Pirates shock Memphis, 84-83

Staff Report
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MEMPHIS, TN — In a situation where a win seemed beyond the realm of realistic hope, East Carolina stunned host Memphis 84-83 on Sunday afternoon at the FedEx Forum.

The Pirates were without second leading scorer Caleb White, who did not make the trip due to a concussion. ECU had not won on the road this season and had not beaten an American Athletic Conference opponent in six tries during the 2015-16 campaign.

B.J. Tyson came back from a sprained shoulder sustained in an 84-69 home loss to Tulsa on Tuesday night to match his career high with 26 points.

Prince Williams made two free throws with 4.1 seconds left to provide the final margin.

Sam Craft missed a final 3-point attempt for the Tigers.

Williams finished with 20 points and 10 assists as the Pirates improved to 9-11 overall and 1-6 in the AAC, halting a six-game losing streak.

"Proud of these guys," said ECU coach Jeff Lebo. "They stepped up."

It was a day of surprising outcomes in the league with Temple handing Southern Methodist its first loss of the season, 89-80, in Philadelphia.

A crowd of 11,165 saw the Pirates build a 45-36 lead at the half as Tyson scored 14 points in the opening 20 minutes.

ECU extended its lead to double figures several times in the second half, the last time at 66-55 on a jumper by Tyson with 10:52 remaining.

The Tigers (12-7, 3-3) had four leads in the final 6:04, the last at 83-82 with 16 seconds to go on a pair of foul shots by Trahson Burrell.

Memphis had won eight previous matchups at home against the Pirates before its lead in the overall series was reduced to 15-3 in Sunday's contest shown on the CBS Sports Network.

All three wins have come in the Lebo coaching era, the first on Mar. 2, 2011 by a 68-57 margin.

ECU won its second straight against the Tigers, successfully following up on a 64-55 home win on Feb. 10 of last season.

Memphis will visit Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum on Sunday, March 6, at 4 p.m., to close the regular season.

Tyson played 40 minutes Sunday. He had four assists in addition to hitting nine of 16 field goal attempts. He made six of 10 on his 3-point tries.

A 6-feet, 3-inch sophomore, Tyson also led the Pirates in rebounding with six.

ECU freshman Kentrell Barkley logged 39 minutes with 15 points and four assists.

Michael Zangari also overcame a shoulder issue to supply 11 points on four for eight shooting, hitting two for five beyond the arc.

Michel Nzege had eight of his nine points in the first half. Nzege had five rebounds.

Kanu Aja, Williams and Barkley had four rebounds each.

The Pirates made 16 of 26 field goal attempts in the first half for 61.5 percent. ECU sank 27 of 56 from the floor for 48.2 percent for the game.

The Pirates were 11 of 21 on threes for 52.4 percent.

ECU got to the line, making 19 of 27 for 70.4 percent.

Dedric Lawson led Memphis with 27 points. Shaq Goodwin had 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Tigers. Burrell finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Craft added 10 points.

The Pirates host Temple (11-7, 5-2) at 7 p.m. Wednesday.

PAGE UPDATED 01/25/16 12:55 AM.

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