East Carolina University
7-6
UNC Greensboro
4-9
East Carolina Coasts Past UNCG, 71-50
December 28, 2014 | Men's Basketball
From wire and staff reports
GREENVILLE, N.C. - Junior Terry Whisnant scored 17 points and distributed a career-high six assists, and sophomore Caleb White added 14 points as East Carolina cruised to a 71-50 win over UNCG inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum on Sunday.
Whisnant scored 14 of his team-high total in the first half, hitting 4-of-5 from the field, including a pair of 3-pointers, while also sinking 4-of-5 free throws. Michel-Ofik Nzege also added 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting in 18 minutes of action.
East Carolina (7-6) led wire-to-wire, scoring the game's first seven points, that included a 3 from White, and forced UNCG coach Wes Miller to call the first of three timeouts during the opening half of play. The Spartans closed to within three at 16-13 with 13 minutes remaining in the half. The Pirates outscored UNCG (4-9) 29-13 the remainder of the half and carried a 45-26 advantage into the break.
The Pirates shot a blistering 72.7 percent from the floor in the opening half, connecting on 16-of-22 field goal attempts, including 3-of-4 3-pointers. UNCG shot just 36.7 percent in the first half and finished the game at 35.0 percent compared to 57.5 percent for the Pirates.
"I thought the first half was the best we played all year. No doubt about it," ECU Head Coach Jeff Lebo said. "I really liked offensively how we shared the ball. We defended very well. I thought we did a very good job at challenging shots; nothing was open for them."
ECU pushed its lead to double digits for the first time when Whisnant sank two free throws with 5:17 left until halftime for a 31-21 advantage. Kanu Aja, Paris Roberts-Campbell and B.J. Tyson also made a pair of free throws in the final five minutes as the Pirates lead never dipped below 15 points again.
Diante Baldwin led UNC-Greensboro with 19 points and six steals.
The Pirates' advantage ballooned at 27, 57-30, with 14:10 to play as but the Spartans used an 18-6 run to shave 12 points off the East Carolina lead and make it a 15-point game with 6:21 to play.
White scored the next seven points with a 3-pointer and four free throws to push the Pirates' lead back over 20, 70-48, with 1:54 to play.
East Carolina returns to action Wednesday, Dec. 31, as it opens its American Athletic Conference play against Tulane. Tip-off is set for noon inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum.
