College has tested Quimari Peterson’s confidence.
But the 2021 West Side graduate has rediscovered that self-belief at East Tennessee State and has no intention of letting it slip away again.
“It’s just proving myself right that I belong here,” Peterson said. “I had a lot of doubters.”
After bouncing between programs, Peterson appears to have found a home at ETSU (15-15), where he has been a fixture in the lineup during his first season in the Division I program.
Peterson, who has started all 30 games, is averaging 13.0 points while leading the Buccaneers in assists (112) and steals (51).
“I’m not focused on any single thing or any accolades or anything like that,” he said. “I just want to win, and I’ll do whatever it takes to win.”
First-year ETSU coach Brooks Savage recognizes that and keeps Peterson, who also leads the team in minutes played with 32.3 per game, on the floor as much as possible.
“There are just so many good things to say,” Savage said. “He’s incredibly tough and a selfless teammate, just a guy who doesn’t care about numbers but does everything he can to affect winning.”
It wasn’t easy for Peterson to get to this point. His journey since West Side has featured multiple detours. He spent the 2021-22 season at Indiana State, where he played just 35 minutes over four games.
“It was tough coming in as a freshman and trying to get minutes,” he said. “I had a lot to learn. But I have more experience now.”
Peterson then moved across state lines and played for John A. Logan, a junior college program in Southern Illinois. He started all 35 games last season and averaged 13.5 points as the Volunteers went 33-2 and won the NJCAA Division I championship.
“It was a humbling experience to put my head down and just get to work,” he said. “I feel like I matured there on and off the court, and I got better.”
Near the end of that season, Savage was hired as ETSU’s coach and said he believed he needed a player like Peterson to help build his program.
“We had to have a guard who was going to be able to lead and could also produce on a nightly basis,” Savage said. “He’s been phenomenal. It’s really his first year in Division I. Sometimes, those junior college guys take a little bit longer, but he’s come in and made an instant impact for us.”
When Peterson needs additional consultation, he often texts North Carolina sophomore Jalen Washington, a 2022 West Side graduate who played with Peterson on the semistate runner-up team in 2021.
But basketball is just part of those chats, according to Washington.
“We talk about everything,” he said. “We do talk about basketball with each other or stuff that’s going well and not going well for us. It’s just sharing our experiences and trying to help each other’s situations.”
Peterson said there is constructive criticism in those conversations too. He said he has told Washington to be more aggressive and physical, while Washington has advised Peterson to take more shots.
“Sometimes I get caught up in trying to give my teammates the ball and I don’t think about myself,” Peterson said.
But he does think about the opportunity he has at ETSU.
“I feel like I’m in a good spot,” Peterson said. “But there’s still a ton more to learn and grow — in every aspect.”
Dave Melton is a freelance reporter.
