TULSA — East Carolina overcame a 12-point deficit in the second half for an 85-76 overtime win at Tulsa on Tuesday night.
The Pirates took their second straight American Athletic Conference road win to improve to 11-9 overall and 3-4 in league play as Jordan Riley scored 27 points and R,J. Felton added 24.
“Toughness,” cited ECU coach Mike Schwartz on the Pirate radio network as a deciding factor. “We got out-toughed in the first half. We talked about that in the locker room — the paint game. … There was a physicality and a toughness about us in the second half.”
Felton hit a three with 17 seconds left in regulation for a 69-67 ECU lead. The Golden Hurricane (8-11, 2-4 AAC) tied the score with two seconds left on two free throws by Dwon Odom.
Riley’s jumper with 3:03 left in the extra period provided a 73-71 advantage and the Pirates led the rest of the way.
Shwartz noted the disparity in 3-pointers as ECU hit 11 of 27 for 40.7 percent while the hosts were seven for 24 (29.2 percent).
Jayshayne Woodard and Cam Hayes scored nine points each in the win.
Felton had eight rebounds and Riley pulled down seven as the Pirates had a 36-30 lead on the boards.
Cam Hayes and Yann Farrel each had five assists for ECU.
Tulsa was paced by 19 points from Odom.
The Pirates host South Florida on Saturday at 1 p.m. (ESPN+). The Bulls (10-8, 3-2) visit Charlotte on Wednesday at 7 p.m. (ESPN+). USF took a 75-69 win over ECU in Tampa on Dec. 31.
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