22 season, Eastern Michigan accomplished the same feat in 14 of the 27 games, going 7-for-7 in such games.
» Including tonight's win, the Eagles have now dominated the turnover 98-79 battle this season. The Green and White forced 19 Bison turnovers while committing 14 themselves. The team is now 4-0 in games where the opponent turns the ball over more times than Eastern.
» A total of eight players scored all of Eastern's points in tonight's victory. With this effort, it is the first game the Eagles have had eight different players score this season. In their previous four games, the Green and White have had at least seven players score at least one point.
» Eastern held the Bison to only 32.8% shooting from the field in today's victory. It is the third time this season the team has kept its opponent from shooting above 40 percent from the field. In both instances, Eastern has out-shot its competitors.
Historical Notes
» With its 73-55 win over NDSU, Dec. 1, Eastern Michigan is off to its first 5-0 start since 2013-14, when the Green and White opened with six straight wins. It is the program's fourth 5-0 start since its inception in the 1976-77 season. Additionally, it is the first five-game win streak for the program since the 2019-20 campaign. In that year, the Eagles went 5-0 between Dec. 10, 2019 and Jan. 8, 2020, taking wins off of Purdue Fort Wayne, University of Illinois-Chicago, University of Detroit Mercy, Bowling Green State University, and Kent State University.
» EMU's 5-0 start is the first for seventh-year Head Coach Fred Castro. It tops the teams consecutive 2-0 starts in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons. Additionally, of the nine women's basketball head coaches at Eastern, just four have begun a season with five or more consecutive wins.
» The Green and White held the Bison to just 55 points in tonight's win. Including today's impressive victory, the Eagles defense has done a great job at limiting its opponents to below 70 in the 2022-23 season thus far. The only opponent to reach 70 against the Eagles was the FAMU Rattlers in the 77-70 victory for the Green and White, Nov. 19. The Bison's 55 points is the second fewest points Eastern has allowed on defense this season, behind IUPUI's 49 points, Nov. 23.
» EMU has scored at least 70 points in all five games this season. Last year, EMU hit that number just 10 times in 27 total games and had its longest stretch of three consecutive games of the sort just once.
» The contest marked the first meeting between the two schools. Eastern Michigan now has the lead in the all-time series, 1-0.
Up Next
The Eagles return to action at home Sunday, Dec. 4, when the University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks visit the George Gervin GameAbove Center for a noon tip. The game, which is part of a doubleheader with the Eastern men who will face Florida Atlantic University afterwards, is the fourth of a five-game home stand for the Green and White. The game will be aired live on ESPN+.
