East Carolina Welcomes Louisiana Tech on Alumni Day
January 17, 2014 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 17, 2014
| Game 17: Louisiana Tech at East Carolina | |
| Date | Saturday, January 18 |
| Time | 5:00 p.m. (ET) |
| Location | Greenville, N.C. | Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum |
| Live Game Coverage | Gametracker (Live Stats) | Live Video |
| Game Notes | East Carolina  | Louisiana Tech |
| 2013-14 Women's Basketball Statistics | East Carolina | Louisiana Tech |
| ECU Women's Basketball Central | Gameday Central | Roster | Fact Book |
The Game
The East Carolina women's basketball team welcomes Louisiana Tech to Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum on Saturday, January 18. Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. The Pirates will also be celebrating alumni and letterwinners day as more than 50 ECU women's basketball alumnae will make their return to Greenville.
The Series
The Pirates and the Lady Techsters will meet for the first time in program history on Saturday. Louisiana Tech joined Conference USA on July 1, 2013 from the Western Athletic Conference.
Last Time Out
East Carolina won a 69-65 battle at Tulane on Wednesday evening after Shae Nelson made a crucial three-pointer with 31 seconds left in the game. Nelson finished the contest shooting 50-percent from both the field and beyond the arc. Abria Trice led ECU offensively with a game-high 29 points to go along with six rebounds, four assists, two blocks and one steal. Jada Payne recorded her fifth double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 boards while adding a team-best five assists and two steals. Kristine Mial contributed 13 points to round out ECU's double-figure scorers. ECU out-rebounded Tulane 42-32 and held the edge in assists, 18-14. Tulane, however, out-shot the Pirates 42.3-percent to ECU's 41.4 field goal percentage. The game was a battle from the start as the conference rivals traded leads 21 times and fought through 13 ties in 40 minutes of action. After fighting each other to a 33-33 tie at halftime, the Pirates started the second half rattling off six consecutive points to take a 39-33 lead in the first three minutes of the frame to mark the largest ECU lead of the contest. Tulane chipped away at the Pirates' lead and the game returned to the back and forth affair that began at tip-off. Tulane managed to cut ECU's lead to one (62-61) with 49 seconds left to play. As Tulane put the pressure on, Nelson came through for the Pirates as she drained a three-pointer with 31 seconds remaining to make it a two-possession game (65-61). Tulane refused to quit and cut the Pirates' lead back down to two (67-65) with just nine seconds left on the clock, but Nelson tallied a layup with just six seconds left to play to give ECU the four-point (69-65) victory.
About the Pirates
East Carolina has won six of its last seven games to compile a 14-2 overall record and a 2-1 Conference USA mark to rank second in league standings. As a team, ECU is shooting 41.5-percent from the field which ranks sixth in Conference USA. The Pirates are outscoring their opponents 74.9 points per game to 59.8 for a scoring margin of +15.1 which is good for third in the league and 25th in the nation. East Carolina owns the advantage in rebounding as the Pirates average 43.2 boards per game, while limiting their counterparts to a conference-leading 35.2 for a rebounding margin of +8.1 which also leads C-USA and ranks 27th in the NCAA. The Pirates also lead the conference in blocks per game (5.4) and steals per contest (11.8). Those marks are also good for 17th and eighth, respectively, in the NCAA. Redshirt sophomore forward Jada Payne is the team's leading scorer as she averages 20.6 points per game which is good for third in the league and 30th in the nation. Payne also leads the Pirates in rebounding with an average of 7.6 boards per game to rank 10th in C-USA. The Hickory, N.C., native owns a three-point field goal percentage of 43.0 which ranks her 35th in the NCAA and third in the conference. Redshirt junior guard Abria Trice is ECU's second leading scorer with 17.7 points per game which is good for seventh in the league. She also contributes 4.2 rebounds per game, a team-best 29 steals, 22 assists and 12 blocks. Redshirt junior post Ondrea Shaw has been key on defense for East Carolina as she leads the team and conference with 3.1 blocks per game. Her blocks per game average is also good for 12th in the nation. Shaw is second on the team with 6.7 rebounds per game, which ranks in the Top-20 in C-USA, while adding 2.6 points per game and 14 steals.
