Three Takeaways From Virginia Tech Women's Basketball's 73-55 Win Vs ETSU

Josh Poslusny breaks down three takeaways from Virginia Tech's dominant win against ETSU. Read more below.

Virginia Tech Athletics

Virginia Tech Women's Basketball invited ETSU to Cassell Colliseum and walked out with a dominant win in every facet of the game. The team shot a solid 40.6% from the field, including a 35.7% mark from beyond the arc.

Sunday funday! 🤩 pic.twitter.com/51UPKijn8b

— Virginia Tech Women's Basketball (@HokiesWBB) December 14, 2025

Carys Baker led the team in scoring with 22 points and a team-high eight rebounds. There are a slew of things to take away from this matchup, so let's get into it.

No. 1: Aniya Trent is on the path to becoming a star

Aniya Trent didn't show up a ton on the eye test, scoring zero points on just 0-for-1 shooting, but she had an absolutely elite game as a true freshman, hauling in seven rebounds while blocking two shots and dishing out three assists on the evening.

The true freshman has slowly made a bigger impact, playing at least 13 minutes in each of the last three games, during which the Hokies are 3-1, with their only loss to ACC foe Duke.

We've seen some incredible development from Trent over the last few weeks, averaging 4 rebounds per game in her last 4 games since she's seen that uptick in minutes. She is on the perfect path to being a big-time impact player for Virginia Tech, and this is just the beginning.

No. 2: This team plays elite defense

Over the last few weeks, Virginia Tech has shown itself to be one of the ACC's elite defenses, holding 11 of its 12 opponents to under 70 points and placing fourth in the ACC in opponent field goal percentage. 

They're not only overall good from the field, either. They have the ACC's sixth-best scoring defense while allowing opponents to connect on just 31.5% of their shots from three-point range.   They also sit second in the conference in turnovers forced per game.

With that elite defense, they have shown a great ability to rebound and prevent opponents from offensive rebounds, allowing just 9.9 offensive rebounds to their own 14.6, giving them significantly more second-chance opportunities than their opponents.

Coming into the game, Virginia Tech was averaging 41 rebounds per game, good for 72nd in the country. Their average rebounding margin also sits in the same place nationally. While 72nd might not sound great, they are both good for the top half of the conference. The team has done a great job of keeping themselves in a lot of difficult games by using size and strength to box out opponents and out-rebound them.

No. 3: The offense depends on runs

This offense has struggled throughout the season when it can't get out on big runs. Today, they had two dominant quarters in the second and third quarters, fueled by huge runs, allowing Virginia Tech to pull away.

In games the Hokies have lost, it's been a consistent pattern: Virginia Tech has been unable to get out on big runs to either pull away or stay in the game. Take the trip to James Madison, for example, where their biggest run was an 8-0 run towards the start of the fourth quarter.

Living and dying by the run can both be a blessing and a curse. It can lead to big wins and big losses. At the same time, it can put you in situations where you are forced to play down to a weaker opponent while simultaneously allowing you to play up to stronger competition.