Pirates Visit Shockers In Regular Season Finale

Game 29: East Carolina at Wichita State
Date \| Time	March 5, 2022 \| 3:00 p.m. ET
Location	Wichita, Kan. \| Charles Koch Arena (10,506)
Game Program	Hoops Digest #6
Coverage	Broadcast: ESPNU Radio: 107.9 WNCT \| TuneIn Radio Online
Live Stats	Statbroadcast
Statistics	East Carolina \| Wichita State
Game Notes	East Carolina \| Wichita State \| The American
Record Book	East Carolina 2021-22 Record Book
Social Media	Facebook \| Twitter \| Instagram \| YouTube \| #OnePirateNation

GREENVILLE, N.C. – With seeding in the American Athletic Conference Championship tournament still up for grabs, East Carolina puts the 2021-22 regular season to rest Saturday when it takes on Wichita State inside Charles Koch Arena. Tipoff is slated for 3 p.m. and the contest will air on ESPNU.

Depending on Saturday's result, the Pirates can finish either seventh or ninth in the league standings.

ECU has won its last two and four of its last six, including a 64-59 victory over Tulsa in the home finale Feb. 26. The Pirates put the finishing touches on a season series sweep of the Golden Hurricane and guaranteed themselves a winning record in the regular season for the first time since 2013-14. East Carolina also matched its most league victories since joining the American Conference prior to the 2014-15 campaign.

Tristen Newton capped his final home appearance of the season with a 27-point effort and recorded a game-high five assists. Vance Jackson added 12 points while Ludgy Debaut pulled down seven rebounds (four offensive). Darien Jackson paced Tulsa with 17 points and three assists.

After shooting 68.4 percent in the first half, the Golden Hurricane cooled off considerably in the second stanza – hitting just six of 24 (25 percent). East Carolina finished the night firing at a 38.2-percent clip, draining 21 of 55 from the field. Tulsa won the rebounding battle by a 35-26 margin but turned the ball over 20 times which allowed the Pirates to score 23 points off those miscues.

Newton enters Saturday's affair just 24 points away from scoring 1,000 for his career. He would be the 33rd player in program history to do so. Newton has scored in double figures in all but two contests this season.

The Competition
Wichita State (14-12, 5-9 AAC) snapped a three-game skid with a 72-62 road win over Tulsa back on Wednesday. The Shockers are 10-6 at home this season with victories over Jacksonville State, South Alabama, Tarleton State, Norfolk State, Alcorn State, Prairie View A&M, UCF, Tulsa, SMU and South Florida. American Athletic Conference Preseason Player of the Year Tyson Etienne paces Wichita State in scoring at 15.0 points per game, ranking sixth in the league. Collectively, the Shockers slot second in the conference in free throw percentage (.752) and fourth in scoring defense (66.3).

The Wichita State Series
Wichita State leads the all-time series with East Carolina 5-0 as the teams prepare to meet for the first time since 2020. The Pirates are 0-2 against the Shockers in Wichita.

Tulsa Leftovers
The Pirates improved to 3-12 versus Tulsa since both teams joined the American Athletic Conference ... East Carolina swept the season series from two American Conference opponents in the same campaign for the first time ... ECU recorded its 12th home victory of the season ... East Carolina held an opponent to 60 points or less for the sixth time ... The Pirates used the starting lineup of Newton, Miles, Robinson-White, Jackson and Debaut for the first time.

Looking Ahead
East Carolina opens the 2022 American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Championship Thursday, March 10, with a first-round contest inside Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas. The Pirates will find out their opponent when the official bracket is released Sunday evening.

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Players Mentioned

Ludgy Debaut

Vance Jackson

Tristen Newton

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