Pirates Drop Conference Opener At No. 17 Florida Atlantic, 79-64

Tuesday, January 2

Boca Raton, Fla.

7:00 p.m.

East Carolina University

7-7,0-1AAC

Florida Atlantic

11-3,1-0AAC

East Carolina

Fla. Atlantic

Pirates Drop Conference Opener At No. 17 Florida Atlantic, 79-64

January 02, 2024 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Boca Raton, Fla. – The East Carolina men's basketball team dropped its conference opener, 79-64, to No. 17 Florida Atlantic at Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena on Tuesday night.

Brandon Johnson recorded his sixth double-double of the season with 15 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Pirates (7-7, 0-1 AAC) who looked to have a shot to pull off their first-ever road win over a ranked opponent after a hot-shooting first half. Quentin Diboundje scored 13 points off the bench, the most bench points scored by a Pirate this year, and RJ Felton added 12 points and five rebounds for ECU.

Johnell Davis and Alijah Martin each scored a game-high 20 points to lead the Owls (11-3, 1-0 AAC) to the win in their inaugural AAC game.

After trailing 5-0 to start the game, the Pirates responded with a 9-0 run to race out in front and held off the Owls for most of the first stanza with a season-high 54 percent shooting from the floor to take a 36-35 lead at the break.

Florida Atlantic would regain control in the second half with a quick 6-0 spurt to take a 46-43 lead with 15:16 remaining in the game. The Pirates would remain within striking distance, cutting the Owls' advantage to just 65-63 on two Ausar free throws with five minutes to go.

ECU's offense would go cold at the wrong time as the Pirates went without a field goal in the final five minutes and the Owls would use a 14-1 run to clinch the win.

Up Next
The Pirates return home to face Tulsa on Sunday, Jan. 7 at 3 p.m. on ESPNU.