Lady Pirates Host Marshall In C-USA Opener
January 04, 2010 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 4, 2010
ECU Women's Basketball Gameday Central
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format
GREENVILLE, N.C. - The East Carolina women's basketball team begins 2010 and its ninth season of Conference USA play Monday, hosting Marshall at 7 p.m. at Minges Coliseum. The contest is slated for a live broadcast by CBS College Sports and WITN-TV with Ann Schatz handling play-by-play duties and LaChina Robinson providing color commentary.
The game is part of the 2010 East Carolina Basket Bowl, sponsored in part by the Food Bank of Eastern North Carolina. Fans can donate two non-perishables at the gate and receive free admission. Additionally, the Harlem Hoopsters will perform at halftime and 2010 Liberty Bowl merchandise will be awarded.
The Lady Pirates are coming off of an 86-82 win over Binghamton in the final game of the Fordham Holiday Classic last Tuesday at Rose Hill Gymnasium in Bronx, N.Y. The win secured the best non-conference mark in program history at 11-2, surpassing the 11-3 ledger set by the 1985-86 squad.
Crystal Wilson netted a career-high 20 points while almost completing a double-double with eight rebounds. Additionally, Kim Gay notched 13 points to go along with nine boards while Allison Spivey and Ashley Clarke scored 10 points each.
East Carolina shot 51.7 percent for the game, converting more than 30 (31) field goals for the 19th time since the start of the 2006-07 season. Binghamton also shot well, hitting 42.6 percent. The Lady Pirates had the distinct advantage on the glass, picking up 44 rebounds as compared to 30 for the Bearcats. Additionally, ECU dominated the paint, outscoring Binghamton 47-24, while assists were even at 16.
The Lady Pirates currently hold the top offense in C-USA, scoring 74 points per game, as well as the best shooting percentage at .473. Six players are averaging seven or more points per contest, led by Clarke who is putting in 13.1 points a game.
Marshall enters the contest with an 8-4 record, having won six-straight games. The Herd most recently defeated Radford at home this past Sunday, winning a 70-66 decision. Tynikki Crook paces Marshall in both points (14.3/game) and rebounding (7.7/game).
THE SERIES: MARSHALL
Today's contest marks the 12th all-time meeting between East Carolina and Marshall. The Herd owns a 6-5 advantage in the series, but the Lady Pirates have won two of the last three. ECU is 4-1 against Marshall at Minges Coliseum, but is just 1-5 at the Cam Henderson Center in Huntington.
HOME IS WHERE THE WINS ARE
East Carolina sports a 274-160 (.631) record inside Minges Coliseum since the arena opened in 1975. Last season, the squad went 12-2 (.857) at home, matching the second-most single-season home wins in program history. The Lady Pirates are 298-163 (.646) when playing in Greenville, spending their first six seasons at an on-campus alternate site while Minges was erected. ECU has been equally effective on its home court under Baldwin-Tener, having accumulated a 67-34 (.663) mark, including a 32-21 (.604) ledger against C-USA competition.
NOT IN MINGES The Lady Pirates are known for getting it done at Minges Coliseum, having won 18 of their last 20 games at the facility. After leading Conference USA in attendance last season and ranking 86th nationally with an average crowd of 1,602, East Carolina has brought in a total of 10,219 fans through the turnstiles in its first six appearances.
2010 CONFERENCE USA CHAMPIONSHIP
The 2010 edition of the league tournament is scheduled for March 8-12 at the Reynolds Center in Tulsa, Okla. All 12 conference squads will compete in the event, with the winner taking the league's automatic bid to the 2010 NCAA Tournament. Last season, No. 5 seed UCF won four games in four days, defeating No. 3 Southern Miss in overtime at Fogelman Arena in New Orleans, La. to qualify for its third NCAA appearance. The Knights later fell to No. 5 seed North Carolina at Chattanooga, Tenn. in the national event's first round.
INITIALIZE CONFERENCE USA SEQUENCE
ECU owns a 5-3 record in Conference USA openers, dating back to its first season in the league (2001-02). The Lady PIrates won their first-ever C-USA tilt Jan. 6, 2002 when they defeated Charlotte in Minges Coliseum, 62-57. Additionally, East Carolina has faced off against Marshall the last four seasons to open conference play, splitting those games with two wins in Greenville and two losses in Huntington.
OTHERS TAKING NOTE
Lady Pirate fans are not the only people taking note of the team's play so far this season. In the seventh ESPN/USA Today Top 25 poll, East Carolina received six votes. The squad has now received votes for four consecutive weeks. It also marks the second-straight campaign in which the Lady Pirates have appeared on the list. ECU garnered as many as six votes during the 2008-09 season.
RELENTLESS REBOUNDING
ECU is off to another good start rebounding the basketball, currently owning a +6.8 margin. Additonally, the Lady Pirates are averaging 13.7 offensive rebounds per contest, picking up 20 against Charlotte in the
season opener and the same amount at Gardner-Webb Dec. 5.
FIRST TO 30...FIELD GOALS
East Carolina converted 31 field goals against Binghamton, marking the 19th time since the start of the 2006-07 campaign that the Lady Pirates have accomplished the feat. ECU has turned the trick six times already this season.
FIRING AT 50
The Lady Pirates are off to another great shooting start, firing at a .473 clip in 13 contests. ECU has shot 50 percent or above in six games, including a .615 clip against Houston-Baptist.
