ECU Looks To Get Back On Track At Rice
January 25, 2012 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 25, 2012
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| East Carolina at Rice Jan. 26, 2012 | 8 p.m. ET Houston, Texas (Tudor Fieldhouse) TV: None |
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HOUSTON, Texas - East Carolina travels to Texas for the second time in the span of a week as the Pirates face Rice Thursday night at Tudor Fieldhouse. Tipoff between ECU and the homestanding Owls is slated for 8 p.m.
Looking to record its first win since a 70-64 triumph against Jacksonville Dec. 18, East Carolina wraps up a stretch in which it has played nine of its last 11 away from Minges Coliseum. After the contest with the Owls, the Pirates will play six of their last 10 regular season games in Greenville.
In their most recent outing, the Pirates suffered a 68-44 setback at SMU. Trailing by just five early in the second half, East Carolina went cold from the floor the rest of the way, allowing the Mustangs to take advantage and record their second-straight win.
Junior Britny Edwards paced ECU with 12 points and six rebounds while Bryelle Smith added eight points. SMU shot 46 percent from the floor for the afternoon, limiting the Pirates to 31 percent and enjoying a 39-33 advantage on the glass. The Mustangs also scored 22 points off 20 East Carolina turnovers and poured in 38 points in the paint.
The Pirates' schedule to begin league play has been brutal, as ECU has not played a team that currently resides below fifth place in the standings. Additionally, according warrennolan.com, East Carolina is in possession of the 75th-toughest schedule in the nation - having played Delaware (7), Hampton (52), UTEP (72), UNC Wilmington (82), VCU (92) and Memphis (94) as well as ACC foe North Carolina (116).
Examining the Matchup
- The Owls enter the contest off of a 72-43 home win over Southern Miss (6-13,0-6). The duo of Brianna Hypolite and Jessica Kuster scored 14 and 13 points respectively while Jessica Goswitz and Amenemope McKinney added eight apiece. Rice led 30-21 at the half before out-scoring the Golden Eagles 42-22 in the second stanza.
- Rice is 2-0 at home in league play, having defeated SMU (56-54) and Tulane (67-49). Conversely, the Pirates are 0-3 on the road in conference games - falling at UCF (59-53), Memphis (62-59) and SMU.
- Kuster, last season's Conference USA Freshman of the Year, paces the team with averages of 17 points and 11.3 rebounds per game. She currently ranks first in the league in rebounding and second in scoring. Oddly enough, Kuster has not earned any of the C-USA player of the week awards despite her gaudy numbers.
- East Carolina will have to be careful not to send Rice to the charity stripe too often, as the Owls as shooting a league-best 74 percent from the line. Kuster has knocked down 19 of her 23 attempts to lead the team in that regard.
- Three-point field goals could come at a premium in the contest, as Rice and ECU pace the league in three-point field goal percentage defense at .235 and .241, respectively. However, the teams have combined to make nearly 10 triples per game in conference affairs.
The Series: Rice
East Carolina and Rice meet Thursday for the ninth time in a series that began in 2006. Each team has posted four wins but the Pirates have taken two of the last three and recorded their first-ever Conference USA Tournament title against the Owls in the 2007 championship game. ECU has never won on Rice's home court, dropping all three previous contests.
Free Throws Coming Around
It is no secret the Pirates have struggled at the free throw line for much of the season. However, that may be turning around as of late. Entering the UAB contest, ECU was firing at just 58 percent at the charity stripe. In the last four games, East Carolina has upped its mark to 64 percent.
Finish the Job
East Carolina has had the lead or been tied at halftime in 11 of its 17 contests this season. However, the Pirates have been able to win just five of those games and have dropped five straight.
Mixing it Up
Due to injury and various other reasons, head coach Heather Macy has had to submit four different starting lineups in the last seven games.
Leave Me in, Coach
Junior Britny Edwards played 39 minutes in the contest against UAB. The last time a Pirate recorded that many minutes played in a non-overtime affair was when Allison Spivey stayed in for all 40 at Southern Miss on Feb. 4, 2010.
Guards and Rebounds
Senior guard Bryelle Smith grabbed 10 rebounds in the C-USA opener at UCF, becoming the first backcourt player to reach double figures on the glass since Ashley Clarke corralled 12 at Houston on Feb. 13, 2011.
Conference USA: The 11th Season
East Carolina is in its 11th 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). The Pirates notched their first league tournament title with 79-70 triumph over Rice in the 2007 championship game at the Reynolds Center in Tulsa, Okla.
The Starting 10
It seems like the Pirate bench gets deeper with each passing season and is an extension of the starting five. East Carolina's bench has outscored its opponents' reserves in 85 of the last 111 contests.
When Making 30...
East Carolina converted 47 field goals against St. Andrew's, marking the 29th time since the start of the 2006-07 campaign that the Pirates have made 30 or more baskets in a single game.
Three Me
With four (4) three-point field goals drained at SMU, East Carolina has made at least two triples in 60-straight games.
Up Next for East Carolina
ECU returns home to Minges Coliseum for two league games, the first being a rematch with Memphis on Sunday, Jan. 29 at 2 p.m. The Pirates will look to avenge a 62-59 setback in Bluff City less than two weeks ago.
