Pirates resume play with road date against struggling Spartans

East Carolina hasn't played since December 6th

Following a ten-day break for exams, East Carolina will travel to in-state foe UNCG on Friday night for a 7 p.m. contest at the Greensboro Coliseum.

The Pirates (4-4), who are just 1-4 against Division I competition, will be looking to snap a three-game skid by capturing a victory against the struggling Spartans.

Jeff Lebo's club was competitive against ODU, Charlotte, and UMASS despite performing dismally on the offense end in each of those games. ECU didn't shoot above 35.5 percent in any of those games. The Pirates' shooting woes extended to the free throw line in the loss to the Minutemen the last time out, as they were just 9-of-23 from the charity stripe.

Miguel Paul, who leads the team in scoring with his mark of 16.1, is shooting just 25.5 percent (13-of-51) from the floor during that span. However, the Pirates' point guard believes the team will be just in fine in the long run.

"Everybody's young. We are still growing. Right now, we still have 20-some odd games yet so we're not panicking. As long as we get better as a team everyday, then we got faith in each other and the coaches got faith in us that we're going to get the job done at the end of the day."

Senior power forward Darrius Morrow also averages in double figures with 12.5 points per game. Morrow, who leads the team with 11 blocked shots, grabs five rebounds per contest.

Shamarr Bowden, who is second on the team in three-pointers with 15, has scored in double-figures in each of the last three games. Bowden, who has scored 37 points during that time, has shot 56 percent (14-of-25) from the floor and 45 percent (9-of-20) from three.

Robert Sampson pulls down a team-high 6.5 rebounds per game.

Defensively, ECU is surrendering just 60 points per game, limiting opponents to 40 percent from the floor, and 27.8 from beyond the arc.

UNCG (2-8), which has played an extremely difficult non-conference schedule that featured the likes of Tennessee, Georgetown, and Florida State, will be playing its first game under interim head coach Wes Miller. Miller, who is just 28, is in his second season with the Spartans after spending a season at High Point and Elon. Miller, who played three seasons at the University of North Carolina, is the youngest head coach in the nation and takes over for head coach Mike Dement. Dement, who is an East Carolina alum, stepped down after the loss to the Seminoles.

The Spartans, who lost 81-53 in Greenville last season, are coming off a 75-60 loss at Florida State on Sunday.

6'4" sophomore wing Trevis Simpson, who produces 15.2 points per game, is the only UNCG player averaging in double figures. Simpson, who has connected on a team-high 18 trifectas while shooting 33 percent from deep, shoots just 37 percent from the floor.

Senior Aaron Brackett (6'8", 240), who averages seven points, leads the team in rebounding with 5.3 per game.

As a team, UNCG shoots just 37 percent. Meanwhile, its opponents average over 77 points per game and shoot above 50 percent.

Final Analysis and Prediction

Both the Pirates and Spartans have struggled shooting the basketball. However, East Carolina has played pretty well on the defensive end and had success when using a full-court press. Expect big games from Paul, Morrow and Bowden, as the Pirates will pull away in the second half to win by double figures.

East Carolina 73 UNCG 61