East Carolina Clamps Down Late For 62-55 Victory Over Southern

Tuesday, December 20

Greenville, N.C.

7 PM

East Carolina University

9-3

Southern

2-6

Southern

East Carolina

East Carolina Clamps Down Late For 62-55 Victory Over Southern

December 20, 2016 | Women's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. – East Carolina held Southern to just four points over the final six minutes of Tuesday night's non-conference contest at Minges Coliseum to record a 62-55 victory and improve its home record to 6-1.

Team Records: East Carolina (9-3) | Southern (2-6)

Bre McDonald collected her fourth double-double of the season, finishing with 20 points and 11 rebounds to go along with four assists, while Khadidja Toure netted 13 points on 6-for-8 shooting from the field. Briana Green, the Jaguars' leading scorer entering the game, paced three Southern players in double figures offensively with 16 points as well as eight rebounds, five steals and four assists.

ECU shot the ball well in the contest, knocking down 27 of 54 attempts (50 percent), but struggled at the free throw line – making just six of 17 (35.3 percent). East Carolina limited the Jaguars to just 35.9 percent (23 of 64) efficiency from the field and a 2-for-10 (20 percent) showing from beyond the arc.

The Pirates corralled 40 rebounds to Southern's 36 and improved to 7-1 when out-rebounding their opponent. The teams combined for 40 turnovers but, after committing 16 in the first half, ECU cleaned it up after the break and turned the ball over just six times.

Head Coach Heather Macy:
"We are very thankful to go into the break with a win. It's going to make this five-day layoff much more enjoyable. I think we have a lot of teaching moments with these kids and moments in this game we can take from, build on and grow from. I am thankful we can give our kids a five-day break because a lot of Division I athletes are not getting this time away to be able to stay with their families or their extended families. I hope they value that. We'll come back with a two-day prep and have our last non-conference game on the road at William and Mary."

On 16 Turnovers in the First Half and Controlling the Game:
"You've got to value the ball. I talk to the girls all the time that teams that understand winning understand value. So we've got to do a better job. We want to have 15 or less turnovers and we didn't accomplish that goal in the first half and it's concerning. We have to do a much better job and it's not just the passer. We talk a lot about the sender and receiver of those passes, so we've got to do a better job of coming to a triple threat then being really ball strong."

On McDonald's Steal and Layup at 54-53 and How Important It Was:
"Well that's why she is here - to take that big shot. She stepped in and made that defensive play that we needed to gap the game and then we went to the line and sealed it with free throws. I was very pleased to see that."

On the 6-1 Home Record:
"Well I thought it was a big crowd tonight. Marketing did a great job getting Santa here. I thought that was fun for the kids. I saw our players got to take pictures after the game. They just do a really nice job and women's basketball is such a fan friendly environment and I think our marketing department does a nice job of capitalizing on those opportunities so even with the students gone for the break, I thought our community really stepped up and supported us and we appreciate and value that."

Redshirt Senior Guard Khadidja Toure

On Playing in Minges
"I think our fans are just so supportive and they're always there. So, when we get the opportunity to be on the court, we want to help do it for them even more. It just makes it fun to be around them and the atmosphere."

On the Victory
"I think the good thing with our team is that we do a good job of just staying focused and continuing to push, even if it's rough. I think it was rough out there tonight but we got the win in the end."

First Quarter
It was a slow start for the Purple and Gold as the Pirates netted just two points in the first five minutes of the game. Meanwhile, the Jaguars took advantage and rung up a 10-2 lead with the run capped by a Miaya Crowder layup at the 6:29 mark. It was East Carolina's turn to rev up the defense from there as a Raven Johnson jumper sparked a 12-2 run that spanned the remainder of the period. A jumper by Kristen Gaffney knotted the score at 10 with 1:06 remaining on the clock before layups by McDonald and Toure afforded ECU a 14-12 edge heading to the second stanza.

Second Quarter
Cortnei Purnell hit a jumper at the 8:41 mark for the first points of the second frame before Gabrielle Holston answered with one of her own to put the Pirates back on top. Purnell kept shooting the basketball and drained two more jumpers to give Southern a brief 18-16 lead with exactly five minutes to play in the half. East Carolina once again stifled the Jaguars in the second part of the quarter as Southern was able to score just two more points. Johnson and McDonald teamed up to out-score the visitors 9-2 over the final five minutes to send ECU to the locker room with a 25-20 cushion.

Third Quarter
East Carolina looked to pull away as the second half began, scoring eight of the first nine points to take a 10-point lead at 33-23 just 2:10 into the period. Unfazed, the Jaguars rallied and eventually deadlocked the score at 35 when Green knocked down a pair of free throws with 4:23 on the clock. A big three by Antoinette Bannister pushed the Pirate lead back to seven (44-37) at the 2:09 mark, Crowder took over and scored the final six points of the stanza to leave ECU clinging to a 44-43 advantage with one quarter to play.

Fourth Quarter
Fanni Csutoras opened the final period with a jumper to put the Pirates on top by three, but Southern came back to take a 49-48 edge when Green drove the basket and laid the ball in with 7:53 remaining in regulation. Trailing 51-50, East Carolina received a free throw from Dominique Claytor to tie the score before a Bannister layup afforded ECU a two-point lead it would not relinquish. A layup by Green cut the Jaguar deficit to one (54-53) at the 3:23 mark, but the Pirates ended the game on an 8-2 run to seal the victory.

Up Next
East Carolina ends its non-conference schedule Wednesday, Dec. 28, with a matchup against William and Mary in Williamsburg, Va. Tipoff at Kaplan Arena is set for 7 p.m.