The basketball game between ETSU and UNC Greensboro started about 20 minutes after the scheduled 4 p.m. tip time. That was the last thing that went wrong for the Bucs on Saturday.
Once the referee tossed the ball in the air for the opening tip, over 4,000 fans watched slack-jawed from the bleachers as the team they gave up for dead after an embarrassing 95-73 loss against Appalachian State on Wednesday ran all over the Spartans of UNC Greensboro.
“Losing either makes you or breaks you,” said Dillion Sneed, who scored eight points and grabbed 15 boards. “You either pack it up, or you come out and play hard. Enough is enough. We just got tired of losing.”
The Bucs came out running, getting their hands into the passing lanes and turning steals into layups.
Then they started shooting the ball. James Anthony came into the game and hit his first three-point shot with just under 15 minutes left in the first half.
From there, the Bucs outscored the Spartans 42-14 before running off of the court at halftime to a standing ovation as the crowd looked up at the scoreboard in disbelief. ETSU 64, Greensboro 29.
“Great first half,” said ETSU head coach Murry Bartow. “It’s just exciting to see our team play well.”
By the time Travis Strong stood at half court dribbling out the final seconds of the clock, the 105-78 rout had turned into a performance for the ages.
James Anthony broke the school record for three-pointers in a game with eight while scoring a career-high 30 points. The Bucs also broke a school record with 15 threes as a team.
“James was phenomenal,” Bartow said. “It’s great to see that coming off of the suspension the last two games going for 20 (Wednesday against Appalachian) and then he goes for 30 tonight.”
After the game, Anthony said that a knock-down, drag-out practice on Friday led to Saturday’s outburst, and Sneed agreed. “We were really going at it yesterday, talking trash to each other, just really getting after it,” he said.
“I wasn’t the reason for that,” Bartow said. “They just came out yesterday with a bundle of energy. The momentum of yesterday’s practice carried on to the first half tonight.”
In addition to Anthony and Sneed, Tim Smith and Travis Strong had great nights. Smith scored 25 points, dished out eight assists grabbed six steals. Strong added 18 points for the Bucs.
The only bright spot of the night for Greensboro was the play of Ronnie Burrell, who scored 33 points in the loss.
Game Notes
* The Bucs victory snapped a seven-game losing streak that dated back to their Jan. 15 win at home against Elon.
* ETSU had 17 steals against Greensboro, which led to a lot of fast-break opportunities. The Bucs outscored the Spartans 38-3 in fast-break points during the decisive first half.
* The Bucs are back in action tonight at 7 in Memorial Center against Western Carolina.

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