Feb. 26, 2006
Final Stats
GREENVILLE, N.C. - Freshman guard Jasmine Young and sophomore forward Nicole Days each scored 13 points as East Carolina used a second half rally to earn a 65-44 win over UCF in Conference USA women's basketball action at Williams Arena Sunday afternoon.
With the victory, ECU improved to 8-8 in the conference and 16-11 overall, while the Golden Knights fell to 5-11 in C-USA and 7-20 overall. The loss locked UCF into the No. 11 seed for the upcoming C-USA Championship.
After the Pirates scored the opening two buckets, the Golden Knights kept the host without a field goal for five minutes and pulled away 14-5 on a three-pointer by junior guard Francine Houston at 13:55. Young ended ECU's offensive drought 17 seconds later, hitting a jumper that sparked a 10-2 run. UCF stayed on top by making six consecutive attempts at the foul line.
Although the Pirates closed the gap to 26-24 on a trey by freshman guard Jessica Slack, the Golden Knights took a 29-24 lead into the intermission thanks to a three-point play by junior Keunta Miles.
In the first half, UCF shot 9-for-17 (52.95) from the field, while limiting ECU to 10-of-37 (27%). The Pirates owned a 21-15 margin on the boards.
East Carolina outscored UCF, 7-2, in the first four minutes of the second period and tied the game at 31 on a long jumper by Gabriela Husarova at 15:54. The Pirates took over the lead 34-33 when Slack knocked down a trey less than a minute later.
After the two teams traded baskets, East Carolina regained the momentum, going on a 17-3 run and earning a 53-38 advantage. As the Pirate offense continued to capitalize on their chances, ECU's defense kept UCF without a field goal for eight minutes until Miles sank a layup at 5:05.
The Pirates outscored the Golden Knights, 9-2, down the stretch. ECU finished the night, shooting 27-for-70 (38.6%) from the field, while UCF hit 13-for-35 chances (37.1%). The Golden Knights edged the host team 36-35 in rebounding but also had 31 turnovers.
Miles posted a game-high 14 points despite the loss.
The 2006 Conference USA Women's Basketball Championship begins on March 2 in Dallas, Texas. The tournament bracket will be announced tonight at 7 p.m. ET.