Scouting the Lady Techsters
Louisiana Tech comes into the game at East Carolina with a 5-11 overall record. The Lady Techsters are looking for their first Conference USA win as they are 0-3 in league action. LA Tech is on a four-game losing streak after having dropped contests to Texas A&M (80-52), Southern Miss (67-56), Middle Tennessee (68-51), and Rice (82-68). The Lady Techsters are averaging 63.3 points per game, but have allowed 66.7. As a team, LA Tech is shooting 35.9-percent, while its opponents own a field percentage of 40.4. The Lady Techsters average 41.4 rebounds per game, 13.1 assists per game, 17.9 turnovers per game, 7.3 steals per game and 2.3 blocks per game. LA Tech has four double-figure scorers in Whitney Frazier (15.6 points per game), Chrisstasia Walter (13.4 points per game), JaQuan Jackson (11.6 points per game) and Lulu Perry (10.1 points per game). Frazier is also the squad's leading rebounder as she averages 9.8 boards per game to go along with 29 assists, 16 steals and two blocks. Walter leads the Lady Techsters with 86 assists to average 5.7 per game which ranks third in C-USA. She also owns a team-best 48 steals to average 3.2 per game to lead the conference.
Home Sweet Home
Last season, ECU closed out the year with an impressive 14-1 record while playing at Minges Coliseum. After starting the 2013-14 season with a 8-0 record in Greenville, the Pirates have extended their home winning streak to 21 games. East Carolina has not lost a home match in more than a year as the last time the Pirates were defeated inside Minges Coliseum was on November 17, 2012 when they dropped a 72-62 decision to College of Charleston.
In the Nation
In the NCAA's weekly national statistical rankings East Carolina is ranked in the top 50 in nine categories. The Pirates are eighth in the nation in steals per game as they average 11.8. Additionally, ECU is 12th in win-loss percentage (87.5) and 17th in blocks per game (5.4). The Pirates are ranked 25th in scoring margin (+15.1), 27th in rebounding margin (+8.1), 28th in free throw percentage (74.8), 28th in three-point field goal defense (27.2), and 33rd in field goal percent defense (35.6) and 45th in scoring defense (59.8).
Getting Defensive
A defensively strong team, East Carolina has limited its opponents to 59.8 points per game, while averaging 74.9 points per game for a scoring margin of +15.1. The Pirates' scoring margin is third in the conference while their scoring defense ranks second in C-USA. The marks are also ranked 25th and 45th in the NCAA, respectively. Additionally, the Pirates have collected 189 steals to average 11.8 per game to lead the league and rank eighth in the nation. ECU has also forced their counterparts into 342 turnovers to average 21.4 per game for a turnover margin of +2.6 which is good for fifth in the league. The Pirates have also put up 86 blocks to average 5.4 per game which leads the league and ranks 17th in the nation.
Pouring In The Points
The Pirates have a pair of double-figure scorers in redshirt sophomore forward Jada Payne and redshirt junior guard Abria Trice. Payne leads the Pirates with 20.6 points per game, while Trice averages 17.7. Their averages rank third and seventh, respectively, in the conference. As a team, ECU owns a scoring offense of 74.9 to rank fourth in the league and 57th in the nation, while the Pirates limit their opponents to 59.8 points per game for a scoring margin of +15.1, which rank second and third, respectively, in the conference and 45th and 25th, respectively, in the nation.
Thanks For the Assistance
The Pirates have dished out 224 assists this season to average 14.0 per game which ranks fourth in Conference USA. Junior guard Janesha Ebron is the team-leader with 76 helpers on the year to average 4.8 per game which ranks her fifth in the conference. She also is third in C-USA with an assist to turnover ratio of 1.9.
Cleaning Up The Glass
The Pirates have accumulated 692 rebounds to average 43.2 per game to rank second in Conference USA. In holding their opponents to 35.2 rebounds per game, the Pirates own a rebounding margin of +8.1 which leads C-USA and is good for 27th in the nation. Redshirt sophomore forward Jada Payne is the Pirates' leader in rebounding as she averages 7.6 boards per game. Her average ranks her 10th in the conference.
