Feb. 15, 2009
GREENVILLE, N.C. (UCFAthletics.com) - Sophomore Emma Cannon (Rochester, N.Y.) scored 18 points, including a layup to send the game into overtime with ten seconds left, but LaCoya Terry hit a game-winning jumper with eight seconds left in the extra session as visiting UCF (11-14, 9-3 C-USA) fell 86-83 to East Carolina (15-10, 6-6 C-USA) Sunday afternoon in Conference USA women's basketball action at Minges Coliseum.
The loss ends a five-game winning streak for the Knights, who were playing their second game of a four-game road trip. East Carolina improved to 11-1 at home with the victory.
UCF found themselves trailing 53-43 with 10:48 left in the second half, but sophomores Jelisa Caldwell and Amber Kirkpatrick led a 16-6 spurt, capped by a Caldwell triple, to pull the Knights even at 59 with 6:15 on the clock.
The game was back and forth from there as the teams exchanged the lead four times and were tied four times over the final five minutes. In all, the contest featured 17 ties and 17 lead changes.
With 48 seconds left in the period, sophomore Chelsie Wiley (Riviera Beach, Fla.) canned a three to give UCF a 69-67 lead, but Terry answered with a triple of her own just seven seconds later as ECU reclaimed the lead, 70-69.
After a blocking call was overruled and turned into a charge on freshman Aisha Patrick (Rockledge, Fla.). ECU's Allison Spivey then hit one of two free throws, setting up Cannon's game-tying layup that forced overtime.
Cannon hit 7-of-16 shots from the field and 4-for-5 from the line to finish with 18 points. The sophomore added 11 rebounds for her 14th double-double of the season and 26th of her career.
The Knights started overtime with a three-point play from Cannon and still held a three-point lead, 78-75, after a D'Nay Daniels (Atlanta, Ga.) steal and bucket with 2:32 on the clock. ECU's Jasmine Young answered with a three to tie it. Patrick and Terry traded jumpers before Terry sank two free throws to put ECU in front with 49 seconds left.
Wiley was fouled on a triple with 23 seconds left and calmly sank all three free throws to put UCF ahead 83-82. Terry had the answer, hitting the game-winning jumper with eight seconds left. Patrick's driving layup with two seconds left was blocked by ECU's Kim Gay, who hit two free throws to seal the game.
Terry scored 26 of her game-high 28 points after halftime, including six points in the extra session. ECU freshman Jean Best came off the bench to score 19 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks for the Pirates.
Wiley overcame a poor shooting start to finish with a team-high 19 points on 4-for-13 shooting, including 3-for-8 from long range. She also knocked down 8-of-9 free throws and added four steals in the contest.
Patrick, who played a game-high 43 minutes, scored nine points to go with nine rebounds, four assists and two steals. Sophomore Amber Kirkpatrick (Lawrenceville, Ga.) tallied 12 points while Daniels added nine points, 10 rebounds and four steals.
The opening half saw the two leading scoring teams in conference play struggle offensively. UCF hit just 9-of-37 shots in the first half for 24.3 percent while ECU was not much better, hitting 10-for-28. The teams improved dramatically after the break as the Pirates finished the game 29-for-65 for 44.6 percent and the Knights ended the game 31-of-81 for 38.3 percent.
On the strength of Cannon's seven offensive rebounds, UCF had 27 offensive boards and outrebounded ECU 51-44.
UCF will next be in action on Thursday, playing in El Paso, Texas for a contest at UTEP. The game will tip-off at 9 p.m. eastern time.
Tickets for UCF's final two home games are now on sale. The Knights will host Memphis on Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. and UAB on Sunday, March 1 at 3 p.m. As part of a 2 for $2 promotion, the games will be offered as a package and fans can buy tickets for both games for just two dollars total. For more information about the arena's premium seating options, including club seats, group discounts, courtside tables and suites, contact the UCF ticket sales office at (407) UCF-1000 or visit the women's basketball ticket page at UCFAthletics.cstv.com/tickets/w-baskbl-tickets.html.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
Newspaper Box Score
UCF vs East Carolina
2/15/09 2:00 p.m. at Greenville, N.C. (Minges Coliseum)
At Greenville, N.C. (Minges Coliseum)
EAST CAROLINA 86, UCF 83 (OT)
UCF (11-14, 9-3 C-USA)
Wiley, Chelsie 4-13 8-9 19; Cannon, Emma 7-16 4-5 18; Kirkpatrick, Amber 5-9 2-3 12; Patrick, Aisha 4-17 1-2 9; Daniels, D'Nay 4-10 1-2 9; Mealing, Angelica 4-9 0-0 8; Caldwell, Jelisa 2-3 0-0 6; White, Marshay 1-4 0-0 2; Kelly, Ashia 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 31-81 16-21 83.
EAST CAROLINA (15-10, 6-6 C-USA)
TERRY, LaCoya 9-21 8-8 28; BEST, Jean 7-10 5-6 19; WILSON, Crystal 4-7 2-2 10; SPIVEY, Allison 3-6 1-2 9; YOUNG, Jasmine 2-7 3-6 8; GAY, KIM 2-6 3-4 7; COCHRAN, Lauren 1-3 0-0 2; CLARKE, Ashley 1-2 0-0 2; ASHFORD, Shuanda 0-0 1-2 1; HUSAROVA, Gabriela 0-0 0-0 0; BOWENS, Tiahana 0-3 0-0 0; SMITH, Chareya 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 29-65 23-30 86.
UCF................................ 24 47 12 - 83
East Carolina...................... 25 46 15 - 86
3-point goals--UCF 5-13 (Wiley, Chelsie 3-8; Caldwell, Jelisa 2-3; Mealing, Angelica 0-1; White, Marshay 0-1), East Carolina 5-11 (SPIVEY, Allison 2-5; TERRY, LaCoya 2-4; YOUNG, Jasmine 1-2). Fouled out--UCF-MEALING, Angelica, East Carolina-WILSON, Crystal. Rebounds--UCF 51 (Cannon, Emma 11), East Carolina 44 (BEST, Jean 13). Assists--UCF 15 (Mealing, Angelica 6), East Carolina 21 (YOUNG, Jasmine 8). Total fouls--UCF 22, East Carolina 14. Technical fouls--UCF-None, East Carolina-None. A-3112