Wildcats Welcome ETSU Back to Belk Arena
11/15/2024 3:32:00 PM | Men's Basketball
DAVIDSON WILDCATS (2-0, 0-0 A-10) vs. EAST TENNESSEE STATE BUCS (2-1, 0-0 SOCON)
SERIES HISTORY
Series Record: Davidson leads, 26-19
First Meeting: Dec. 29, 1960 | ETSU won 83-71
Last Meeting: Nov. 17, 2023 | ETSU won 70-68
Davidson Record at Home: 14-7
Davidson Record on Road: 10-10
Davidson Record at Neutral Site: 2-2
Matt McKillop's Record: 0-1
WILDCAT SCRATCHES
• The Wildcats tipped off the 2024-25 campaign with wins against William Peace and Bowling Green.
• Davidson downed the Pacers 88-47 on opening night, before going on the road to pick up a 91-85 win over the Falcons.
• Last Friday's win marked head coach Matt McKillop's third non-conference victory from the state of Ohio and his third-straight 2-0 start to a season.
• Davidson's big three of Connor Kochera, Reed Bailey and Bobby Durkin are averaging 21, 17.5 and 17.5 points per game, respectively, through the first two games of the season. Durkin, a sophomore who started 16 games a season ago, dropped the first 20-point performance of his career against Bowling Green last Friday.
LAST TIME OUT | DAVIDSON 91, BOWLING GREEN 85 | NOV. 8, 2024
• Reed Bailey (24), Connor Kochera (23) and Bobby Durkin (20) each hit the 20-point plateau as Davidson held off Bowling Green, 91-85, in non-conference action on Friday, Nov. 8 at the Stroh Center.
• It's been nine years since three Wildcats scored at least 20 points in a contest – Jack Gibbs (37), Brian Sullivan (22) and Jordan Barham (22) vs. Eastern Washington, 12/9/15.
• Along with matching his career-high, Bailey converted 10 of his 13 free throws and grabbed a team-best 8 boards. Durkin's scoring total was also a personal best.
• Freshman Roberts Blums also finished in double figures for Davidson with 11 points in 23 minutes off the bench.
A FAMILIAR FOE
• In a series that dates back to 1960, the Wildcats lead the all-time saga against ETSU, 26-19.
• Saturday marks the 46th all-time meeting between the two former Southern Conference foes.
• Despite an eight-point lead at halftime, the 'Cats dropped a two-point contest in Johnson City last season, 70-68.
• It was one of 11 contests where Davidson lost by five points or less in the 2023-24 campaign.
• Saturday marks the Bucs' first trip to Davidson since Jan. 26, 2005, while ETSU is looking for its first win at Davidson since Feb. 15, 2003 (87-72).
THE BUCKEYE STATE
• Matt McKillop has picked up a non-conference victory in Ohio in each of his first three seasons as head coach of the Wildcats.
• In his first season at the helm, Davidson erased a 21-point deficit to defeat Wright State 102-97 in overtime after Foster Loyer dropped a career-high 38 points inside the Nutter Center.
• The following year, the 'Cats beat Ohio University 72-69 during the Legends of Basketball Showcase from inside Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
• This season, Davidson defeated Bowling Green 91-85 on the road after dropping 10 3-pointers on the Falcons.
• In addition to those wins, Davidson has historically had good luck on the recruiting trail in Ohio, as Jack Gibbs '17, Peyton Aldridge '18, Brian Sullivan '16, Jordan Barham '16 and Grant Huffman '24 all hailed from the Buckeye State.
• Most recently, the Wildcats signed Devin Brown to their 2025 recruiting class, a guard out of Lewis Center, Ohio. A three-star recruit, Brown was the Ohio Capital Conference Player of the Year as a junior and a 2024 Second Team All-Ohio honoree.
ABOUT THE BUCS
• ETSU enters Saturday's tip with a pair of wins over Tusculum and Newberry, and one four-point loss to Eastern Kentucky (82-78).
• The Bucs, who have yet to defeat an NCAA Division I team this season, are led by Quimari Peterson (16 ppg), Jaden Seymour (15 ppg) and Karon Boyd (11 ppg).
