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 2021-22 Hoops Schedule
• ECU 2022 Baseball Schedule
• ECU 2022 Football Schedule
• Recruiting: Football • Hoops

From the Anchor Desk
Pirates go for third straight conference win

January 14, 2020 By Brian Bailey Leave a Comment

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin

I don’t know what was said in the huddle with the East Carolina-Southern Methodist game tied at 68, but I do know that Tristen Newton came back on the court with a big smile on his face.

Newton parlayed that smile into a game-winning three point shot to give the Pirates a 71-68 upset win over an SMU team that came to Greenville with a 12-2 record on the season.

The Pirates got off to a great start and an early 11-3 lead in the game. But SMU survived that early flurry and led by eleven at the half.

In the second half the Pirates hung around long enough to have a chance. Joe Dooley’s club took advantage of that chance and pulled off the upset.

Tristen Newton (ECU Media Relations)

Dooley diagrammed the winning play, and his Pirates executed it to perfection.

“Jayden set a good screen and Tremont got going downhill,” Dooley said. “If they didn’t help on the drive then he could have had a lay-up. Once he got around the corner, they helped and he threw the ball to Tristen. Obviously Tristen made a huge shot.”

Tristen took the pass and set his sights on the game-winning three.

“We were running the play for Tremont to get downhill and he got downhill,” said Newton. “Three people went in on him, so he just threw it to me. It was a wide-open shot.”

It was a wide-open shot that was dead-on into the hoop for the game-winner with just 2.7 seconds left on the clock.

East Carolina has now won two in a row in the American Athletic Conference. They’ll go for three in a row on Wednesday night hosting Tulsa.

Dooley knows his team has a long way to go. Still, he couldn’t help but pause a little on Saturday to reflect on just how big this win was for his program.

“Our guys responded at halftime and we rallied,” Dooley said. “We just chipped away and chipped away and obviously we had some guys make some big plays, culminating with Tristen’s shot. There also were a number of them before that (shot) that got us in that spot.”

This is a much different team than the one we saw back in November.

Tremont Robinson-White and Tyrie Jackson were injured early in the year. Their return has certainly made a difference.

This is a team of players that are still learning to play together.

“We’re scratching and clawing and making baby steps,” said Dooley. “We want to get to the point where we can compete night in and night out, and I think the guys are trying to do that and we still have a ways to go, but we’re gaining on it a little bit at least.”

Win or lose, Joe Dooley has a team that is playing hard. It’s a team that seems to like one another.

Jayden Gardner is the star of the squad. Gardner knows that he needs help in order to turn this program around. Gardner likes what he sees of late.

“Like I touched on last game, this team hasn’t reached its ceiling yet,” said Gardner. “We’re going to keep getting better and better.”

Attendance at Williams Arena has certainly picked up. A crowd of 4,014 saw the upset win over SMU.

As far as some other numbers go, ECU won its sixth consecutive home game and improved to 7-2 inside Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum this season. The Pirates also snapped a 10-game losing streak to SMU, posting their first win over the Mustangs since Feb. 23, 2013, at Moody Coliseum in Dallas.

ECU has a winning record through three conference games for the first time as a member of the American Athletic Conference and the first time since opening the 2012-13 Conference USA campaign 2-1.

Joe Dooley is making big progress with this program. His players deserve the support of the Pirate Nation.

Here’s hoping for an even bigger crowd on Wednesday night when Tulsa comes a calling.

ECU 2019-20 BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
PIRATES GO FOR THIRD STRAIGHT CONFERENCE WIN
WINNING AWAKENS ECU’S ‘SIXTH MAN’
TRISTEN’S TRIPLE LIFTS PIRATES
PIRATES TAKE MOMENTUM INTO SMU TEST
MCNEILL COAXING PIRATES THROUGH ROUGH SEAS
GARDNER LEADS PIRATES PAST USF
GARDNER SETS THE PACE AS PIRATES MAKE HEADWAY
LEBO RETURNS TO COACHING

Related

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin

Filed Under: News & Features

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

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

Recent News & Features

Baseball News
Pirates walk off in 10th for sweep

Baseball News
Pirates continue roll

Baseball News
Pirates overtake Houston for 12th straight win

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Pirates grind to success

Baseball News
ECU edges Campbell, 7-6

Baseball News
Pirates clinch AAC crown

Baseball News
ECU captures series, boosts conference lead

Baseball News
Pirates take series opener with Bulls

ECU Recruiting News
Pirates aim high for interior line talent

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Pirates prevail at less than best

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

ECU Recruiting News
Pirates aim high for interior line talent

ECU Recruiting News
Well stocked Pirates enter fray for O-linemen

ECU Recruiting News
ECU faces uphill battle in hunt for tight ends

ECU Recruiting News
Pirates cast wide net for wide receivers

ECU Recruiting News
Loaded Pirates still courting running backs

ECU Recruiting News
ECU targets quarterbacks of the future

AAC Football Recruiting News
Transfer portal reshaping AAC football programs

Class of 2022 Defensive Report Card
ECU’s former weak link becoming big strength (updated)

Class of 2022 Offensive Report Card
Help is on the way for blocking corps (update 3)

American Athletic Conference Recruiting
Bearcats lead AAC’s early signing push

Class of 2022 In-depth Analysis
Surprises, depth highlight early recruiting haul

VIEW FROM THE EAST
‘What a difference a year makes’

Football Recruiting Report
Prolific receiver Webb may enroll early

Football Recruiting Report
Another gifted running back headed to ECU

Football Recruiting Report
ECU wins pledge from hotly recruited RB Gunn

Football Recruiting Report
Coveted lineman Sacra may enroll early

Football Recruiting Report
Pirates lure a star from DB factory

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Harrell on quest for unanimous effort

Football Recruiting Report
West Craven star Mims sticking close to home

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Pirates ready for preseason camp

Football Recruiting Report
Lineman built his future during COVID layoff

Football Recruiting Report
Norcross star on track for early enrollment

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Pirates pulling from portal

Football Recruiting Report
Big man Allen tapping into ‘nasty side’

Football Recruiting Report
ECU gets one of NC’s top D-line prospects

Recent Web Roundups

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Sunday, May 22, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Saturday, May 21, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Friday, May 20, 2022

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 WEB ROUNDUP
Sunday, May 22, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Saturday, May 21, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Friday, May 20, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Thursday, May 19, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Wednesday, May 18, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Monday, May 16, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Sunday, May 15, 2022

More Web Roundups

Copyright © 2022 Bonesville.net · Website by Seaport Webworks. · Log in · Privacy Policy