Pirates seeking revenge in rematch with Rice on Saturday

The Owls are 1-1 all-time in Minges Coliseum, hold a 4-2 series lead

Two weeks ago, Rice took advantage of what was largely an “elementary” defensive effort by East Carolina to build a 19-point first half working margin before holding off the Pirates for a much-needed 76-70 home victory.

Despite its lackluster approach on defense, ECU managed a 14-0 run to close within five before going into the locker room down seven. The deficit reached 14 early in the second half, but the Pirates pounded the ball inside to Chad Wynn and his post presence help tighten the gap to four with just over two minutes to play. However, Rice hit the free throws and made the plays down the stretch that were necessary to win.

East Carolina and Rice are teams that rely heavily on their backcourts for point production, but the first match-up featured career days for two frontcourt players. The Pirates have struggled to defend the post this season and Rice senior forward Aleks Perka exploited that weakness for a double double. The 6’7” forward finished his record-setting day with a career-high 21 points and 11 rebounds. Meanwhile, the Pirates’ Chad Wynn matched Perka’s 21 points—missing only one of his ten shot attempts on the afternoon.

ECU did connect on 11 three-pointers in the contest, but its uncharacteristic woes at the free throw line (9-of-18) and typical difficulty rebounding the basketball (44-37, Rice) aided its demise.

While the Owls are 8-15 overall and 3-6 in CUSA under first-year coach Ben Braun, Rice has shown significant improvement under the former successful Cal and Eastern Michigan coach.

Following a competitive 72-65 loss against cross-town rival and upper echelon league foe Houston, Rice ran past Southern Miss, 88-72, on Wednesday and has now won two of its last three. The Owls shot 58 percent from the floor and made a school-record 16 three-pointers in the game. The backcourt trio of Connor Frizzelle, Rodney Foster and Cory Pflieger combined for 62 points. The freshman Frizzelle finished with a career-high 24 points after hitting six-of-nine from behind the arc. Foster and Pflieger made five three’s apiece and had 20 and 18 points, respectively.

That type of production has been a rarity for an Owls’ club that has only one player who averages in double figures while doing things primarily by committee this year. Senior point guard Rodney Foster averages 11.1 points per game and shoots nearly 44 percent from three-point range.

While Rice comes in with some momentum, East Carolina will be looking to bounce back from a 73-64 loss at Tulane. Foul trouble for the Pirates allowed the Green Wave to build a 33-21 halftime lead and ECU—which made only 5-of-18 three-point attempts on the night—never mounted a serious threat in the second half. It also committed an unusually high 18 turnovers.

With Chad Wynn, Darrius Morrow and Jamar Abrams on the bench with two fouls apiece, walk-on forward Derek O’Bryan saw a season-high nine minutes and Tulane’s Robinson Louisme had ten points and 12 boards before halftime.

One of the few bright spots for the Pirates was the play of point guard Brock Young. Young, who had 21 points, was one of only two ECU players in double figures and sank 10-of-12 free throws. He also made all three of his attempts from long range. Freshman Chris Turner had one of his best games in the purple and gold—finishing with 11 points and five rebounds in 21 minutes.

However, the senior backcourt of Sam Hinnant and James Legan went a combined 3-of-15 from the floor and made only one trifecta between them. East Carolina’s chance for success is very slim when the duo shoots so poorly.

Final Prediction ECU vs Rice Analysis

East Carolina’s goal to capture the program’s first winning season in 12 years is still within reach. However, if the Pirates are going to do so, this is a game they can’t let slip.

While the Owls are playing better, they’re only 1-8 away from Tudor Fieldhouse and are yet to win a league game on the road.

Meanwhile, East Carolina is 9-4 at Williams Arena-Minges Coliseum and is seeking to collect its third straight CUSA win at home after knocking off Southern Miss and UCF there last week.

Following an off night against Tulane, expect big games from Hinnant, Legan and Abrams. Wynn and Morrow may both score in double figures against an Owl defense that couldn’t contain Wynn in the first meeting.

Defensively, the Pirates will do a better job on Perka and the Owls’ backcourt won’t be able to pick up the slack after shooting lights out against Southern Miss.

ECU’s balanced scoring attack will result in a third consecutive 80-point effort at home and an improving defense will slow down Rice enough for the Pirates to get their fifth CUSA win.

East Carolina 80 - Rice 71