Memphis, East Carolina square off Sunday afternoon on ESPN2

Sunday, January 24

Greenville, N.C.

3 p.m.

University of Memphis

East Carolina

Photo by: Joe Murphy

Memphis, East Carolina square off Sunday afternoon on ESPN2

Jan 23, 2021 | Men's Basketball

Memphis Game Notes (PDF)East Carolina Game Notes (PDF)AAC Notes (PDF)

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Memphis Tigers start a stretch of five games in 11 days Sunday afternoon at 3 CT at East Carolina. The game can be seen on ESPN2.

The Tigers rebounded from a one-point loss at Tulsa last Sunday with a resounding 72-52 win over second-place Wichita State Thursday night. Memphis has been able to bounce back from losses this season, as it has absorbed back-to-back setbacks just once this season (Nov. 26-27, games two and three of the year).

The Tigers used a stellar second half to help power Thursday's win, pouring in 47 points and turning a 25-19 halftime lead into the 20-point win. Memphis made 19 of its 33 shots in the second 20 minutes (.576), went 5-of-9 from 3-point range (.556), and made all four of its free throw tries.

The win was Memphis' largest in an American Athletic Conference game since a 102-76 triumph against Tulane on Feb. 20, 2019.

East Carolina enters Sunday's game after a pause due to COVID-19-related issues, which caused the Pirates' last three games to be postponed. All three of East Carolina's losses this season have come in AAC action.

East Carolina features junior forward Jayden Gardner, who ranks fifth in the AAC in both scoring (16.3 ppg) and rebounding (7.6 rpg) this season. Last season, Gardner led the conference in scoring at 19.7 points per game, and he had 10 games with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Memphis enters the game on a four-game winning streak against the Pirates and has won six of the last seven matchups overall. East Carolina's last win in the series came on Feb. 3, 2018 in Greenville, 88-85 in overtime.

Third-year Pirates associate head coach Steve Roccaforte, who previously served as an assistant at Memphis from 2000-03, is scheduled to serve as East Carolina head coach Sunday with head coach Joe Dooley sidelined in accordance with COVID-19 protocols.

During his three seasons in the Bluff City, Roccaforte helped direct the Tigers to three-straight 20-win seasons and three-consecutive postseason appearances (2001, 2002 NIT; 2003 NCAA). Roccaforte was on staff when Memphis won the program's first postseason tournament championship with the 2002 NIT title.

Game Details
Memphis (7-5, 3-2 AAC) at East Carolina (7-3, 1-3 AAC)
Sunday, Jan. 24, 2021 | 3 p.m. CT
Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum; Greenville, N.C.
Television: ESPN2 (Kevin Brown, pxp; Jon Crispin, analysis)
Radio: 102.7 FM/600 AM (Dave Woloshin, pxp; Matt Dillon, analysis)
Internet: WatchESPN.com

By The Numbers
- 2008: The last time the Tigers held five-straight conference foes to fewer than 60 points (Jan. 9, ECU, 58; Jan. 12, at Marshall, 45; Jan. 16, at Rice, 50; Jan. 19, Southern Miss, 47; Jan. 23, at Tulsa, 41).
- 15th: Memphis' national rank in field-goal percentage defense (.385); the AAC is the only conference with three teams in the top-15 (Houston, 2nd, .371; Tulsa, 10th, .378).
- 5.6: Average margin of defeat in Memphis' five losses this season; three have been by six points or fewer and two by one possession.
- 6-1: Memphis' record when hitting the 70-point mark this season; the Tigers are 1-4 when scoring 69 or fewer points.
- 8: Double-digit scoring games for Landers Nolley II in 12 games this season; he had 25 in 32 outings as a freshman at Virginia Tech last year.

