East Carolina University
9-14, 3-8AAC
No. 1/1 UConn
22-0, 12-0AAC
East Carolina Drops Conference Bout at No. 1 UConn
February 06, 2016 | Women's Basketball
STORRS, Conn. - The East Carolina women's basketball team suffered a 92-46 American Athletic Conference defeat at top-ranked Connecticut on Saturday afternoon at Gampel Pavilion.
Jada Payne led the Pirates with 15 points on 7-for-10 shooting to move to 1,580 in just her third season at ECU, passing Debbie Freeman (1974-78) for fifth place on the school's all-time scoring list. She also knocked down one three-pointer, No. 178 for her career, to tie Jasmine Young (2005-09) for second in program history.
I'Tiana Taylor added 12 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two blocks, while DeVaughn Gray matched a career-high with four assists.
Kia Nurse led the Huskies with 20 points, as Breanna Stewart compiled a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds and Moriah Jefferson chipped in 16 points and a game-high eight assists.
UConn (22-0, 12-0 AAC) opened the game with a 12-0 scoring run after making four of its first five shots, forcing the Pirates into calling a timeout exactly three minutes into the game. ECU was able to slow the opposing momentum for a stretch, as Payne found some open lanes for several layups and jumpers for six first-quarter points.
Trailing 27-10 to start the second period, East Carolina (9-14, 3-8 AAC) struggled to defend the Huskies' perimeter offense, as they scored nine-straight points to begin the quarter, forcing the Pirates into calling another timeout at the 7:43 mark.
UConn continued to get into transition offense, as ECU did its best to contest shots and move the ball around on the offensive side of the ball. The Huskies built their lead to as many as 31 in the half with the score 50-19 at the 2:38 mark, before taking a 52-23 lead into the locker rooms at halftime.
The Pirates shot 10-for-26 (.385) from the field, 1-for-6 (.167) beyond the arc and 2-for-4 (.500) at the free throw line in the first half, while Connecticut went 21-for-38 (.553) on the floor, 7-for-18 (.389) from deep and made all three of its free throw attempts. The Huskies committed just five turnovers in the first 20 minutes of action.
East Carolina cut its deficit to 29 points, 54-25, on a layup by Payne with 6:50 remaining in a relatively quiet start to the third quarter, but UConn closed the period with a 16-2 scoring run to build an 80-35 advantage heading into the final period.
ECU allowed four more points to start the fourth quarter, but responded with a 7-0 run into final media timeout with 4:39 remaining on the game clock and the score 84-42. The Huskies emptied their bench for the final four-plus minutes, as they closed out the 46-point win.
The Pirates finished the day shooting 20-for-52 (.385) overall, 2-for-10 (.200) from three-point range and 4-for-6 (.667) at the free throw line, while UConn went 38-for-69 (.551) on the floor, 11-for-27 (.407) from beyond the arc and made all five of its foul shots.
The Huskies outscored ECU, 44-18, in the paint, 39-8 off turnovers, 23-8 on second chances, 23-2 on the fast break and 29-9 off the bench.
East Carolina will stay on the road and head to Dallas, Texas to take on SMU on Tuesday, Feb. 9. Opening tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. (ET).
