Pirates Visit Temple On Wednesday Night

Game 15: East Carolina (5-9, 0-1 American) at Temple (10-5, 2-0 American)
Date \| Time	January 7, 2026 \| 7:00 p.m. ET
Location	Philadelphia, Pa. \| The Liacouras Center
Game Program	Digital Game Program #4
Coverage	Stream: ESPN+ Radio: 107.9WNCT Live Stats: Statbroadcast
Statistics	East Carolina \| Temple \| The American
Game Notes	East Carolina \| Temple \| The American
Social Media	Facebook \| Twitter \| Instagram \| YouTube

Philadelphia, Pa. – East Carolina hits the road and returns to the hardwood for the first time in the new calendar year after a bye week on Wednesday night when the Pirates visit Temple at The Liacouras Center.

The game is slated for a 7 p.m. ET start and the contest will be streamed on ESPN+ with Ray Dunne (play-by-play) and Fran Dunphy (analyst) on the call. Pirate fans can also tune in to 107.9 WNCT FM, 94.3 The Game or download the IBX app to hear Daron Vaught call the action.

Jordan Riley leads East Carolina and the American in scoring with 20.8 points per game while Giovanni Emejuru is averaging a near double-double with 14 points and 9.5 rebounds per contest.

Last Time Out
Jordan Riley scored a game-high 21 points, but East Carolina was unable to win its first American Conference opener since 2021-22 falling to Tulane, 79-70, on Wednesday afternoon inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum.

Scouting the Owls
Temple enters Wednesday's contest on a league-leading six-game winning streak after defeating UTSA at home on Saturday, 76-57. The Owls have four players averaging double figures, led by Derrian Ford's 17.7 points per game. Aiden Tobiason (14.9 ppg), Jordan Mason (11.9 ppg) and Gavin Griffiths (11.1 ppg) round out Temple's main offensive threats. Temple is 7-1 in games played at The Liacouras Center and have won their last five games at home.

Series History
Temple leads the all-time series with East Carolina 12-7 as the teams split last year's series in two thrilling contests. The Pirates defeated the Owls in Greenville, 80-79, on Jayshayne Woodard's last-second layup but Temple returned the favor with a second-half comeback to defeat the Pirates, 98-94 in overtime in Philly, overcoming 33 points from C.J. Walker. ECU is 1-8 on the road against Temple with the lone win coming in the 2023-24 season.

On This Date
ECU is 10-9 in games played on Jan. 7 with the last game on this date coming during the 2023-24 season when the Pirates defeated Tulsa at home, 62-57. In 2016-17, the Pirates played at Temple on Jan. 7 but fell, 81-62.

Up Next
East Carolina hosts UAB in Minges on Sunday at 2 p.m. on ESPN+.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Giovanni Emejuru

Jordan Riley

C.J. Walker

Jayshayne Woodard

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