Pirates Head To Southern Miss Sunday
January 21, 2011 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 21, 2011
Gametracker | Watch Live! | Game Notes in PDF Format 
East Carolina Women's Basketball Gameday Central
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Time: 3:00 p.m. ET • Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011
Location: Reed Green Coliseum (8,095) • Hattiesburg, Miss.
Series History: Southern Miss leads, 9-6
Last Time Against Southern Miss: W, 102-64 at 2010 C-USA Tournament (3/8/10)
HATTIESBURG, Miss. - The East Carolina women's basketball team heads on the road again Sunday Jan. 23, traveling to Hattiesburg, Miss. for a 3 p.m. contest against Southern Miss at Reed Green Coliseum. The Pirates will try to snap a two-game skid at the venue but have won four of the seven meetings there.
ECU snapped a four-game skid, which included three conference contests, with a 66-55 victory over Rice last Sunday at Minges Coliseum.
Jean Best was a force down low in the contest, scoring a season-high 17 points and hitting 6 of her 8 shots from the field as well as five of six at the free throw line. Chareya Smith and Kim Gay also reached double figures, putting in 12 and 11 respectively. On the glass, Best grabbed a season-high nine rebounds and was matched by classmate Crystal Wilson who added six points and a steal.
With a triple in the contest, senior Allison Spivey is now just six away from taking over sole possession of first place on the program career ledger. She currently owns 172. Spivey also scored seven points, moving her career total to 916.
ECU drained 25 of their 58 attempts from the field to finish with a 43.1-percent shooting mark while limiting Rice to just 29.7 percent (19-of-64). The Pirates also won the rebounding battle for the second-straight contest, grabbing 47 as compared to 36 for Rice. Additionally, for the second time this season, East Carolina shot more free throws than its opponent as the Pirates nailed 13 out of 18 against the Owls' 11 of 14 showing.
It was a spirited defensive effort for the Pirates, as they held Rice to 55 points and just 14 free throw attempts. Comparatively, East Carolina had allowed an average of 82.3 points and 41.3 free throw attempts in its first three league contests.
East Carolina defeated the Golden Eagles twice last season - in Greenville and in the first round of the Conference USA Tournament.
ABOUT US...
The Pirates are 7-10 overall entering the contest as well as 1-3 in C-USA action. Junior Jean Best led the team in scoring for the first time this season against Rice, netting 17 points in a 66-55 win at Minges Coliseum. She, along with Crystal Wilson, pulled down a team-high nine rebounds. After 66 against the Owls, ECU still resides near the top of the league in scoring offense with 73.8 points per game, but gives up almost as many at 73.1 a contest. The Pirates have improved their rebounding margin as of late, trimming a mark which was once seven into the negative to a -2.7. In league play, free throw shooting has been a bright spot, as East Carolina has hit 66 of its 87 attempts for a C-USA-best 75.9 percentage. Additionally, as the Pirates head to Southern Miss, they sport a 3-3 road record (0-2 C-USA).
ABOUT THEM...
Southern Miss enters the game at 7-11 overall and 2-3 in C-USA play after a stunning 86-81 overtime win at Tulane (15-3, 4-1), which was riding an eight-game winning streak. Freshman Jamierra Faulkner nearly produced a triple-double, scoring 24 points and dishing out 11 assists while grabbing nine rebounds. Three Golden Eagles are scoring in double figures, led by Rachel Vigers at 16.5 points per game. Tanesha Washington and Faulkner join her at 12.8 and 11.5, respectively. Washington also posts a team-best 8.7 rebounds per game. Southern Miss averages 61.7 points scored a contest and allows its opponents to score at a 70.1 clip. The Golden Eagles also shoot the ball at 39 percent from the field and 22 percent from beyond the arc.
THE LAST MEETING (March 8, 2010)...
Freshman guard Shala Hodges netted a career-high 17 points and led five players in double figures to guide the fifth-seeded East Carolina women's basketball team to a 102-64 win over No. 12 seed Southern Miss in the first round of the 2010 GMC Sierra Conference USA Women's Basketball Championship. The Pirates set a single-game C-USA Tournament record for points with the outburst while also matching the standard for assists with 24 and producing a second-best field goal percentage of 58.9. Hodges was 6-for-7 from the field and 3-for-3 from beyond the arc.
THE SERIES: SOUTHERN MISS...
Today's contest marks the 16th in a series that began in 2002, East Carolina's first season as a member of Conference USA. The Pirates have a 9-6 lead and have won six of the last eight meetings but have lost the last two in Hattiesburg.
FREE THROWS DO INDEED WIN BALLGAMES...
In seven of the last nine games, ECU has hit over 70 percent of its free throw attempts. The Pirates put up a season-best 94-percent performance at Tulane, knocking down 16 of 17 from the charity stripe.
AMONG THE NATIONAL ELITE...
In the latest release of the national rankings, ECU finds itself among the top 70 in a few categories. The Pirates are 30th in steals per game, 32nd in scoring offense and 64th in turnover margin. Individually, Ashley Clarke is 26th in steals per game.
GETTING ON THE GLASS...
