Eastern Michigan Athletics
Monday, November 4
Ypsilanti, Mich.
6:30 p.m.
Eastern Michigan University
71
vs
75
Texas State
Photo by: Steve King/KingStudios
Eastern Falls in Season Opener to Texas State, 75-71
11/4/2024 10:09:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Amalia, Eleko, and Westphal each had career nights in the loss
Box score (PDF) | Photo Gallery | Press Conference | Highlights
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team built a big lead in the third quarter, but was unable to hang on for the victory as the Eagles dropped a 75-71 season-opening contest to visiting Texas State University Monday, Nov. 4, inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center. The Eagles (0-1) and Bobcats (1-0) met for the first time in series history with the visitors earning a point for their conference in the opening round of the 2024-25 Mid-American Conference/Sun Belt Conference Challenge.
The game, the first with Sahar Nusseibeh leading the program, saw both teams eager to move the ball up and down the court. The fast-paced first quarter closed with the Bobcats in the lead, 17-15, despite Sisi Eleko (Montreal, Quebec/New Hope Academy/Canisius) pouring in 10 points. The Eagles, however, responded in the second with a 21-13 quarter to stake the hosts to a 36-30 lead at the break. Eastern grew its lead to 17 points with 5:34 remaining in the third, but a barrage of points for the Bobcats saw the visitors bring the third to close with EMU ahead, 58-56. In the fourth, both teams went back and forth, but the hosts were unable to climb back ahead before the final buzzer.
Game Notes
» Sisi Eleko recorded a trio of career highs in the game as she scored 28 points on 11-of-16 shooting from the floor. Her previous bests came last year while playing for Canisius as she scored 24 points three different times with the last coming in the MAAC Tournament against Manhattan (March 14). Her 11 made field goals are one better than her previous best of 10 makes against Mount St. Mary's (Jan. 4, 2024) while her 16 attempts tie her career mark set twice before with the last coming against Siena (Feb. 17, 2024). Eleko, who averaged a double-double in 2023-24, was one rebound shy of the accolade against Texas State as she finished with nine caroms.
» Olivia Westphal (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park/Duquesne) also had a career day on the court as the junior opened the game 5-of-5 from three and finished the game with a career-high 20 points, surpassing the 16 points she tallied in last year's finale against Bowling Green (March 9). Westphal reached double-digit points for just the sixth time in her career but has done so in back-to-back games for the first time. Additionally, her long-range shooting was the best it has been as her previous single-game high for three-pointers made was three, which she accomplished six times, including the game against BGSU last season.
» Mackenzie Amalia (Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk/Canisius) entered her first game with EMU with a career-best eight assists recorded in three different times, including against Siena (Feb. 17) last season. The graduate student finished the game with 12, bettering her best by four dimes. Additionally, as a team last year, the Eagles recorded 12+ assists just nine times in 29 games.
» Brooklyn Thrash (Wayne, Ohio/Elmwood/Canisius) stuffed the stat sheet in her debut with the Eagles as she not only scored four points, but she also added a team-high three blocks, two steals, two assists, and three rebounds. No other Eastern player had at least one of each category in the game.
» The Eagles scored 71 points in their opener, a marked improvement from the 2023-24 opener in which they were held to 38. Additionally, Eastern scored 70+ points just three times last season with the first instance coming in the fifth game of the campaign.
» Three players made their EMU debuts in the game with Mackenzie Amalia, Brooklyn Thrash, and Sisi Eleko each earning a place in the starting lineup. Elena Cabello (Malaga, Spain/IES Mediterraneo) also saw her first action since March 8, 2023, against Bowling Green in the MAC Tournament after sitting out all last season with an injury.
Historical Notes
» The game between Eastern and Texas State marked the first in the all-time series.
» The loss dropped the Eagles to 10-8 all-time against members of the Sun Belt.
» The Eagles are now 32-17 all-time in their first game of the season and 21-6 when the season-opener is played at home. Additionally, Eastern is now 36-13 all-time in its home opener.
» Eastern is 5-4 all-time in a head coach's debut contest. The loss snapped a three-game winning streak in such games.
» Eastern saw two of its players score 20+ in the same game for the first time in nearly six years as Sisi Eleko scored 28 points and Olivia Westphal added 20. The last time the feat was accomplished was Jan. 23, 2019, when Corrione Cardwell and Courtnie Lewis both scored 20 points in a MAC contest at Western Michigan.
» Mackenzie Amalia 12 assists are the most by an Eastern player since Areanna Combs tallied 11 for the Eagles against Grace Christian, Nov. 18, 2021. Additionally, her 12 assists rank tied for the sixth-most in a single game in program history. The last time an Eagle recorded 12 or more assists in a single game was Feb. 4, 2012, when Desyree Thomas tied for second all-time with 13.
