Bonesville: The Authoritative Independent Voice of East Carolina

News & Features from ECU, the AAC and Beyond

  • Home
  • News & Features
  • Recruiting
  • Photos
  • Audio
  • Roundup
  • Comments
  • Legacy Archives
  • • ECU 2021 BASEBALL SCHEDULE
  • • ECU 2021 BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
  • • ECU 2021 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

From the Anchor Desk
Pirates finally shake the monkey off their back

February 7, 2017 By Brian Bailey 2 Comments

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin

We all knew that one day the shots would fall for this East Carolina basketball team.

That day came on Saturday, as ECU shot almost 60 percent from the three point line in a 74-65 win over Tulane.

This same gang that hadn’t been able to shoot straight came out guns a blazing on Saturday, hitting six of their first seven shots from the three-point line.

The Pirates made a season-high 12 3-pointers in the win.

Those same shots that simply haven’t fallen in American Athletic Conference play finally found the nets on Saturday.

Last week, interim head coach Mike Perry was asked about the shooting woes and he summed it up by comparing his current bunch of shooters with former Pirate sharpshooter Akeem Richmond.

Richmond led ECU to the program’s only true championship, the CIT win in 2013. You’ll recall it was Richmond who hit the game winning three at the buzzer at Weber State in that 77-74 victory.

“Akeem didn’t have a conscience,” said Perry. “He would miss five in a row and keep looking for a shot. He knew he could hit five in a row.”

Perry then compared Akeem’s success to Caleb White’s struggles leading into the Tulane game.

“Caleb is just too nice,” explained Perry. “He misses a couple of shots and he starts looking to get the ball to someone else. He’s a good kid and he’ll get it back. A lot of our guys are like that.”

White broke out of his woes with a 20-point outing in the win over Tulane. He was 5-11 from the field and 3-7 from beyond the arc.

“Felt good to see the first couple to go, gain some more confidence as the game goes on,” said White after the victory. “Putting the ball on the floor, getting to the free throw line. [I] just had to stay aggressive. You are just more confident — you can do different things and you aren’t afraid to do things. Better flow overall. Just more confident overall. Just a weight off my shoulders, I could relax at halftime.”

Hopefully, their were enough positives in Saturday’s win to help gain some positives for the second half of the AAC season.

Kentrell Barkley continues to play well. Despite ECU’s struggles, Barkley has proven to be the beacon of hope. He was just four assists short of the program’s first ever triple-double. Barkley scored 14 points, hauled in a dozen rebounds and dished out six assists.

The other standout from Saturday was freshman Jeremy Sheppard. Shep hadn’t started a game since New Year’s Eve. He took advantage of the starting opportunity, scoring a career high 18 points in the victory.

“I thought we have been able to get good starts defensively,” said Perry. “I thought we would get a better spark if we had an offensive substitution. Also I was concerned with teams pressuring us and I didn’t want us to be shocked with the pressure and stagnate us early.

“I wanted Jeremy because he can beat the pressure off the bounce by himself, especially in the full court. I didn’t want us to get stagnant on offense. I knew he would create and generate more offensive pace.”

White agreed that Sheppard certainly provided a much needed spark.

“Jeremy helped out some tonight, too,” White said of Sheppard. “He had been going through a little bit of a shooting slump and [rookie Elijah Hughes] was down a little bit. Once guys put it together with [Barkley] on certain nights, we’ll be in a lot better position to compete and win.”

Perhaps what was most impressive about the victory is that it came after such an embarrassing loss.

“It was a massacre in Dallas,” said Perry. “You’re always concerned. What’s going to be the mentality of your team as they try to respond from such a devastating loss? I couldn’t have been prouder of this group. They held themselves accountable for what happened in Dallas, and they moved forward from there.”

Now the trick will be to move forward from the win over the Green Wave.

The Pirates have this week off as far as games go, and then they go to Tampa looking for the season sweep of South Florida.

Then come a couple of American home games, against Temple and Central Florida, before the return game with Tulane.

There is still plenty of basketball to be played this season.

Perhaps this team has regained its confidence and can make a little run down the stretch.

VIEW ECU’S 2016-17 BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin

Filed Under: News & Features

Comments

  1. Scott says

    February 7, 2017 at 6:40 am

    Good to get the W, some reward for the effort. There’s a lot of talent on this team. Good effort by everybody. Go Pirates!

