Pirates Head South to Take on FIU
January 09, 2014 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 9, 2014
| Game 15: East Carolina at FIU | |
| Date | Saturday, January 11 |
| Time | 6:00 p.m. (ET) |
| Location | Miami, Fla. |
| Live Game Coverage | Live Video |
| Game Notes | East Carolina  |
| 2013-14 Women's Basketball Statistics | East Carolina | FIU |
| ECU Women's Basketball Central | Gameday Central | Roster | Fact Book |
The Game
The East Carolina women's basketball team heads south to take on FIU on Saturday, January 11, at 6 p.m. in a Conference USA match up at U.S. Century Bank Arena in Miami, Fla. Live stats and video will be available on FIUSports.com.
The Series
The Pirates and the Panthers will meet for just the second time in program history. East Carolina leads the all-time series 1-0 after defeating FIU, 66-47, on December 30, 2008 in Miami. The Panthers will be looking to even the score with the Pirates come Saturday.
Last Time Out
East Carolina edged out Florida Atlantic, 61-58, in a defensively charged conference match on Wednesday night. The Pirates held the Owls, who currently lead C-USA in scoring offense (80.3 points per game), to a season-low 58 points in the contest. The Pirates are now the winners of 21 straight home matches as they have not lost a game in Greenville since November 2012. The ECU defense held the Owls to just 29.1-percent shooting in the game and 27.3-percent from beyond the arc. Florida Atlantic's defense was solid as well, limiting ECU to a 34.7 field goal percentage and just 18.8-percent from three-point range. Offensively, Abria Trice led the Pirates with a team-best 16 points and seven rebounds to tie her season-high. Jada Payne registered her fourth double-double of the year as she posted 13 points and 10 boards. Shae Nelson recorded her third double-figure performance of the season with 10 points to go along with four rebounds and a career-high three steals. Junior Tatiana Chapple grabbed a season-high nine rebounds in the game and also added four points, a season-best three steals, and two assists. Ondrea Shaw contributed nine rebounds, two points, a pair of assists and a game-high three blocks. The game was a back and forth affair that culminated in seven ties and 10 lead changes. With just 20 seconds left in the contest, FAU cut the Pirates' lead to one (59-58). However, Janesha Ebron came through in the clutch and sank a pair of free throws to give ECU the three-point (61-58) victory.
About the Pirates
East Carolina is riding a five-game winning streak and has put together a 13-1 record (1-0 C-USA) to mark the best start since the 1972-73 season. With a winning percentage of 92.9, the Pirates are receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches' Top 25 Poll. As a team, ECU is shooting 41.9-percent from the field which ranks fourth in Conference USA. The Pirates are outscoring their opponents 75.3 points per game to 58.3 for a scoring margin of +17.0 which is good for second in the league. East Carolina owns the advantage in rebounding as the Pirates average a conference-leading 43.4 boards per game, while limiting their counterparts to 35.1 for a rebounding margin of +8.2 which also leads C-USA. The defensively charged Pirates also lead the conference in blocks per game (5.4) and steals per contest (12.4). Redshirt sophomore Jada Payne is the team's leading scorer as she averages 21.6 points per game which is good for third in the league. Payne also leads the Pirates in rebounding with an average of 7.5 boards per game to rank 12th in C-USA. The Hickory, N.C., native owns a three-point field goal percentage of 46.5 which ranks her eighth in the NCAA and first in the conference. Redshirt junior guard Abria Trice is ECU's second leading scorer with 15.9 points per game. She also contributes 4.1 rebounds per game, a team-best 24 steals, 16 assists and nine 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 11th in the nation. Shaw is second on the team with 6.4 rebounds per game, which ranks in the Top-20 in C-USA, while adding 2.7 points per game and 14 steals.
Scouting the Panthers
FIU owns a 6-8 overall record and is 0-1 in Conference USA action. The Panthers are coming off of a 59-41 loss to Rice on Wednesday. FIU is shooting 38.3-percent from the field and averaging 67.9 points per game. The Panthers hold the edge in rebounding as they average 42.1 boards per game while holding opponents to 35.6. On average, the Panthers tally 10.7 assists per game, 5.1 steals per contest and 2.8 blocks per game. Jerica Coley is FIU's leading scorer with a conference-best 27.8 points per game. She also averages 6.1 rebounds per game, while adding a team-leading 64 assists and a team-best 21 steals. Brianna Wright is the Panthers' leading rebounder with 118 boards to average 8.4 per game. She also adds 7.5 points per game, nine blocks, seven assists, and five steals.