Up Next
Eastern Michigan stays at home to host Alabama A&M University, Saturday, Nov. 9. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN+. It will be the first of two home events inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center with the volleyball team playing host to the University of Akron at 6 p.m. in the final home match of 2024.
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University women's basketball team built a big lead in the third quarter, but was unable to hang on for the victory as the Eagles dropped a 75-71 season-opening contest to visiting Texas State University Monday, Nov. 4, inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center. The Eagles (0-1) and Bobcats (1-0) met for the first time in series history with the visitors earning a point for their conference in the opening round of the 2024-25 Mid-American Conference/Sun Belt Conference Challenge.
The game, the first with Sahar Nusseibeh leading the program, saw both teams eager to move the ball up and down the court. The fast-paced first quarter closed with the Bobcats in the lead, 17-15, despite Sisi Eleko (Montreal, Quebec/New Hope Academy/Canisius) pouring in 10 points. The Eagles, however, responded in the second with a 21-13 quarter to stake the hosts to a 36-30 lead at the break. Eastern grew its lead to 17 points with 5:34 remaining in the third, but a barrage of points for the Bobcats saw the visitors bring the third to close with EMU ahead, 58-56. In the fourth, both teams went back and forth, but the hosts were unable to climb back ahead before the final buzzer.
Game Notes
» Sisi Eleko recorded a trio of career highs in the game as she scored 28 points on 11-of-16 shooting from the floor. Her previous bests came last year while playing for Canisius as she scored 24 points three different times with the last coming in the MAAC Tournament against Manhattan (March 14). Her 11 made field goals are one better than her previous best of 10 makes against Mount St. Mary's (Jan. 4, 2024) while her 16 attempts tie her career mark set twice before with the last coming against Siena (Feb. 17, 2024). Eleko, who averaged a double-double in 2023-24, was one rebound shy of the accolade against Texas State as she finished with nine caroms.
» Olivia Westphal (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park/Duquesne) also had a career day on the court as the junior opened the game 5-of-5 from three and finished the game with a career-high 20 points, surpassing the 16 points she tallied in last year's finale against Bowling Green (March 9). Westphal reached double-digit points for just the sixth time in her career but has done so in back-to-back games for the first time. Additionally, her long-range shooting was the best it has been as her previous single-game high for three-pointers made was three, which she accomplished six times, including the game against BGSU last season.
» Mackenzie Amalia (Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk/Canisius) entered her first game with EMU with a career-best eight assists recorded in three different times, including against Siena (Feb. 17) last season. The graduate student finished the game with 12, bettering her best by four dimes. Additionally, as a team last year, the Eagles recorded 12+ assists just nine times in 29 games.
» Brooklyn Thrash (Wayne, Ohio/Elmwood/Canisius) stuffed the stat sheet in her debut with the Eagles as she not only scored four points, but she also added a team-high three blocks, two steals, two assists, and three rebounds. No other Eastern player had at least one of each category in the game.
» The Eagles scored 71 points in their opener, a marked improvement from the 2023-24 opener in which they were held to 38. Additionally, Eastern scored 70+ points just three times last season with the first instance coming in the fifth game of the campaign.
» Three players made their EMU debuts in the game with Mackenzie Amalia, Brooklyn Thrash, and Sisi Eleko each earning a place in the starting lineup. Elena Cabello (Malaga, Spain/IES Mediterraneo) also saw her first action since March 8, 2023, against Bowling Green in the MAC Tournament after sitting out all last season with an injury.
Historical Notes
» The game between Eastern and Texas State marked the first in the all-time series.
» The loss dropped the Eagles to 10-8 all-time against members of the Sun Belt.
» The Eagles are now 32-17 all-time in their first game of the season and 21-6 when the season-opener is played at home. Additionally, Eastern is now 36-13 all-time in its home opener.
» Eastern is 5-4 all-time in a head coach's debut contest. The loss snapped a three-game winning streak in such games.
» Eastern saw two of its players score 20+ in the same game for the first time in nearly six years as Sisi Eleko scored 28 points and Olivia Westphal added 20. The last time the feat was accomplished was Jan. 23, 2019, when Corrione Cardwell and Courtnie Lewis both scored 20 points in a MAC contest at Western Michigan.
» Mackenzie Amalia 12 assists are the most by an Eastern player since Areanna Combs tallied 11 for the Eagles against Grace Christian, Nov. 18, 2021. Additionally, her 12 assists rank tied for the sixth-most in a single game in program history. The last time an Eagle recorded 12 or more assists in a single game was Feb. 4, 2012, when Desyree Thomas tied for second all-time with 13.
Up Next
Eastern Michigan stays at home to host Alabama A&M University, Saturday, Nov. 9. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPN+. It will be the first of two home events inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center with the volleyball team playing host to the University of Akron at 6 p.m. in the final home match of 2024.
Players Mentioned
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