Pirates Fall At South Florida, 82-71

Wednesday, January 14

Tampa, Fla.

7:00 p.m.

East Carolina University

5-12,0-4American

South Florida

11-6,3-1American

East Carolina

South Fla.

January 14, 2026 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Postgame Notes

Tampa, Fla. – Jordan Riley scored a game-high 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds but East Carolina dropped its fifth straight game, falling to South Florida 82-71 on Wednesday night at the Yuengling Center.

Giovanni Emejuru added 17 points, 10 rebounds and six blocks while Eli DeLaurier scored 10 points for the Pirates (5-12, 0-4 American).

Joseph Pinion led South Florida (11-6, 3-1 American) with 18 points.

East Carolina struck first, scoring in the game's first 10 seconds on a dunk from Reid Cason but the Bulls countered with an 14-4 run to take a 14-6 lead heading into the game's first media timeout at the 14:45 mark.

Riley snapped a 2:36 scoring drought for the Pirates with a driving layup and after a defensive stop, the Pirates made the score 14-11 after Demitri Gardner's three with 13:24 to go in the first half.

After neither team could buy a basket for two minutes, the Bulls opened the lid on the basket with a dunk from Izaiyah Nelson followed by a basket from DeLaurier on the other end. DeLaurier kept the Pirates in it with two three-pointers to make in 28-22 and ECU's defense frustrated South Florida as the Bulls made just one of their eight shots going into the final media timeout of the first with the score at 31-26.

South Florida opened the game back up to a 12-point lead after a 7-0 run from Josh Omojafo and the Bulls closed the half on a 6-0 run to take a 44-31 lead at the half.

The Bulls blew the game open in the second half, extending their lead to 20 early but the Pirates battled back to get the game within 10 points on a slam from Riley. South Florida answered with a three and a layup to regain the momentum and pull out the win.

Up Next
East Carolina hosts in-state foe Charlotte on Sunday at 2 p.m. on ESPN+.