Kemp, Armstrong shoot down Owls

From electronic and staff reports
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Senior forward Maurice Kemp and junior forward Ty Armstrong fried Rice with a combined 55 points Saturday night, propelling East Carolina to a 79-63 Conference USA victory in Houston.

Kemp had a career-high 33 points on 10-of-15 from the floor and 13-of-16 from the free throw line to boost his league-leading scoring average to 17.9. The Miami, FL, product added 9 rebounds and 6 steals as the Pirates ended a two-game losing skid and improved to 13-8 overall, 4-4 in the league.

Armstrong, a transfer from Auburn, also had a career night, scoring 22 points on 9-of-11 shooting in just 21 minutes of playing time. Saddled with four fouls, Armstrong saw just eight minutes of second half action.

Each team probed with little success for an advantage in the first half. There were five ties and five lead changes before ECU eked out a 29-26 edge going into intermission.

Senior guard Tamir Jackson pulled Rice with one on a layup 30 seconds into the final frame. That was the Owls' last hurrah before Armstrong and Kemp shifted into high gear.

Over the next four minutes, the pair sandwiched a flurry of offensive output around a three by senior guard Miguel Paul to boost the lead to 14. Armstrong had three baskets and Kemp connected on two during the outburst, which included a conventional three-point play by each of them.

After the 15-2 run, the Pirates never looked back.

Jackson scored 19 points and Austin Ramljak added 12 for the Owls, who fell to 5-16, 1-6.

ECU shot 57.4 percent for the game, including a blistering 71.4 percent in the second half. The Pirates outrebounded Rice 35-29 and outscored the Owls in the paint 44-32.

The Pirates have a week to prepare for their next outing, a challenging road matchup with Central Florida. ECU knocked off the Golden Knights in an 88-85 overtime thriller in Greenville on Jan. 12.

UCF (15-6, 5-2) had a four-game winning streak halted Saturday in a 75-71 loss at Marshall. Before welcoming the Pirates to Orlando, the Knights will host league co-leader Southern Miss Wednesday night.

PAGE UPDATED 02/03/13 03:51 AM.

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