Hudson Sets Scoring Mark; Chippewas Win

Saturday, January 26

Mount Pleasant, Mich.

1:00 p.m. ET

Central Michigan University

14-5, 5-2MAC

Eastern Michigan

10-8, 3-4MAC

Eastern Michigan

Central Michigan

Photo by: Benjamin Suddendorf

1/26/2019 4:30:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Senior guard stands atop CMU all-time scoring list

By: Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – It wasn't the flashiest bucket of Presley Hudson's career.

But it was almost certainly the most monumental and perhaps the most memorable.

Hudson's jumper from the circle rattled home with under a minute to play in the first quarter on Saturday, making her the all-time leading scorer in Central Michigan women's basketball history as the Chippewas posted a 71-61 Mid-American Conference victory over Eastern Michigan at McGuirk Arena.

Hudson's record-breaking bucket upped her career point total to 2,007 as she took over the top spot from Crystal Bradford, who scored 2,006 points from 2011-15.

The McGuirk crowd of 2,573, well aware of the historic moment, began a prolonged standing ovation as the ball cleared the net and then carried the buzz over when public address announcer Bryan Wieferich announced the Hudson's milestone achievement between the first and second periods.

Hudson finished the day with 21 points, bringing her to 2,023 and counting for her career.

"It's an accomplishment that I wanted to do," Hudson said. "When I came into Central as a freshman it was one of my goals. I've had a lot of past teammates reach out to me with congratulations. It means a lot to me. We've played and grown together a lot over the years. It's just an amazing feeling."

The scoring mark is the latest in a career chockfull of records for the senior guard from Wayland, who this season has become the program's all-time leader in 3-pointers and assists.

Hudson and fellow senior Reyna Frost – who led the Chippewas with 26 points and 14 rebounds on Saturday -- have been the integral components in an unprecedented run of success for the program.

Earlier this season, Frost became the MAC's all-time leading rebounder.

"I'm really proud of Presley," said Frost, who is Hudson's roommate. "To see her grow each year -- she was MAC Freshman of the Year so she was good right from the get-go. But she sees what she needs to improve on every year and gets in the gym and works for that stuff.

"People play different defenses on her, but she still finds ways to get 20, 30 points. We push each other every day to get in the gym and get better."

With Hudson and Frost in the lineup, the Chippewas have won 89 of the 119 games they have played since the pair arrived in Mount Pleasant for the 2015-16 season. The Chippewas are 52-10 in MAC games over that span and have captured three MAC West Division titles, two overall regular-season MAC championships, a MAC Tournament crown, and earned a Sweet Sixteen berth.

"Players come in to college wanting to be (MAC) Freshman of the Year," CMU coach Sue Guevara said. "They come in and want to be on the All-MAC team. They think that they might want the rebounding record, or they want the scoring record, but the work that it takes to put in, that's the key, the work.

"And both of those players are workers. They have put in the time in the summer, they have put in the time when no one is watching and they've been very, very coachable. They do it, and they get after it.

"Those two are future Hall of Famers. And I hope the players that we have on our team, and the players that we hope to have on our team, will come in with the same type of mentality. It is not an entitlement. You want it? We're going to do everything we can to help you get what you want, to get your dream. Whether it's in the classroom or on the court, we're going to help you do it. But you've got to make sure you've got those work boots on."

THE GAME
Hudson's first bucket of the game, a 3-pointer with just over a minute to play in the first quarter, put the Chippewas ahead, 18-16. Her next bucket, the record-breaker, made it 20-16 and the Chippewas never trailed again.

Those two baskets triggered a 16-0 run after which the Chippewas led, 31-16, late in the second quarter.

Eastern (10-8, 3-5) trimmed its deficit to nine, 39-30, early in the third quarter, but Hudson scored on a drive to restore the Chippewa advantage to double digits, 41-30. Eastern never got closer than 10 points the rest of the way.

LEADERS
Frost's 26-point, 14-rebound effort was her 16^th double-double of the season, while freshman Jahari Smith added 10 points and 12 rebounds for her second double-double as a Chippewa.

Danielle Minott scored 21 points to lead Eastern.

KEY NUMBERS
The Chippewas were held to a season-low four 3-pointers (on 18 attempts), but dominated the Eagles on the glass, 48-28.

"The way that we shot the 3-ball tonight, it was imperative that we rebounded the basketball," Guevara said.

WHERE THEY STAND
The Chippewas improved to 14-5, 5-2 and moved back into first place, alone, in the MAC West. CMU entered the day tied with Toledo for the top spot. The Rockets lost at Akron on Saturday, 70-64, in overtime.

"It's a good win for us," Guevara said. "We all know that in this conference, winning at home is huge. It's huge."

NEXT
The Chippewas go to Bowling Green (7-11, 0-7) on Wednesday, Jan. 30 (7 p.m.) and then return to McGuirk Arena on Saturday, Feb. 2 (1 p.m.) to face MAC East-leading Buffalo (14-4, 6-1).