East Carolina Faces Off Against No. 10 Houston

Game 18: East Carolina at Houston
Date \| Time	January 22, 2022 \| 6:00 p.m. ET
Location	Houston, Texas \| Fertitta Center
Game Program	Hoops Digest #3
Live Game Coverage	Broadcast: ESPN2 Radio: 107.9 WNCT \| TuneIn Radio Online
Live Stats	Statbroadcast
Statistics	East Carolina \| Houston
Game Notes	East Carolina \| Houston \| The American
Record Book	East Carolina 2021-22 Record Book
Social Media	Facebook \| Twitter \| Instagram \| YouTube \| #OnePirateNation

HOUSTON, Texas – East Carolina continues its challenging stretch of American Athletic Conference games Saturday when it squares off against No. 10 Houston inside the Fertitta Center. The game will air nationally on ESPN2 and will tip at 6 p.m.

The Pirates (11-6, 2-3 AAC) had a prime opportunity to snap a 12-game losing streak to UCF Tuesday night in Greenville, but the Knights erased a 20-point second-half deficit to force overtime and eventually came out on top, 92-85.

Tristen Newton led all players with 27 points while Alanzo Frink, R.J. Felton and Brandon Johnson also reached double figures with 16, 14 and 10 respectively.

Both teams made over 30 field goals as ECU ended up shooting 53.3 percent (32 of 60) from the floor as compared to a 49.2-percent (31 of 63) showing by the visitors. The Knights heated up from deep in the second half, knocking down nine of 14 attempts (64.3 percent) to help force overtime. The Pirates turned the ball over 22 times, which led to 25 UCF points, and outrebounded the Knights 35-32.

In last year's lone meeting between ECU and Houston, the Pirates knocked off the fifth-ranked Cougars 82-73 inside Minges Coliseum. Jayden Gardner led the way with 21 points and 15 rebounds while Tremont Robinson-White added 17 points and hit five three-point field goals. ECU shot 47 percent in the contest and recorded 20 assists against just seven turnovers. The victory was the first in program history over a team ranked in the top five and ended a 33-game losing streak versus opponents slotted in the AP Top 25 poll.

Newton remains among the AAC leaders in a number of statistical categories. He tops the league in free throw percentage (.878) while ranking second in both field goal percentage (.479) and assists per game (5.1). Newton is also third in scoring average (17.9).

The Pirates have been lethal beyond the arc this season and a big reason for that is the shooting prowess of Vance Jackson who paces the American Conference in three-point field goal percentage (.436). Collectively, East Carolina leads the conference in three-point field goals percentage (.376), knocking down 141 of 375 attempts thus far. The Pirates have also shared the ball well, topping the AAC and ranking 21st nationally in assists per game (16.6).

The Competition
Houston (16-2, 5-0 AAC) is the lone unbeaten team in the American Athletic Conference and comes into Saturday's contest off a 74-55 home win over South Florida in midweek action.

Senior guard Kyler Edwards leads the Cougars in scoring average with 13.8 points per game and is one of only three student-athletes to rank among The American's Top-10 leaders and both scoring and rebounding. Graduate forward Josh Carlton stands third on the team with 11.7 points per game and paces the Cougars and The American with 3.3 offensive rebounds per game.

Houston is 54-3 inside the Fertitta Center since the renovated venue opened a couple of seasons ago.

The Houston Series
Houston leads the series with East Carolina 17-6 and has won nine of the last 10 meetings. The Pirates have the opportunity to win their first-ever game in Houston, entering the contest 0-7 against the Cougars on the road.

UCF Leftovers
The Pirates dropped to 9-27 all time against UCF ... East Carolina reached the 20-assist plateau for the fourth time this season ... Newton converted double-digit field goals for the third time this campaign ... The 32 field goals tied for the second most hit by the Pirates in 2021-22 ... ECU shot the ball at 50 percent or better for the fifth time and second in AAC play ... East Carolina has built a doubledigit lead in 14 of 17 outings ... Newton has scored in double figures in
all but one contest this year.

Up Next
East Carolina makes the return trip to Memphis Jan. 27 for a contest that will air on ESPN2. Tipoff inside the FedExForum is scheduled for 9 p.m.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Alanzo Frink

Jayden Gardner

Vance Jackson

Brandon Johnson

Tristen Newton

Tremont Robinson-White

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