ECU Takes Trip To Houston

Game 25: East Carolina (10-14, 3-8 AAC) at Houston (11-12, 4-7 AAC)
The Game	February 16 \\\ 8 p.m. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Watch Live
Venue	Fertitta Center (Houston, Texas)
2021-22 Statistics	East Carolina \| Houston
Information	ECU Notes
Social Media	Twitter \\\ Instagram \\\ TikTok \\\ #OnePirateNation

GREENVILLE, N.C. – Riding a two-game winning streak, the East Carolina women's basketball team heads to Houston for a Wednesday night contest.

East Carolina (10-14, 3-8 AAC) has a two game-winning streak, with both games being vastly different. The Pirates needed to battle back from a halftime deficit to force overtime in a 61-59 victory over Wichita State. ECU then dominated from tipoff against Memphis, running away with a 68-38 win over the Tigers. The 38 points by Memphis were the lowest for an American foe since ECU joined the American and it was the third time this season that the Pirates forced at least 30 turnovers. Taniyah Thompson was on fire offensively, scoring 29 points against Wichita State and another 26 against Memphis. Synia Johnson joined Thompson in double-figures, scoring a career-high 15 points and grabbing a career-best four steals against Memphis.

Thompson averaged 27.5 points and 5.0 rebounds against Wichita State and Memphis, earning her second AAC Player of the Week award this season. The junior guard scored in a variety of ways, hitting four triples and making 13 free throws over the two games. Thompson is now second in the conference in scoring, averaging 17.8 points. Johnson, who returned from injury against Temple, has started three games this season and the Pirates are undefeated in all three, beating Cincinnati, Wichita State and Memphis. Tylar Bennett had another five blocks against Memphis, giving her an AAC-best 48 this year. Bennett already holds the ECU single-season record for blocks in AAC games, having swatted 35 in 11 conference games, and she is eighth overall in single-season blocks, needing six more to pass Ondrea Shaw for fifth all-time. Bennett's influence has rubbed off on Iycez Adams, who since moving into the starting lineup against Temple, has blocked 10 shots in three games after only rejecting five shots in the first 20 games of her ECU career.

Houston (11-12, 4-7 AAC) is coming off a 54-44 loss to UCF last Wednesday. That snapped a two-game winning streak for the Cougars, who started AAC play 2-0 before losing six straight. Houston has been solid at home overall this year, going 6-4 in the Fertitta Center, but is 1-4 there in conference play. Laila Blair is leading Houston in scoring, averaging 11.7 points, the only Cougar scoring in double figures. Tatyana Hill is the leading rebounder for Houston, pulling down 8.0 rebounds and also leads Houston in blocks (35) and steals (40). Julia Blackshell-Fair and Blair have helped the offense hum, handing out 57 and 55 assists, respectively. Britney Onyeje ranks third in the AAC in triples per game, having hit 42 on the season. Like East Carolina, Houston has been successful at getting steals and blocking shots. The Cougars are second in the AAC in steals, with 235, and third in blocked shots with 103.

Houston leads the all-time series 16-9 after beating East Carolina twice a season ago. The Pirates fell to the Cougars 66-56 in Minges Coliseum during the regular season and the two programs met against in the AAC Championship Quarterfinals, with Houston claiming a 73-63 victory. It will be the first trip to the Fertitta Center for ECU since Jan. 19, 2020 as last season's planned trip was cancelled due to weather. The Pirates are just 4-9 in Houston, having last won there in Feb. 2016.

Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m., on Wednesday night with Matt Pederson and Da'Yon Dunlap on the call for ESPN+. Fans can follow the live stats here.

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Players Mentioned

Iycez Adams

Tylar Bennett

Synia Johnson

Taniyah Thompson

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