GREENVILLE, N.C. – For the first time this season, the East Carolina women’s basketball team dropped a home game, falling to Towson 66-51 on Saturday afternoon in Minges Coliseum.

East Carolina drops to 4-5 on the season with a 4-1 home ledger while Towson improves to 7-1 this year.

How It Happened

  • The Tigers jumped out to an early advantage in the first quarter behind the play of Allie Kubek. Kubek shot 4-of-5 from the floor, making one triple and a free throw, to give her 10 points in the opening frame. On the other end, Tylar Bennett was a bright spot for East Carolina, scoring six points and blocking a shot in the first 10 minutes. But 47.4% shooting for the Tigers helped them take a 23-14 lead at the end of the first.
  • It was the Pirates who controlled the second quarter. East Carolina got back into the game through defense and getting to the free throw line. After a Towson field goal to open the quarter made it 25-14, East Carolina allowed just one Towson point for the next six minutes. East Carolina went on an 11-1 run over that span to pull back within one. Xianna Josephs was a major piece of that, hitting six shots from the free throw line. The Pirates eventually took a 31-30 lead on a Synia Johnson pull-up jumper, but Towson scored the final bucket of the half to lead 32-31 at the break.
  • Unfortunately for ECU, the Pirate defense could not keep Towson off the scoreboard in the third quarter. The Tigers shot 9-of-18 from the floor in the frame, rattling off a 9-0 run that took it from a 39-35 game to a 48-35 contest. Tarriyonna Gary was the main engine for Towson, scoring 10 points in the quarter while Josephs had four points and four rebounds for ECU. The Pirates eventually went into the fourth quarter trailing 52-41.
  • ECU’s offense could not get much going in the fourth quarter, shooting just 4-of-18 from the floor. Da’Ja Green tried to spark the team, scoring six points, but ECU never got closer than nine points.

Leading Pirates

  • Josephs was the only Pirate in double figures, scoring a career-high 10 points thanks to an 8-of-8 performance from the free throw line. Josephs also tied her career-high with six rebounds, including five on the offensive end.
  • Bennett and Alexsia Rose each had seven rebounds to lead East Carolina, with Rose also dishing out a team-high three assists. The seven rebounds are a career-high for Rose while it tied a season-high for Bennett.
  • Laila Acox set a new career-high in her third career game, scoring four points and grabbing five offensive rebounds.
  • The Pirates outrebounded Towson 57-42. The 57 rebounds are the most for an East Carolina team this season and it is the first time ECU has grabbed at least 50 rebounds since grabbing 52 against USC Upstate on Dec. 16, 2018.

Coach McNeill on the game

Up Next
 
The Pirates will not have to wait long to start a new home winning streak, as East Carolina hosts NC Central on Monday night. Tipoff for that contest is slated for 6 p.m., inside Minges Coliseum.