ECU basketball update: ECU vs. Rice recap & Tulane preview

CUSA Fans.com ECU Correspondent Thomas "Bubba" Rosenbaum previews the basketball game between East Carolina and Tulane.

A look back at Rice…

Owls soar past Pirates, 64-47

Prior to Saturday night, Rice had never played basketball in Greenville. Its first trip to the Emerald City was a memorable one as they flew right past an ice cold East Carolina team, defeating the Pirates 64-47 in a game that wasn’t that close.

ECU did manage to hold Rice All-American Morris Almond well below his average, but the silky smooth 6’6” guard still managed to record his eighth career double double. He only connected on 5-of-15 from the floor, but all five of those makes were from beyond the arc (5-of-7). The nation’s second leading scorer finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds and was undoubtedly as good as advertised. Almond, who will likely be a high draft pick in the NBA this spring, plays with such grace that even his missed shots are a thing of beauty.

However, the Owls also disproved any assumptions that they’re a one-man show. Lorenzo Williams and Patrick Britton also scored in double figures, finishing with 17 and 10 points, respectively.

Courtney Captain helped keep the Pirates close early on, scoring their first 10 points.

With the game tied at 10, Rice proceeded to go on a 24-8 run and took a 16-point lead (34-18) into the locker room.

East Carolina (5-10, 0-2) shot a dismal 5-of-31 (16%) before the break and dug itself a hole that was simply too deep to get out of.

As the second half began, the Owls quickly extended the lead to 21 (39-18). However, to ECU’s credit it didn’t quit. The Pirates’ Captain continued his strong performance, connecting on two three-pointers. Darrell Jenkins also sunk a trifecta during the flurry and the deficit was quickly trimmed to 14 at 41-27.

From that point on, Willis Wilson’s club took control. Rice built its lead to as many as 25 (64-39) and cruised to its second straight conference win.

ECU’s Captain recorded his eighth double figure scoring game of the season after finishing with 18 points.

After “warming up” to 37.9% (11-of-29) in the second half, the Pirates concluded the game at a miserable 26.7%. They did take better care of the basketball, committing only 6 turnovers after giving it up 20 times at Tulsa.

The teams finished with 42 rebounds apiece. East Carolina freshman John Fields did not score, but he did grab a game-high 13 boards.

One of the few bright spots for the Pirates was the play of freshman guard Brandon Evans. In 13 minutes of action, he tallied 7 points and demonstrated the ability to attack the rim.

Rice ended the game at only 42.6% from the floor and 9-of-19 from the free throw line. However, they did connect on 9-of-19 from behind the arc and protected the basketball well, turning it over only 7 times.

Looking ahead to Tulane…

Wednesday, January 17, 2007 – 7 pm (EST) – William Arena at Minges Coliseum

Pirates welcome Green Wave for 500th game in Minges

East Carolina (5-10, 0-2) began playing in Minges Coliseum in 1967. The arena underwent major renovations prior to the 1994-95 season. On Wednesday, it will play its 500 th game in the facility when Dave Dickerson’s Green Wave rolls into town.

This will be the fifth meeting between the programs. TU holds a 3-1 lead in the series and defeated the Pirates, 66-53, last season in Greenville.

Dickerson, who is in his second season in New Orleans, has his team at 7-7 overall. However, they are 0-2 in Conference USA and have only won one of its five games away from historic Fogelman Arena.

The Pirates and Green Wave have shared two common opponents— Richmond and Rice. Tulane defeated the Spiders, 75-63, on December 28 th while the Pirates lost a overtime heartbreaker to UR in the second game of the season. Both teams did lose to Rice. TU was on the short end of a 75-70 overtime contest in Houston and the Pirates lost to Owls by 17 this past Saturday.

Dickerson’s club, which is coming off a narrow 67-60 home loss to Mike Davis’ UAB Blazers on Saturday, will remind you of East Carolina—statistically and physically.

Neither team has much height. However, the Green Wave is a little taller on the perimeter and also possesses more bulk down low.

The Pirates are extremely thin in the frontcourt, as they really only have two significant contributors in freshmen John Fields and Gabe Blair. Fields, who snatched 13 rebounds versus Rice the last time out, is leading CUSA in blocked shots. Blair is pulling down 8.3 boards per game, which ranks him near the top of the league.

Neither team scores very well, either. East Carolina, which has been held under 50 points in its last two games, is averaging only 62.1 per game while shooting 40.8% from the floor. They are also struggling from long range, as they’ve only hit 30% of their attempts. Tulane isn’t quite as bad. It is scoring 66.6 per contest while shooting 44.4% from the floor and 32.2 from three.

Both clubs also struggle from the foul line. Tulane is at 63% while ECU is an atrocious 56.7%. The Green Wave does get there frequently though, as they’re attempting 24 free throws per game. With the Pirates’ lack of bulk on the interior, you’ll want to keep an eye on this facet of the game.

Junior forward David Gomez (6’7”, 235) and freshman Kevin Sims (5’10”, 160) are the team’s top scorers. Gomez is tallying 14.9 points per game, which leads the team. He is pulling down a team-high 6.4 boards and also leads the team with 23 blocks. The “big fella” is shooting 76.8% from the charity stripe. Sims is also scoring in double figures, as he is averaging 10.1 points a game. By percentage, he is the team’s top three-point shooter, having knocked down 17-of-43 shots (39.5%).

Tulane’s leading assist man is 6’2” guard Andrew Garcia, who dishes out nearly four (3.9) assists per contest.

Senior guard Chris Moore (6’5”, 185) is also averaging 8.3 points per contest and must be contended with on the offense end as he is one of the team’s top long-range threats. He has knocked down more trifectas (22) than anyone else on the roster.

Providing help for Gomez down low are forwards Robinson Louisme, Donnie Stith, Daniel Puckett and Kory Castine. All have started and received quality minutes throughout the season. Each member of the quartet pulls down about four rebounds a game while Louisme leads the group with 7.1 points per contest.

In the backcourt, Matt Wheaton (6’5”, 190) is also a threat. The junior has started five times this season and has demonstrated the ability to knock down the three (7-of-16).

FINAL PREDICTION:

Both teams enter this game with 0-2 marks in CUSA and one of these clubs will garner a much-needed league win on Wednesday night.

Expect a low-scoring dogfight. The game will likely be in the high 50’s or low 60’s and decided in the final few minutes. Neither team is likely to eclipse the 45 percent mark from the floor.

The Pirates have lost five consecutive CUSA games dating back to last season and have not beaten a Division I opponent in their last nine chances.

For that to change, Fields and Blair must stay out of foul trouble and contain Gomez in the low post.

It also wouldn’t hurt for the Pirates to keep from having one of their prolonged scoring droughts that has been a staple of this team.

Some shots will finally fall in this one and Ricky Stokes’ club will squeak by a Tulane team that struggles away from home.

East Carolina 62 - Tulane 58