Pirates Host UMES To Close Out 2021

Game 13: Maryland Eastern Shore (4-7) at East Carolina (6-6)
The Game	December 21 \\\ 3 p.m. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Watch Live
Venue	Minges Coliseum (Greenville, N.C.)
2021-22 Statistics	East Carolina \| UMES
Information	ECU Notes
Social Media	Twitter \\\ Instagram \\\ TikTok \\\ #OnePirateNation

GREENVILLE, N.C. – With a chance to close 2021 on a high note, the East Carolina women's basketball team will host Maryland Eastern Shore as the second part of a doubleheader with the men's basketball team on Tuesday. The Pirate women will tipoff at 3 p.m., in Minges Coliseum.

East Carolina (6-6) grabbed its first road win of the season with a dominant 79-50 victory at UNCW. Taniyah Thompson grabbed the headlines for East Carolina with a career-high 31 points on 13-of-19 shooting, including a trio of three-pointers. It was the highest scoring game of any player in the American this season and gives Thompson five games of at least 20 points this year, which two more than any other AAC player. The junior guard now ranks 76th in the country and leads the AAC in points per game with 17.2. Thompson was not the only Pirate who had it going offensively as East Carolina shot 33-of-64 (.516) from the floor against the Seahawks. Da'Ja Green finished with 12 points and five assists while Raven Johnson had 11 points and a team-high eight rebounds. It was the third time this season that each player scored in double-figures and the Pirates are undefeated when either player scores at least 10 points.

While the offense flashed gaudy numbers at UNCW, the Pirate defense continues to surge up in the national rankings. The Pirates are now seventh in the nation in steals, with 141. Alexsia Rose leads the team with 22, ranking 108th in the country while Danae McNeal and Taniyah Thompson are both ranked 135th with 21. East Carolina also leads the AAC and is ranked 31st in the NCAA in blocked shots, rejecting 55 shots so far. Tiara Chambers is the leader there, ranking 50th in the country with 18 rejections this year while Tylar Bennett has 12 swats of her own. Chambers now has 71 blocked shots in her ECU career and needs three more to tie Gretta Savage for ninth all-time and five more to tie Lu Ann Swaim for eighth. Rounding out the league leading categories for ECU is turnovers forced, with the Pirates ranking tenth in the nation thanks to 23.42 turnovers forced per game and in free throw attempts, as East Carolina has earned 235 chances from the charity stripe, a mark that ranks 11th in the NCAA.

UMES (4-7) is coming off a tough defeat at Mount St. Mary's, the fourth straight loss for the Shorehawks. UMES has struggled on the road this season, going 0-4 away from home. UMES has played manly low-scoring games, as the Shorehawks average 65.1 points while allowing just 63.0. Amanda Carney leads the team in scoring, averaging 8.3 points. Carney is the team's top shooting threat as well, ranking 109th in the country in three-point field goal attempts and is shooting 33.9% from deep. Bairesha Gill-Miles is second on the team in scoring, averaging 7.6 points and grabs a team-high 5.0 rebounds. The Seahawks have been strong on the glass as a team, ranking 61st in the nation in rebounds with 39.2 per game. UMES is also in the top-100 of the nation in assists, handing out 147 dimes so far. Mya Thomas and Cache Wilson have been the top playmakers, recording 26 and 24 assists respectively.

East Carolina is a perfect 5-0 against UMES. The Pirates had beaten the Seahawks in four straight seasons before the two programs did not meet during the 2020-21 campaign. The last meeting was Nov. 23, 2019 in Minges Coliseum with the Pirates taking a 57-42 victory. Thompson scored 19 points to lead ECU that day. Thompson is one of two Pirates to score 19 points against UMES in their career, as Raven Johnson had 19 in an 84-69 ECU victory on Nov. 6, 2018. UMES is one of 28 teams that East Carolina has played multiple times without suffering a loss against. The Pirates are 8-0 all-time against NC Central, including a win this season, and are 5-0 against UMES, Delaware State and Presbyterian. It will also be the third game this season against a MEAC opponent. The Pirates also hosted and beat Coppin State and NC Central.

Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m., on Tuesday in Minges Coliseum. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and fans can follow the live stats here.

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Players Mentioned

Tylar Bennett

Tiara Chambers

Da'Ja Green

Raven Johnson

Danae McNeal

Alexsia Rose

Taniyah Thompson

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