East Carolina University
17-8 (8-6AAC)
No. 25/25 USF
20-5 (11-2AAC)
East Carolina Upsets No. 25 USF, 65-64
February 15, 2015 | Women's Basketball
Box Score | Box Score 
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GREENVILLE, N.C. - The East Carolina women's basketball team held on to upset 25th-ranked South Florida, 65-64, for its first win over a ranked opponent since the 2007-08 campaign in its annual Play4Kay game and American Athletic Conference action in Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum on Sunday afternoon.
The victory was East Carolina's (17-8, 8-6 AAC) fourth in a row and first against a team ranked in the Associated Press' top 25 poll since taking down No. 24 NC State, 89-82, on December 9, 2007 in Greenville.
"I thought we did a nice job executing the game plan," head coach Heather Macy said. "We never really played outside of ourselves, from the way that we guarded in transition defense, and the way that we attacked offensively. You can see that we were one of seven from the three-point line, and we didn't settle for threes. I'm really pleased to see the shot selection."
Redshirt junior Jada Payne scored 15 of her team-high 20 points in the first half, grabbed four rebounds and had a career-high three blocks, redshirt senior Abria Trice added 16 points on 6-for-11 shooting and junior Jasmine Phillips recorded her third double-double of the season and second in the last three contests with 12 points and 10 boards. Senior point guard Janesha Ebron dished out a game-high five assists and notched a season-high six steals.
"We've been working a lot on our mentality," Payne said. "We've been working hard in practice, especially on our defense and rebounding. That's the key to our program, and that's what we did tonight."
It was a defensive battle in the early going, as both teams earned open looks at the opposing baskets, but the Pirates were able to break through a 7-7 tie at the 13:38 mark and generate an 8-0 run to jump ahead, 15-7, after a jumper by Phillips with 10:59 to play in the opening period.
USF (20-5, 11-2 AAC) closed within three, 15-12, after all-conference guard Courtney Williams knocked down a pair of free throws, but ECU ripped off seven-straight points of their own, capped by a three-point play by I'Tiana Taylor, to create its first double-digit advantage of the afternoon, 22-12, with 7:42 remaining.
The Bulls got their deficit back down to five with 5:27 to go, but a 9-0 run by East Carolina capped by a Payne jumper with 1:13 left gave the home team its largest lead of the period, 35-21, before a pair of free throws by the visitors brought the lead down to 13 as the halftime buzzer sounded.
The Pirates shot 14-for-33 (.424) from the field, 1-for-5 (.200) from three-point range and 6-for-8 (.750) at the free throw line in the first half, while USF went just 6-for-26 (.231) on the floor, 2-for-10 (.200) beyond the arc and 9-for-15 (.600) at the foul stripe.
East Carolina kept its lead in double digits for a majority of the first seven-plus minutes of the second half, before South Florida brought it down to eight, 44-36, on a pair of free throws by Shavontae Naylor with 12:50 left in the game.
The Pirates responded right away by opening up their largest lead of the day, 52-37, after an 8-1 run that ended with a Phillips jumper at the 8:39 mark, but that comfortable lead proved to be barely enough.
The Bulls chipped away little-by-little, as Williams took over by making countless baskets down the final stretch, including a jumper that made it 63-59 with 48 seconds remaining. Following two clutch free throws by Ebron that extended the Pirates' lead to six, 65-59, Williams drilled a three-pointer to chop the difference in half with 33 ticks on the game clock as USF used its final timeout.
Williams' then stole the ball, scored a layup and drew a foul with 19 seconds remaining to bring South Florida just a free throw conversion away from a tie. The 79-percent shooter from the charity stripe missed the free shot, and despite five missed free throws by East Carolina inside the final 14 seconds of the game, the Pirates held on for the historic one-point triumph.
"The first word that comes to my mind is ugly, but the second part is mentality," Macy said regarding the final 30 seconds of the game. "That's what we kept talking about in the huddle. This is when your toughness and the discipline level come into play. I think that we did a really nice job corralling the rebounder, stopping the ball early, which then took time off of the clock, and we were able to get tie-ups and get the ball back."
ECU shot 25-for-59 (.424) overall on the day, 1-for-7 (.143) from beyond three-point land and 14-for-23 (.609) at the free throw line, while USF went 21-for-59 on the floor, 4-for-16 (.250) from deep and 18-for-26 (.692) at the foul stripe.
The Pirates outscored the Bulls, 38-24, in the paint, 19-12 off turnovers and 16-9 off the bench, but South Florida held a 19-12 advantage in second-chance points.
Williams led USF with 34 points on 13-for-26 shooting, eight rebounds four blocks and two steals, as Alisia Jenkins posted a double-double with 12 points, 15 boards and three blocks.
"It's a big final four games here for us," Macy said. "I want us to finish really strong, I feel like we are peaking at the right time and playing our best basketball as we move into late February."
East Carolina will play the second game on its three-game home stand when it hosts SMU on Wednesday, Feb. 18. Opening tip is scheduled for 7 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN3.
