Pirates Set To Face South Florida Wednesday

Game 22: South Florida (13-5, 6-1 AAC) at East Carolina (11-10, 4-4 AAC)
Date \| Time	January 31, 2024 \| 7:00 p.m. ET
Location	Greenville, N.C. \| Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum
Game Program	Digital Game Program #5
Coverage	Stream: ESPN+ Radio: 107.9WNCT Live Stats: Statbroadcast
Statistics	East Carolina \| South Florida \| The American
Game Notes	East Carolina \| South Florida \| The American
Record Book	East Carolina 2023-24 Record Book
Social Media	Facebook \| Twitter \| Instagram \| YouTube \| #GreenvilleGrit

GREENVILLE, N.C. – The East Carolina men's basketball wraps up its two-game homestand on Wednesday evening when the Pirates welcome red-hot South Florida to Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum.

The game is scheduled for a 7:00 p.m. ET tip and will be streamed via ESPN+ with Patrick Johnson (play-by-play) and Si Seymour (analyst) on the call. Wednesday's game can also be heard on the ECU Sports Network 107.9 FM or 9.43 The Game with Daron Vaught (play-by-play) and Michael Perry handling broadcasting duties.

RJ Felton leads East Carolina with 16.2 points per game (6th in AAC) and is fourth in the league in steals per game with two. Ezra Ausar and Brandon Johnson round out the Pirates' top scorers with 13.6 and 13.5 points per game respectively. Johnson leads the team on the glass with 8.7 rebounds per contest which ranks as third-best in the league. Bobby Pettiford Jr. leads the Pirates with 3.6 assists per game and leads the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio at 3.17 (t-20th in NCAA).

Last Time Out
RJ Felton scored a game-high 24 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as East Carolina overcame an off-shooting night and rallied to defeat Temple in overtime 70-64 inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum on Sunday evening. Bobby Pettiford Jr. and Jaden Walker added 12 and 10 points respectively for ECU (11-10, 4-4 AAC) who shot a season-low 31 percent from the floor but forced timely turnovers into baskets in the second half to force overtime.

For The First Time
The Pirates are seeking to win their third straight AAC game for the first time since joining the conference prior to the 2014-15 season. ECU is off to its best eight-game start since becoming a member of the American and has won multiple back-to-back league games in a season for the first time in the AAC.

Scouting the Bulls
The Bulls come into Greenville on a five-game winning streak after defeating UTSA, 89-72, on Saturday as five players scored in double figures led by Kobe Knox's 18 points. The Bulls also drained a program-record 18 threes in the win. South Florida is 2-3 on the road this season while 10-2 on its home floor. Selton Miguel leads South Florida in scoring with 14.6 points per game (11th in AAC) and Chris Youngblood adds 14.2 points (14th in AAC). The Bulls are a team that can light it up from distance, averaging 8.5 made threes per game (4th in AAC).

Series History
South Florida leads the all-time series with East Carolina 14-12 and swept the season series last year before the Pirates eliminated the Bulls in the AAC Tournament, 73-58. ECU is 3-2 in its last five meetings with USF and is 7-6 all-time at home against the Bulls.

On This Date
ECU is 7-8 in games played on Jan. 31 since the 1960-61 season with the last game on this date coming during the 2018-19 season when the Pirates defeated Tulane at home, 66-65.

Up Next
East Carolina faces in-state foe Charlotte on road Saturday, Feb. 3 at 2 p.m. on ESPNU.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Ezra Ausar

RJ Felton

Brandon Johnson

Bobby Pettiford Jr.

Jaden Walker

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