    Reply
    • Richard Edwards says

      February 7, 2017 at 2:26 pm

      Agree with you Scott – i believe we have a better team than the record shows. I hope good things continue for the pirates. GGOOOO…PPIRATES!!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent News & Features

Baseball News
Pirates take series

Baseball News
ECU dealt first defeat

Baseball News
ECU prevails over Eagles in first road game

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Pirates prep for challenging start in 2021

Baseball News
Pirates use long ball to down Duke

Football Recruiting Report
Banner recruits keep American on the rise

Basketball News
Postponements continue to mount in AAC hoops

Baseball News
Pirates complete sweep

Baseball News
Norby paces Pirates to series win

Baseball News
Pirates edge Rams, 3-2, in 10 innings

More News & Features

ECU Schedules

  • ECU 2021 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2020-21 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2021 Baseball Schedule

ECU Recruiting

  • Football Recruiting Class of 2021
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2020
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2019
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2018
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2017
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2021-22
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2020-21
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2019-20
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2018-19
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2017-18
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2016-17
Tweets by bonesville

Past Football Schedules

  • ECU 2020 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2019 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2018 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2017 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2016 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2015 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2014 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2013 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2012 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2011 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2010 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2009 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2008 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2007 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2006 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2005 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2004 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2003 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2002 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2001 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2000 Football Schedule
  • Historical Schedules

Past Basketball Schedules

  • ECU 2019-20 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2018-19 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2017-18 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2016-17 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2000-2015 Basketball Archives

Past Baseball Schedules

  • ECU 2020 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2019 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2018 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2017 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2016 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2015 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2001-2014 Baseball Archives

Recruiting Class Profiles

Football Recruiting Report
Banner recruits keep American on the rise

ECU Recruiting Evaluation, Part 2
Defensive report card: Pirates lure experience

ECU Recruiting Evaluation, Part 1
Offensive report card: Skill positions reinforced

ECU Football Recruiting - Early Evaluation
Pirates fortify secondary

Football Recruiting
Pirates land lineman with ‘nasty attitude’

Football Recruiting
Former TCU linebacker sets new path at ECU

Football Recruiting
Florida produces another quarterback gem for ECU

Football Recruiting
Legacy of ECU’s receivers helped sell Keigley

Football Recruiting
Pirates reaping dividends from Tri-City focus

Football Recruiting
Close relationship with ECU staff swayed Temple

Football Recruiting
Timely recruiting helped Pirates land Wright

Football Recruiting
COVID-19 opens door to FBS for Jason Shuford

Football Recruiting
ECU secondary secures Bama grad transfer Knott

Football Recruiting
ECU wins battle for coveted safety Clyatt

Football Recruiting
Grad transfer Chase rekindles ties with ECU

Recruiting Evaluation: Class of 2020 Defense
Defensive class caps off sterling recruiting effort

Recruiting Evaluation: Class of 2020 Offense
Gifted QBs, RBs headline offensive signees

Football Recruiting
Garrison’s route to ECU anything but typical

Early signing class evaluation
Pirates on the rise in recruiting wars

Football Recruiting
Healing prep star Hudson on track to sign early

Football Recruiting
Coveted QB recruit Garcia headed to Shrine Bowl

Football Recruiting
Help is on the way for ECU running game

Football Recruiting
Tackle took trek from ballboy to superstar

Football Recruiting
Crump brings ‘shut-down corner’ skills to ECU

Football Recruiting
ECU emerged from the pack to land McIver

Recent Web Roundups

GREG VACEK'S DAILY WEB ROUNDUP
Thursday, February 25, 2021

GREG VACEK'S DAILY WEB ROUNDUP
Wednesday, February 18, 2021

GREG VACEK'S DAILY WEB ROUNDUP
Saturday, February 13, 2021

Writer Archives

  • Bonesville Staff
  • Brian Bailey
  • Sammy Batten
  • Bethany Bradsher
  • Brett Friedlander
  • Al Myatt
  • NFF
  • Greg Vacek
  • Danny Whitford

Recent Web Roundups

GREG VACEK'S DAILY WEB ROUNDUP
Thursday, February 25, 2021

GREG VACEK'S DAILY WEB ROUNDUP
Wednesday, February 18, 2021

GREG VACEK'S DAILY WEB ROUNDUP
Saturday, February 13, 2021

GREG VACEK'S DAILY WEB ROUNDUP
Friday, February 12, 2021

GREG VACEK'S DAILY WEB ROUNDUP
Thursday, February 11, 2021

GREG VACEK'S DAILY WEB ROUNDUP
Tuesday, February 9, 2021

GREG VACEK'S DAILY WEB ROUNDUP
Monday, February 8, 2021

More Web Roundups

Copyright © 2021 Bonesville.net · Website by Seaport Webworks. · Log in · Privacy Policy