East Carolina University
Tulsa
Gameday Preview: East Carolina vs. Tulsa
January 24, 2017 | Men's Basketball
| Game 21: East Carolina vs. Tulsa | |
| Date | Wednesday, Jan. 25 |
| Time | 7 p.m. (ET) |
| Location | Greenville, N.C. (Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum) |
| Web Coverage | Live Stats \\\ Listen Live \\\ ESPN3 |
| Game Notes | East Carolina \\\ Tulsa |
| Social Media | Twitter: @ECUScoreboard \\\ @ECUPirateHoops |
East Carolina returns home looking to score its first win of the New Year Wednesday night and end a six-game losing streak both overall and in the series against Tulsa at 7 p.m. inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum. The games can be seen on ESPN3 and heard throughout eastern North Carolina on WNCT 107.9 FM as well as across the Pirate-IMG Sports Network and on the TuneIn app.
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Despite the geographical distance, the Pirates (9-11, 1-6 American) and Golden Hurricane (11-7, 5-1) are meeting for the 12th consecutive season as conference foes. The series began with a single game in 1984 before the two meet again in 2006 as members of Conference USA. TU leads the all-time series, 15-2, and has won six straight overall and five in a row in Greenville.
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ECU is looking to foster its effort from a disappointing 72-65 loss at UCONN Sunday. Despite trailing by 20 points in the first half, the Pirates fought back to get within seven of the Huskies inside of nine minutes remaining. Sophomore Kentrell Barkley led East Carolina with 18 points and seven rebounds with Elijah Hughes scoring 14 and Caleb White 13.
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"We just need to sustain the effort and clean up a few mistakes and we'll be right there," acting head coach Michael Perry said following Sunday's game. "This was something we can build on."
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Tulsa has won four straight games and sits one game behind first-place Cincinnati in the loss column.
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News & Notes
- Coaches from both teams will wear sneakers with their game attire as a visible reminder about the importance of nutrition and physical activity in reducing cancer risk as part of Coaches vs. Cancer Suits And Sneakers Week, which is a nationwide event that unites coaches across the country to raise awareness about the American Cancer Society's lifesaving mission, and promote the American Cancer Society as a place for help and support.
- ECU has done a much better job of taking care of the basketball since conference play began. The Pirates committed less than 10 turnovers for the third time in the last six games after averaging 15.7 turnovers per game in their first 14 games without less than 11 giveaways in any game.
- Barkley has led ECU in scoring in six of the last eight games and has been its leading rebounder in seven of the last nine. He ranks second on the team in points and rebounds per game and first in total assists (56). Barkley is averaging 13.0 ppg and 7.7 rebounds the last six games.
- Hughes has averaged 16.0 ppg in his first two games as a starter. He had 18 against Cincinnati and then scored 14 on Sunday against UCONN. Hughes is also averaging 29.5 minutes per game as a starter.
- White broke out of a shooting slump Sunday against UCONN, going 5-of-12 from the field after being held to 0-of-7 by Cincinnati a week earlier. After being held under double figures in the first four conference games, he's scored double figures in two of the last three games with 12 against Houston and 13 at UCONN.
- Graduate transfer Andre Washington is averaging 3.7 blocks per game in conference play, swatting 26 opponent field goal attempts. He blocked 30 shots in 13 non-conference games. He ranks second overall in The American with 2.8 blocks per game, which is 11th among all Division I players. His 56 total blocks is first among all American Athletic Conference players and eighth nationally.
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