Pirates Plunder, Pillage, and Steal
Like their namesake, the Pirates are known for steals. ECU has grabbed 189 steals this season to average 11.8 per game which is tops in Conference USA and ranks eighth in the NCAA. The Pirates have forced their opponents into 21.4 turnovers per game and own a turnover margin of +2.6 which ranks fifth in the league. Redshirt junior guard Abria Trice leads the Pirates with 29 steals.
Block Party
ECU has put up 86 blocks to average 5.4 per game which leads Conference USA statistics and is good for 17th in the nation. The Pirates have limited their opponents to 3.3 blocks per game on the year. Junior post Ondrea Shaw leads the team with 49 blocks for an average of 3.1 blocks per game which leads the conference and ranks her 12th in the NCAA. With 47 blocks, Shaw is ranked sixth in the ECU single-game record book.
ECU in C-USA
As a team, East Carolina ranks in the top five in 16 of 21 Conference USA statistical categories this season. ECU leads the league in eight categories. The Pirates lead the conference in field goal percent defense (35.6), three-point field goal percent defense (27.2), rebounding defense (35.2), rebounding margin (+8.1), blocked shots per game (5.4), steals per game (11.8), offensive rebounds per game (17.9), and offensive rebounding percentage (45.3).
Pirates in C-USA
Four Pirates have found themselves ranked in the top 20 in Conference USA individual statistics this year. Redshirt junior post Ondrea Shaw leads the league in blocks per game with 3.1. She also ranks 11th in offensive rebounds per game (2.9) and 18th in rebounds per game (6.7). Redshirt sophomore forward Jada Payne is second in the conference in free throw percentage (86.9), third in points per game (20.6), third in three-point field goal percentage (43.0), tied for fourth in three-point made field goals per game (2.1), 10th in rebounds per game (7.6), 10th in offensive rebounds per game (3.1), and 14th in defensive rebounds per game (4.5). Redshirt junior guard Abria Trice is ranked sixth in free throw percentage (84.9), seventh in points per game (17.7), 10th in field goal percentage (50.8), and tied for 12th in steals per game (1.8). Junior guard Janesha Ebron ranks third in assist to turnover ratio (1.9) and fifth in assists per game (4.8).
C-USA Freshman of the Week
On Monday, December 16, freshman guard J'Kyra Brown earned her first-ever Conference USA Freshman of the Week honor for her performance at the ULM Warhawk Classic. Brown helped the Pirates to a 1-1 record and an appearance in the Warhawk Classic championship game after averaging 10.5 points per game, 2.5 rebounds per game, 1.0 assists per game, 0.5 steals per game, and 0.5 blocks per game. She finished the weekend shooting 53.8-percent from the field, 57.1-percent from beyond the arc, and was 3-for-3 from the free throw line. Brown poured in 18 points in the Pirates' 85-42 victory over Alcorn State last Friday to secure ECU's place in the championship contest. She earned the honors along with Takia Brooks of Florida Atlantic and Tamara Jones of Southern Miss who took home Co-Player of the Week accolades. Brown is the first Pirate to collect the award this season.
The "New" Conference USA
Conference USA was one of the many conferences that saw realignments over the summer. July 1, 2013 marked the addition of Charlotte, FIU, Florida Atlantic, LA Tech, Middle Tennessee, North Texas, Old Dominion, and UTSA to C-USA. While the conference expanded with the eight new member institutions, it also parted ways with Houston, Memphis, SMU and UCF as all four joined the American Athletic Conference. 2013 will mark the last year of ECU's affiliation with Conference USA as the Pirates will join the American Athletic Conference beginning next season.
Notables
• Senior post Ariana Jackson will be out for the season due to an injury.
Coming Up...
East Carolina will play host to Rice on Wednesday, January 22, in a Conference USA match up that tips off at 7 p.m. The game is also club sports night as well as student appreciation night. Live stats, video and audio will be available on ECUPirates.com.