In the last two games, ECU has out-rebounded its opponent by an average of 10 (90-70) and have picked up four more offensive rebounds overall. In the three prior contests, opponents enjoyed a +9.7 margin - including five more offensive boards.
PIRATES ROLL DEEP...
ECU is currently on a 16-game streak in which at least one player off the bench has scored in double figures. In fact, in the contests against UNC Wilmington, Virginia Union, Prarie View A&M, Memphis and Rice, two players that did not start netted at least 10 points.
ECU BENEFITS FROM JEAN'S BEST...
Jean Best has scored in double figures four times this season. In those games, the Pirates hold a 2-2 record with the two losses against No. 8 UCLA and at Tulane. Best was the team's leading scorer for the first time this season when she netted 17 in the win over Rice.
ON THEIR WAY TO SEE THE PIRATES PLAY...
East Carolina is on track to lead Conference USA in attendance for the third-straight season, having drawn an average of 1,825 fans to Minges Coliseum. In the latest release of the national attendance figures, the Pirates check in at 74th, ahead of teams such as Oregon, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Missouri and Syracuse.
LOADING UP ON FREEBIES...
ECU has committed 422 personal fouls this season, leading to a staggering 535 free throw attempts for the opposition. Pirate foes are averaging 31 tries per game. In the conference opener at UTEP, the Miners went to the line 54 times and made 40 shots. Those marks were Miner school records while tying the C-USA single-game mark. In the first two league contests, UTEP and Memphis were awarded 97 free throw attempts.
CONFERENCE USA: THE 10TH SEASON...
East Carolina is in its 10th year as a basketball member of C-USA. Starting in 2001, the Pirates became eligible to compete for the league title after contributing 17 years as a constituent of the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). Four years ago, ECU finished third in the regular season standings, its highest ranking since joining the conference. The Pirates also notched their first league tournament title with 79-70 triumph over Rice in the 2007 championship game at the Reynolds Center in Tulsa, Okla.
SUCCESS CLOSER TO HOME...
Since Conference USA split into East and West divisions before the 2005-06 campaign, ECU has fared much better against its eastern neighbors. In five seasons, the Pirates have recorded a 42-28 (.600) mark against the eastern members while producing a 17-31 (.354) ledger vs. the western side.
ANYONE, ANYTIME, ANYWHERE...
The Pirates have taken on some of the nation's best this season. According to realtimerpi.com, ECU's slate is ranked as the 29th-toughest in the country. Among the teams the Pirates have faced are Maryland (13), UCLA (14), Charlotte (60) and UNC Wilmington (72). East Carolina also suffered close losses to Hampton (110) and American (116).
SLOW STARTERS...
In eight of its last ten contests, East Carolina has scored more points in the second half than the first. Overall, the second period has been more productive as the Pirates have netted 675 as compared to 579 in the first stanza. In terms of shooting, the Pirates have also fared much better in the second half of games, producing a higher percentage than in the first period in 10 of 17 contests - including six of the last eight - starting against UCLA in Hawai'i.
YOU'LL GET TO PLAY...
It seems like the 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 65 of the last 81 games and 14 of 17 this year.
SHARING IS CARING...
The Pirates recorded 28 assists on 36 made field goals against Massachusetts. It was just seven shy of the school record and the most since ECU tallied the same number against Houston-Baptist last season. Additionally, the Pirates turned the ball over just nine times for a stellar assist/turnover ratio of 3.1. The nine miscues were the fewest since Nov. 25, 2005 when East Carolina also recorded nine in a 71-68 overtime victory over Ohio University.
THREE ME...
In hitting 12 three-point field goals against Virginia Union, the Pirates established a new program single-game record. However, just six days later, ECU did one better with 13 vs. Massachusetts then did it again against Florida A&M in Iowa. With one triple vs. Rice, senior Allison Spivey remained second on the program career chart and is now six away from sole possession of first-place.
THE GOOD KIND OF OFFENSIVE...
ECU owns the top two offensive outputs among C-USA teams this season with 102 points against Virginia Union and 97 vs. Massachusetts. The Pirates also boast one of the two highest single-game assist totals - 28 against the Minutewomen.
THE PATH TO 600...
East Carolina is just six wins away from recording its 600th victory in program history.
SIGNED AND SEALED...
The Pirates have signed two top 65 position recruits in Courtney Melvin and Ja'Nesha Ebron as well as the No. 102 ranked forward from Columbus, Ohio, Tatiana Chapple. Melvin was ranked the No. 31 post player in the nation by ESPN HoopGurlz while Ebron was tabbed No. 61 among guards by the same website. Both signees have North Carolina state championship game experience, as Melvin has led East Bladen High School to the last two title games (1A and 2A) and Ebron helped South Central to a 3A championship appearance. Current assistant coach Ann Hancock holds the scoring record at East Bladen with 2,276 but Melvin started the season just 547 points away from tying Hancock.
UP NEXT FOR THE PIRATES...
Two home games await ECU next week as east division foes UAB and UCF travel to Minges Coliseum. The Pirates and Blazers will face off Thursday at 7 p.m. while East Carolina will take on the Knights at 1 p.m. Sunday.