The Last Time Out
- The Memphis Tigers exploded offensively in the second half and locked down on defense to pick up a 72-52 win over the Wichita State Shockers Thursday night at FedExForum.
- Wichita State (8-4, 4-2 AAC) entered the game in second place in the American Athletic Conference standings, having won seven of its last eight games.
- The Tigers (7-5, 3-2 AAC) held the potent Wichita State offense to 22 points under its season average.
- The win was head coach Penny Hardaway's 50th from the top seat on the Tigers bench.
- Moussa Cisse recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Landers Nolly II had 16 points, seven rebounds, and three assists.
- Alex Lomax added a season-high 12 points, and DeAndre Williams finished with 10 points and five assists.
- The Tigers limited Wichita State's Travis Etienne to three points on 1-of-12 shooting. Etienne entered the game as the conference's second-highest scorer at 17.9 points per game.
- Memphis ended the game holding Wichita State to just 29.4 percent shooting from the field (20-68), a season low by a Tigers opponent.
- Dialed in from distance, Memphis hit 11 3-pointers in the game, which was a season high.
- The Tigers shot a blistering 57.6 percent in the second half (19-33).
- The Tigers led 25-19 at the break, thanks in part to an 8-0 run over 1:45 that turned a one-point deficit into a 22-15 lead.
- Wichita State's 19 first-half points tied the fewest Memphis has allowed in a first period this season, joining Dec. 21 against Tulsa.
- Memphis took a big leap with another 8-0 burst to make the score 41-29 with 14:48 left in the game, and the Tigers led by 16, 48-32, on a Lomax triple a couple of minutes later.
- All 12 of Cisse's points and six of his rebounds came in the second half.
- Lomax and Williams each had nine points in the second 20 minutes.

Noting the Pirates
- The Pirates began the season with a 7-1 record before dropping their last two outings.
- The squad's 7-2 record through nine games was its best since also going 7-2 in 2013-14.
- East Carolina is 29th in the nation in effective field goal percentage (.456), which is field goal percentage with 3-pointers weighted due to their extra value.
- The Pirates were picked to finish ninth in the AAC's preseason poll.
- They return all five starters from a season ago, when they went 11-20 overall and 5-13 in conference play.
- This is reflected in their minutes continuity, as 82.7 percent of the Pirates' minutes are played by the same player as last season.
- That ranks second in the nation.

Last Game Against East Carolina
- Precious Achiuwa posted his 15th double-double and Boogie Ellis continued his strong second-half-of-the-season play to lead Memphis to a 77-73 win over East Carolina at FedExForum on Feb. 19, 2020.
- Achiuwa, the rebounding leader among freshmen in Division 1, made 9-of-13 field goals and 6-of-10 free throws for a game-high 24 points, one shy of his career-high. He added 12 rebounds.
- Ellis scored 17 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including four 3-pointers.
- The two freshmen helped the Tigers (18-8, 7-6 AAC) snap a three-game losing streak, their longest of the season.
- The Pirates (10-17, 4-10 AAC) trailed by double digits in the opening minutes of the second half, but battled back to tie the game three times (at 60-all, at 66-all and at 69-all) in the final 6:23.
- Key baskets from Ellis and Achiuwa on consecutive possessions built a cushion the UofM used to hold on to a much-needed win.
- In the closing 40 seconds, the Tigers made four free throws (in eight attempts) to secure the win.
- Damion Baugh had seven rebounds, a career high.
- ECU got 23 points and 13 rebounds from Tristen Newton, both career-highs.
- Jayden Gardner, the league's scoring leader at 20 points per game, finished with 16, and Bitumba Baruti scored 14, his career high.

Looking Ahead
After Sunday's game, Memphis' upcoming schedule features four games but only two opponents. The Tigers are making up postponements against SMU and UCF and will face the Mustangs on Tuesday in Memphis and Thursday in Dallas. Memphis then hosts UCF on Feb. 1 and Feb. 3. Tuesday's game at FedExForum tips off at 6 p.m. and can be seen on ESPNU.

A limited number of tickets are available for home games with the same social distancing safety guidelines in place as earlier this season. Tickets may be purchased online at www.GoTigersGoTix.com or by calling (901) 678-2331. Fans with existing season tickets or ticket packages can use their current tickets for upcoming games. More information can be found at www.GoTigersGo.com.