Barkley, White Help Give Coach Lebo Historic Win

Tuesday, November 22

Greenville, N.C.

7 p.m.

East Carolina University

4-1

Florida A&M

2-3

Team	1	2	F
Florida A&M	21	41	62
East Carolina	46	36	82

Photo by: Rob Goldberg

November 22, 2016 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score

GREENVILLE, N.C. (AP) -- Kentrell Barkley scored 11 of his 21 points in the first half to help East Carolina pull away early and beat Florida A&M 82-62 in Monday night's second round game of the Savannah Invitational.

With the win, coach Jeff Lebo surpasses Tom Quinn's 102 victories, making him East Carolina's winningest coach since the program's start in the Division I era in 1965.
Caleb White scored 20 and made 6 of 10 3-pointers and distributed six assists, and the Pirates (4-1) rolled to a 46-21 halftime lead after Jeremy Sheppard hit a 3 and a layup amid a game-breaking 9-1 run.

B.J. Tyson scored 17 and East Carolina shot 29 of 59 from the field (49 percent) and made 15 of 25 free throws (60 percent).

Desmond Williams scored 19 and Trey Warren added 11 for FAMU (2-3), which shot 37 percent from the floor and missed all eight 3-pointers.

The Net Worth

Caleb White posted his third 20-point game of the season and his second consecutive. His six 3-pointers matched a career-high he became the sixth player in school history to net 200 triples.
Barkley's 21 points were one off his career-high of 22 against the College of Charleston last season. It was the third 20-point game of his career and first since scoring 20 against Tulane.
The trio of White, Barkley and Tyson combined to score 58 of the Pirates' 82 points, their most in a regulation game since scoring 84 at Memphis on Jan. 24, 2016.
Barkley and Andre Washington each grabbed a game-high eight rebounds as ECU won the battle of the boards for the fifth straight game.
White and freshman Jeremy Sheppard each distributed six assists.

How It Happened

After missing its first two field goal attempts, ECU made seven of its next eight to take a 17-4 lead, scoring eight unanswered points as part of a 15-2 run.
Six consecutive points by Barkley and a 3-pointer from White helped the Pirates double up FAMU, 34-17.
ECU scored 15 consecutive points to turn a 14-point lead, 31-17, into a 29-point advantage, 46-17, with 1:17 remaining in the first half. The Pirates led by 25 at halftime, 46-21.
Florida A&M outscored the Pirates by eight in the first 7:06 of the second half to pull within 17, 56-39. However, Barkley buried a 3 on the ensuing possession to push ECU back out to a 20-point lead.
The Pirates stretched their lead to 25 with 8:32 to play and cruised to an 82-62 win.

Inside The Box Score

ECU shot 50 percent from the field in the first half. It was the first time it had made at least half of its field goal attempts in a half since the first 20 minutes of the season against Grambling (.591).
The Pirates made a season-high nine 3-pointers.
Barkley scored double figures in both halves, while White (14) each reached double figures scoring before halftime and Tyson scored double figures after halftime.
ECU held FAMU to less than 30 percent shooting in the first half. It was the eighth half (out of 10) of the season in which the Pirates limited their opponent to under 30 percent.
After going 0-for-4 in his ECU debut, freshman Jeremy Sheppard was 2-for-5 shooting, scoring five points and handing out six assists in 10 minutes of action.
ECU blocked at least six shots for the fourth time in five games this season. Last season the Pirates blocked six shots in a game once.

They Said It
ECU Head Coach Jeff Lebo on the team's performance
"The first half we were outstanding again defensively, we played really well offensively well too. We got out to a big lead and I thought we moved the ball well and defended well. For 20 minutes we made it very difficult."
"We relied on the big three this game: Caleb, Kentrell and B.J. I thought were all really solid and they didn't turn the ball over, they took good care of the ball."

On Caleb White's early season play
"He sees a lot of zone from our team [in practice] so his eyes should light up when he sees that because of his ability to shoot. He's been very efficient for us and he worked awfully hard on his game in the off-season …. He's playing really well as a senior and that's what you want."

Caleb White on having new big men in the lineup
"I love it. They come in and they do everything we ask of them, night in and night out. It just helps makes my job easier, I can just step in and knock them down when Kentrell penetrates or B.J. penetrates and they collapse. You just make them pick their poison really."

Next Tip-Off
East Carolina will continue play in the Savannah Invitational Friday, Nov. 25, against Mercer. Tip-off is scheduled for 5 p.m. at the Savannah Civic Center.