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 10 categories. The Pirates are eighth in the nation in steals per game as they average 12.3. Additionally, ECU is tied for 16th in win-loss percentage (92.3). The Pirates also rank 17th in blocked shots per game (5.5), 22nd in scoring margin (+18.1), 28th in field goal percent defense (35.0), 32nd in free throw percentage (74.8), and 34th in scoring defense (58.3). The Pirates also rank 40th in turnover margin (+3.9), 44th in rebound margin (+7.5) and 46th in scoring offense (76.4).
Getting Defensive
A defensively strong team, East Carolina has limited its opponents to 58.3 points per game, while averaging 75.3 points per game for a scoring margin of +17.0. The Pirates' scoring margin is second in the conference while their scoring defense ranks second in C-USA. The marks are also ranked 22nd and 34th in the NCAA, respectively. Additionally, the Pirates have collected 173 steals to average 12.4 per game to lead the league and rank eighth in the nation. ECU has also forced their counterparts into 315 turnovers to average 22.5 per game for a turnover margin of +3.5 which is good for fourth in the league. The Pirates have also put up 75 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 21.6 points per game, while Trice averages 15.9. Their averages rank third and ninth, respectively, in the conference. As a team, ECU owns a scoring offense of 75.3 to rank fourth in the league and 46th in the nation, while the Pirates limit their opponents to 58.3 points per game for a scoring margin of +17.0, both of which are second in the conference and rank 34th and 22nd, respectively, in the NCAA.
Thanks For the Assistance
The Pirates have dished out 191 assists this season to average 13.6 per game which ranks seventh in Conference USA. Junior guard Janesha Ebron is the team-leader with 65 helpers on the year to average 4.6 per game which ranks her fifth in the conference. She also is second in C-USA with an assist to turnover ratio of 1.9.
Cleaning Up The Glass
The Pirates have accumulated 607 rebounds to average 43.4 per game to lead Conference USA. In holding their opponents to 35.1 rebounds per game, the Pirates own a rebounding margin of +8.2 which leads C-USA and is good for 44th in the nation. Redshirt sophomore forward Jada Payne is the Pirates' leader in rebounding as she averages 7.5 boards per game. Her average ranks her in the top 15 in the conference.
Pirates Plunder, Pillage, and Steal
Like their namesake, the Pirates are known for steals. ECU has grabbed 173 steals this season to average 12.4 per game which is tops in Conference USA and ranks eighth in the NCAA. The Pirates have forced their opponents into 22.5 turnovers per game and own a turnover margin of +3.5 which ranks fourth in the league and 40th in the nation. Redshirt junior guard Abria Trice leads the Pirates with 24 steals.
Block Party
ECU has put up 75 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 2.6 blocks per game on the year. Junior post Ondrea Shaw leads the team with 43 blocks for an average of 3.1 blocks per game which leads the conference and ranks her 11th in the NCAA.
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 (34.6), rebounding offense (43.4), rebounding defense (35.1), rebounding margin (+8.2), blocked shots per game (5.4), steals per game (12.4), offensive rebounds per game (17.8), and offensive rebounding percentage (45.1).
Pirates in C-USA
Four Pirates have found themselves ranked in the top 20 in Conference USA individual statistics this year. Redshirt sophomore forward Jada Payne leads the league in three-point field goal percentage as she is shooting 46.5-percent from beyond the arc. She is also the league-leader in three-point field made per game with 2.4. Payne ranks third in the conference in scoring with 21.6 points per game, third in free throw percentage (89.0), ninth in offensive rebounds per game (3.0), 10th in field goal percentage (49.8), 12th in rebounds per game (7.5), and 14th in defensive rebounds per game (4.5). Redshirt junior post Ondrea Shaw is the league-leader in blocks per game with 3.1. She also ranks 12th in offensive rebounds per game (2.9), and 20th in rebounding (6.4). Junior guard Janesha Ebron is second in the league in assist to turnover ratio (1.9) and fifth in assists per game (4.6). Rounding out the Pirates who rank in C-USA statistics is reshirt junior guard Abria Trice who is ranked ninth in scoring (15.9), ninth in field goal percentage (50.0), and 10th in free throw percentage (83.6).
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 continue its road trip and travel to New Orleans, La., to take on Tulane on Wednesday, January 15. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. ET. Live stats will be available on TulaneGreenWave.com.
