Tulsa Wins at East Carolina, 84-69

Tuesday, January 19

Greenville, N.C.

6:00 p.m.

Tulsa

12-6,4-2AAC

East Carolina

8-11,0-6AAC

Tulsa

East Carolina

Tulsa Wins at East Carolina, 84-69

1/19/2016 10:31:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

By: Eric Hollier

Box Score

GREENVILLE, N.C. – James Woodard scored 22 points and Pat Birt put up 20 points to lead the Tulsa basketball team to an 84-69 win at American Athletic Conference foe East Carolina Tuesday evening at Minges Coliseum.

Woodard and Birt combined for 10 of Tulsa's 14 3-pointers, as the Golden Hurricane won its fourth straight game and improved to 12-6 overall and 4-2 in American Conference play. Shaquille Harrison nearly recorded a triple-double, tallying a career-high 10 assists, with 10 points, eight rebounds, four steals and two blocks. Five Tulsa players scored in double figures, as Rashad Ray scored 11 points with three 3-pointers, and Rashad Smith scored 12 points.

TU totaled 22 assists on 30 made field goals and 12 steals, forcing 19 ECU turnovers. Tulsa shot 52 percent from the field, and 52 percent from downtown on 14-of-27 treys, and sunk 10-of-14 free throws. The Pirates (8-11, 0-6 American) shot 48 percent from the field and held a 33-28 rebounding advantage. B.J. Tyson led ECU with 16 points.

"I think we're in a good place. I feel like our guys are growing and getting better, and that's all you want. We're not a finished product yet, but we're moving in that direction," Tulsa Head Coach Frank Haith said. "I thought our guys had great composure. We didn't defend well early, but we defended the last 10 minutes of the game to close the game out, and that was good to see on the road. We shared the ball, with 22 assists, and we made 14 threes. You're not going to make that many threes night-in and night-out, but we were able to spread the ball around, share it, and a lot of guys shot the ball well."

East Carolina cut Tulsa's 42-37 halftime lead to 42-40 when Tyson made a 3-pointer to start the second half. Tulsa responded with a three by Birt and a layup by Harrison to extend its lead to 47-40 at the 19:06 mark. The Pirates cut the lead to 52-51 with 14:44 to play, but a layup by Woodard brought the lead back to 54-51. ECU tied the score at 56-56 on a 3-pointer by Caleb White with 13:20 remaining.

Smith made a layup on Tulsa's next possession and Birt knocked down a trey to make the score, 61-56. ECU got as close as 63-61 with 9:48 left, but would get no closer. Birt hit a pair of threes and a jumper, and Ray made a layup to extend the TU lead to 73-65. The Hurricane closed the game with an 11-4 run to reach the 84-69 final.

The last ECU field goal of the game was Kentrell Barkley's jumper that made it 69-65 with 7:38 left. The Pirates missed their last eight field goals and made four free throws in the final seven-and-a-half minutes. After White's 3-pointer that made it 63-61 with 9:48 left, the Tulsa defense held ECU to 1-of-10 from the field and just eight points for the remainder of the game.

TU held ECU to 39 percent from the field in the second half after the Pirates shot 56 percent in the opening period. The Hurricane, meanwhile, shot 55 percent in the second half after hitting 48 percent from the field in the first half.

Tulsa's 14 3-pointers were a season-high, and one more than the 13 treys it scored nine days ago at Tulane. It is the most 3-pointers for TU since hitting 14 threes on Dec. 21, 2010 at Wichita State.

Woodard knocked down a 3-pointer on the first possession off the opening tip, but East Carolina scored six points in a row to take the lead. The Hurricane responded with six in a row, including two baskets by Harrison and one by Brandon Swannegan, to move ahead, 9-6. Tulsa extended a 12-11 lead to 21-13 with a 9-2 run, capped by a 3-pointer by Marquel Curtis with 10:32 left in the first half.

The Pirates went on a 15-0 run over a 4:00 span to take the lead, 28-21, with 6:32 to play in the half. Trailing 31-24, the Hurricane went on a 12-0 run to move ahead, 36-31, with 2:03 remaining in the period. Ray started the run with a trey, and Woodard scored eight straight points with a pair of threes during the spurt. Tulsa's first-half lead grew as large as 42-33 after a 3-pointer by Pat Birt with :55 left, and the Hurricane led 42-37 at the break.

The Golden Hurricane returns home to face UCF at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Donald W. Reynolds Center.

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