ECU Faces First True Road Test At Temple

Game 14: East Carolina at Temple
Date \| Time	January 8, 2022 \| 2:00 p.m. ET
Location	Philadelphia, Pa. (Liacouras Center)
Game Program	Hoops Digest #2
Live Game Coverage	Stream: ESPN+ Radio: 107.9 WNCT \| TuneIn Radio Online
Live Stats	Statbroadcast
Statistics	East Carolina \| Temple
Game Notes	East Carolina \| Temple \| The American
Record Book	East Carolina 2021-22 Record Book
Social Media	Facebook \| Twitter \| Instagram \| YouTube \| #OnePirateNation

GREENVILLE, N.C. – After securing a victory over Tulane in its American Athletic Conference opener Wednesday, East Carolina plays its first true road game of the season Saturday afternoon at Temple. Tipoff from the Liacouras Center is scheduled for 2 p.m.

Tristen Newton hit clutch shot after clutch shot down the stretch on the way to a career-high 32-point performance as the Pirates (10-3, 1-0 AAC) knocked off the Green Wave 88-80 in overtime. Newton's second 30-plus point effort of the campaign was complemented by four other Pirates who scored in double figures – Brandon Johnson (14), Brandon Suggs (12), Vance Jackson (11) and J.J. Miles (10). Newton scored 14 of the Pirates' 17 points in the extra period. Suggs tacked on a career-best 11 assists for his first double-double of the season while Johnson pulled down 10 rebounds to complete his second double-double in an East Carolina uniform.

ECU hit five of six from the field and all four attempts from the free throw line in the overtime period (83.3 percent) to seal the win and ended up shooting 48.5 percent (32 of 66) for the contest. Tulane fired at 46.7-percent efficiency (28 of 60) as both teams finished with nine three-point field goals. The Green Wave entered the game as the best three-point shooting team in the league by percentage but hit just nine of 26 (34.6 percent) from deep.

The Pirates shared the ball very well, recording a season-high 25 assists against 13 turnovers while winning the rebounding battle by a 35-32 margin. East Carolina forced Tulane into 16 turnovers and scored 21 points as a result of those miscues.

ECU is one of the more prolific scoring teams in the conference, ranking fourth in points per game (73.8). The Pirates also lead the circuit in assists per game (16.2) and are third in assist/turnover ratio (1.3). Individually, Newton slots third in the American Conference in scoring average (19.0) as well as second in field goal percentage (.500) and free throw percentage (.871).

The Competition
Temple (8-6, 1-2 AAC) posted an impressive road win at UCF Wednesday, downing the Knights 66-62 at Addition Financial Arena. The Owls were without head coach Aaron McKie (COVID-19 protocols) as well as key players Jake Forrester (non-covid illness) and Tai Strickland (back). The status for all three for Saturday's game is still uncertain.

Damian Dunn leads the Owls in scoring average (13.8), rebounding average (4.9), steals (16) and free throw percentage (51-60, .850). Dunn, who made the go-ahead three-pointer in the final seconds at UCF, has averaged 16.6 ppg over the seven games since Khalif Battle (21.4 ppg) was sidelined.

The Temple Series
Temple leads the series with East Carolina by a 7-4 margin. The Pirates won the last encounter 67-63 in Greenville Feb. 23, 2020 but have never beaten the Owls in Philadelphia.

Tulane Leftovers
ECU took the court for the first time since defeating Southern Miss back on Dec. 21 after contests against Wichita State and South Florida were postponed due to the COVID-19 developments in the Pirate program. As such, East Carolina was without the services of Ludgy Debaut, Alanzo Frink and Marlon Lestin ... The Pirates won their American Athletic Conference opener for the first time since defeating South Florida back on Dec. 28, 2016 ... ECU's 9-0 start at home is the first such streak for the program since the 2000-01 campaign ... The Pirates claimed an American Conference overtime victory for the first time since knocking off Memphis 88-85 Feb. 3, 2008 ... East Carolina's season-high 25 assists were the most in the Joe Dooley era while Suggs matched the top individual mark in assists (11) ... ECU improved to 17-15 against Tulane and 10-4 versus the Green Wave since joining the AAC ... Newton has scored in double figures in 16-straight games dating back to last season.

Up Next
East Carolina closes out its quick two-game road swing Wednesday night at Cincinnati.

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Players Mentioned

Ludgy Debaut

Alanzo Frink

Vance Jackson

Brandon Johnson

Marlon Lestin

J.J. Miles

Tristen Newton

Brandon Suggs

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