Lady Pirates Host UNC Wilmington Thursday
November 18, 2009 | Women's Basketball
Nov. 18, 2009
ECU Women's Basketball Gameday Central
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format
GREENVILLE, N.C. - The East Carolina women's basketball team looks to make it three-straight victories to start the 2009-10 season, entertaining rival UNC Wilmington Thursday at 7 p.m. at Minges Coliseum.
The Lady Pirates are coming off of a 70-59 non-conference win over 2009 Southern Conference champion Western Carolina last Sunday. In the contest, sophomore guard Ashley Clarke enjoyed her second-straight 20-point performance, netting 20 to compliment the 22 she scored against Charlotte on Friday. Sophomore Chareya Smith was the other ECU player to reach double-figures, setting a new career high with 11. She also paced the Lady Pirates on the glass, picking up a personal-high seven rebounds. Additionally, junior Allison Spivey led the team with five steals, a career high, and five assists.
ECU shot the ball well for the second-straight game, making 27 of 56 attempts from the field for a percentage of 48.6 as compared to 41.7 for WCU. The Lady Pirates were also solid from the charity stripe, knocking down 72.7 percent of their tries. East Carolina fared well on the glass, out-rebounding the visitors 37-29 while picking up 10 offensive boards.
Last season, the Lady Pirates rallied for a 68-63 win over the Seahawks at Trask Coliseum, as then senior LaCoya Terry netted 23 points to lead the offense. Additionally, current junior Kim Gay picked up 10 points and six rebounds in the contest.
THE SERIES: UNC WILMINGTON
East Carolina and UNC Wilmington meet today for the 48th time in a series that dates back to 1978. The Lady PIrates hold a 28-19 advantage and have won five of the last seven meetings. However, the Seahawks have taken three of the last four affairs with three of those contests occurring in Wilmington at Trask Coliseum. ECU was a charter member of the Colonial Athletic Association and played UNCW 34 times while the two schools were conference mates.
EAST CAROLINA AGAINST THE CAA
East Carolina holds an all-time mark of 132-132 (.500) against the current members of the Colonial Athletic Association. The Lady Pirates have squared off against Drexel (1-0), George Mason (24-21), Georgia State (1-0), Hofstra (1-0), James Madison (26-29), Northeastern (1-0), Old Dominion (8-42), VCU (11-10), William and Mary (31-11) and UNC Wilmington (28-19). The Lady Pirates will face off against Towson at the Lady Pirate Invitational later this season and host VCU Dec. 2.
LADY PIRATES VERSUS THEIR FELLOW TAR HEELS
ECU owns a 208-143 (.593) ledger when facing other squads from North Carolina. The Lady Pirates have taken on Appalachian State (28-10), Barton (9-1), Campbell (31-6), Charlotte (8-22), Chowan (4-0), Davidson (1-2), Duke (9-6), Elon (6-2), Fayetteville State (3-1), Gardner-Webb (4-0), High Point (9-4), Meredith (2-0), North Carolina (11-16), UNC Asheville (2-0), UNC Greensboro (16-5), UNC Pembroke (2-0), UNC Wilmington (28-19), North Carolina A&T (10-5), NC Central (5-0), N.C. State (6-32), Wake Forest (6-3) and Western Carolina (8-9).
JUST AS GOOD, AND BETTER
The Lady Pirates have scored 154 points in their first two games for the second-straight season. However, they have produced a larger margin of victory and, like last campaign, are shooting the ball at greater than a .450 efficiency.
IT'S BEEN A WHILE
East Carolina has started the season with two wins in consecutive seasons for the first time since the 1990-91 and 1991-92 campaigns. In fact, it has only occurred four times in program history. Interestingly, the Lady Pirates ran off four-straight years of winning their first two games in the first four seasons of the program's existence.
FIRST TO 30...FIELD GOALS
East Carolina converted 31 field goals versus the 49ers, marking the 14th time since the start of the 2006-07 campaign that the Lady Pirates have accomplished the feat. In those contests, ECU has amassed a record of 12-2.
NICE NON-CONFERENCE NOTE East Carolina has always regarded non-conference games as a chance to get better before heading into the rigors of C-USA play. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that the Lady Pirates have recently excelled in those affairs. In its last 15 non-league games, ECU has produced a record of 11-4 (.733). The four losses, to VCU, North Carolina A&T, Virigina and Marist, all occurred during the 2008-09 season and all four teams qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
TWO FOR 20
In the season opener against Charlotte, Ashley Clarke (22) and Allison Spivey (25) both reached the 20-point mark, the first time it has happened for ECU since Jasmine Young and LaCoya Terry lit up Marshall for 20 and 22 points Jan. 18, 2009.
BENCH IS NOT BAD
It seems like the Lady Pirate bench gets deeper with each passing season and is an extension of the starting five. There is some truth to that statement, as East Carolina's bench has outscored its opponents' benches in 27 of its last 33 games.
FIRING AT 50
The Lady Pirates are off to another great shooting start, firing at a 46.8 clip in their first two contests. ECU has also shot at 50 percent or above in two of four halves - the second half against Charlotte and the first period vs. Western Carolina.
