Embry-Riddle women's basketball keeps rolling despite losing second-leading scorer
DAYTONA BEACH — Embry-Riddle's women's basketball team prepared a mission statement prior to the start of the 2023-24 season, listing all of its long-term goals: producing a winning record, challenging at the top of the Sunshine State Conference and qualifying for the NCAA tournament.
Yet, when Lisa Wilson asked the Eagles which game is their most important, the players replied in unison and with a much shorter-term focus.
"The next one."
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That ability to regroup and quickly turn the page has paid dividends during the heart of conference play. ERAU has won eight of its last nine games, improving its record to 16-4 overall and 10-3 within the league Wednesday night by fending off Florida Southern for a 61-59 victory at the ICI Center.
Of those eight victories, four have come by two-point margins. The lone loss in between was a home defeat to No. 13 Tampa.
On Wednesday, Embry-Riddle strung together a crucial 7-0 scoring run late in the fourth quarter to reclaim the lead. The Eagles defended from a half-court set in the final 10 seconds, forcing a missed jumper by Domenica Zamora, and 6-foot-3 junior forward Amou Ring checked in off the bench to alter the Moccasins' final inbounds pass and prevent a potential game-tying shot attempt.
"This team is really coachable, and they are going out and executing the things we tell them to do," Wilson said. "I can draw these plays and come up with great schemes at the end (of the game), but the players have to make the plays. And we've had some kids do that, whether it's defensively or offensively, down the stretch."
Perhaps the most impressive aspect of ERAU's midseason surge is the fact it has done so without its second-leading scorer available. Senior guard Keturah Balabyekkubo suffered a season-ending Achilles tendon tear in the Eagles' 65-51 vicotry over Lynn on Jan. 6.
Prior to the injury, Balabyekkubo averaged 10.9 points per game, shot a team-best 58.9% from the field, and led the team in rebounding (5.3 per game).
"She was having a phenomenal year," Wilson said. "She's one of the players who is the heart of our team. That hurt us, and I think it's part of why some of our games have been really close lately. We're finding a way to win without her."
Madyson Jean-Louis generates the bulk of the Eagles' offense, scoring 16.5 points per game, shooting 48.3% from behind the 3-point line and drawing defensive attention away from others. Freshman guard Kyra Haan has started each of ERAU's last eight games, and is one of four players — along with Laurie Satchell, Mary Lengemann and Jenna Teterycz — averaging between 7.1 and 7.5 points per game.
"I know it's stressful coming in and playing as a freshman," said sophomore guard Kailey Turpening, Wednesday's top scorer with 10 points. "There is a lot of pressure, and I am really proud of her putting it behind her. I told her as soon as (Balabyekkubo) got hurt that it's the same as high school, just starting a basketball game. She's really taken that to heart.
"She doesn't care about how many points she scores, or how many assists she has, or rebounds. She's not caring about the stats, just about the team. And I feel like that's the exact mindset you should have."
ERAU's next game is, indeed, an important one. Nova Southeastern, sitting atop the Sunshine State Conference with a 13-1 league record, visits the Eagles at 4 p.m. Saturday. Nova defeated ERAU 80-71 at the end of December as the Eagles fell into a 16-point halftime hole.
"We want to peak at the right time," Wilson said. "We have to keep getting better at something every game. That's our goal.
"We're not looking ahead as far as the conference tournament, it's just the next game. We're staying with blinders on like a race horse."
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Women's college basketball: Embry-Riddle peaking despite injury blow
