ETSU men’s basketball played an exhibition against UVA-Wise on Oct. 30 inside the historic Freedom Hall. ETSU defeated the Cavilers in dominating fashion, with a final score of 105-55.

The Cavs started the game ice cold, missing their first 18 shots and shot 22 percent on the night, while the Bucs made 18 threes and shot 53 percent. Seemingly, every Buccaneer had a hand in this game, as nine Bucs made at least one three-pointer, and Jaden Seymour (Charlotte, N.C.) had four of his own while leading all Bucs in scoring with 17.

Photo of Jaden Seymour during game against UV Wise. (Kellsie Hicks/East Tennessean)

The Bucs had a 33-5 lead before the Cavs made a field goal and took a 54-19 lead into the half. While there were not many bright spots for the Cavs, they shot 25-29 from the foul line, and sophomore Patrick Shelley had 16 points on 4-for-7 shooting from the floor.

ETSU has seven transfers this year, and Karon Boyd (Concord, N.C.) is one of them. He comes to ETSU after spending last season at USC Aiken, where he averaged 11.2 points and 5.6 rebounds all as a freshman. He chipped in 10 points, seven rebounds and four assists in his impressive Buccaneer debut.

Photo of Karon Boyd during the exhibition match against UV Wise. (Kellsie Hicks/East Tennessean)

Justice Smith (Lyons, N.Y.) was ETSU’s second-leading scorer with 15 of his own, along with a team-high six assists. Smith started in 14 games last year and played in all 32. He averaged 7.4 points and grabbed 3.5 rebounds a game.

Three freshmen saw playing time for the Bucs in this match, and Maki Johnson (Huntington, W. Va.) led the way for them with eight points. Johnson was ranked as the No. 34 shooting guard nationally and the No. 1 player in the state of West Virginia.

With a scoring masterpiece such as this, ETSU could not have asked for a better exhibition performance to set the tone for this promising season. They will open the official season on Nov. 6 against King University inside Freedom Hall.