East Carolina University
Southern Miss
Pirates' Comeback Falls Short Against Southern Miss
January 04, 2012 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 4, 2012
Box Score (as a PDF)| Southern Miss 78, East Carolina 76 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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HATTIESBURG, Miss. - LaShay Page scored 20 points and Darnell Dodson added 17 to push Southern Miss past East Carolina 78-76 in the Conference USA opener for both teams Wednesday night, ending the Pirates five-game winning streak and extending its own to 10 games.
The Golden Eagles (14-2, 1-0) never trailed, but had to fight off a late East Carolina rally sparked by Pirates forward Darrius Morrow, who scored 12 of his game-high 23 points in the second half, setting the school record for most free throws made during a career (632) in the process.
After trailing by 12, 64-52, with 11:21 to play, the Pirates (9-5, 0-1) ran off 12 unanswered points to tie the game for the first time since it began. Paris Roberts-Campbell sank a pair of 3-pointers, Miguel Paul made an uncontested lay-up and Morrow drilled a jumper from the foul line and added a dunk to rattle to the Golden Eagles.
However, the Pirates were never able to take the lead as they turned it over on their next two possessions following missed scoring opportunities by Southern Miss.
The Golden Eagles scored five straight points to go up 69-64 with 4:12 to play. The two teams then exchanged 3-point baskets from Robert Sampson and Neil Watson before Paul drilled his second 3 of the half to bring ECU back within two, 74-72, with 1:20 to play.
Trailing by two with 18 seconds to play, ECU's Roberts-Campbell fouled Watson to send him the free throw for a 1-and-1 opportunity. Watson missed the front end, but Rashard McGill grabbed the offensive rebound and was fouled himself.
McGill then proceed to miss the front-end of his 1-and-1 opportunity, but the Golden Eagles' Torye Pelham pulled down the offensive rebound and passed it out to Watson, who was fouled again and then time made both of his free attempts to push his team out to a four-point lead, 76-72, with 10 seconds left.
Paul, who finished with 19 points and 10 assists, streaked down the court and converted an old-fashion 3-point play with five seconds remaining to bring ECU back within one, before Maurice Bolden made two free throws with just under five ticks left on the clock.
Rather than allowing the Pirates to get off a game-tying 3-pointer, Southern Miss elected to foul Paul at mid-court with 2.8 seconds to play. He made the first free throw, then intentionally missed the second, but Pelham rebounded his second shot and cleared it out as time expired.
