Pirates Look To End Slide Against UTEP
February 22, 2011 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 22, 2011
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| THE MATCHUP |
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| Category | East Carolina | UTEP | |
| W-L | 13-13, 5-7 | 20-7, 8-4 | |
| Avg. Points | 68.3 | 70.9 | |
| Avg. Points Allowed | 67.1 | 63.3 | |
| Rebound Margin | -2.2 | -2.0 | |
| Field Goal Percentage | .432 | .463 | |
| FG Percent Defense | .433 | .402 | |
| 3-Point Percentage | .349 | .361 | |
| Free Throw Percentage | .688 | .680 | |
| Turnover Margin | -0.3 | +1.8 | |
| TEAM STAT LEADERS |
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| Points | J. Sherrod- 15.0 | R. Culpepper - 19.5 | |
| Rebounds | D. Morrow - 5.3 | J. Stone - 7.3 | |
| Assists | B. Young - 4.3 | J. Stone - 5.3 | |
| Blocks | D. Morales - 0.9 | J. Bohannon - 1.0 | |
| Steals | R. Culpepper - 2.1 | C. Gaines - 1.5 | |
The schedule makers didn't do East Carolina any favors on the back end of the slate, lining up the top teams in Conference USA in front of the Pirates during the final weeks of the season.
Three of the Pirates' next four opponents are all tied for first-place in the loss column. The first of which is Wednesday night when they host UTEP, who will be playing its third game in five days.
The Miners (20-7, 8-4) had their 15-game homecourt winning streak snapped by UCF on Monday, 74-68 after defeating Houston 76-64 Saturday.
East Carolina (13-13, 5-7), which hasn't been under .500 all season, enters the match-up hoping to end a three-game losing streak and go back above the .500 mark.
One of the reasons for the Pirates' recent struggles has been their inability to make shots. ECU has made less than 50 percent of its field goal attempts in seven straight games and has shot under 40 percent in five of its last six games.
"Our shooting has left us," ECU coach Jeff Lebo said. "The game is basketball, so you've got to put the ball in the basket. We keep saying as coaches that this will be the game that we'll break out of it, so maybe this will be the game that we break out of that shooting slump."
In order to break out of their shooting slump, the Pirates' may have to look no further than sophomore Erin Straughn, who scored a career-high 18 points against UTEP last season. Straughn went 7-of-10 from the floor against the Miners and knocked down four 3s.
He sank a trio of 3-pointers during the Pirates' last home game against Marshall and is shooting 36.6 percent from behind the arc this season.
But if the Pirates are really to break out of their slump, Jamar Abrams and Jontae Sherrod will have to catch fire. The duo has combined for 56 3-pointers at home this season, shooting a combined 40.6 percent from 3-point range.
East Carolina will also have to contain UTEP senior Randy Culpepper, who torched the Pirates for 45 points last season, if they are to be victorious. Culpepper has been the league's top scorer since conference play began, averaging 21.1 ppg.
The Miners rank second in Conference USA in field goal percentage (.463) and field goal percentage defense (.402) and feature the league's top scoring defense the last 12 games, allowing just 63.2 ppg in conference play.
UTEP has won the last three meetings in the five-game series and hold a 4-1 overall advantage over ECU.
The Pirates picked up their lone win over the Miners in the final game of the 2007 regular season as senior Courtney Captain scored 29 points, making the game-winning 3-pointer with 8.3 seconds left for a 79-78 win.
