We won this game on what we do, and that’s defense.” “We did not hide from the hard things,” McNeill said. There wasn’t much scoring, but there were plenty of defensive stands, turnovers, and bodies crashing into each other and diving on the floor.ĮCU scored just two points in the first quarter, but found a way to overcome the offensive struggles, including a final field goal percentage of 28.1 percent, a free throw rate of 40.9 percent and 23 turnovers. Most of it came down to toughness and defense. ![]() In a matchup of two of the top defensive teams in the country, and a rematch of the Pirates’ triple overtime victory inside Minges Coliseum over the Cougars just a few weeks ago, ECU and Houston traded blows all evening long. They picked us last! And now we're going dancing,” McNeill said after the game on the ESPNU broadcast. It’s the third NCAA tournament berth in program history, and the first since 2007. Kim McNeill, in her fourth year as the team’s head coach, saw her squad go from being picked last in the preseason AAC media poll, to winning the conference tournament championship. ![]() That same trend played out in East Carolina’s favor again on Thursday night in the biggest win for the women’s basketball program in recent memory, as the Pirates defeated Houston, 46-44, in a slugfest to capture the first American Athletic Conference title in program history, and earn a bid to the NCAA tournament. ![]() It wasn’t pretty at times, but it was the way East Carolina has liked it all season long: Hard-fought, gritty and defensive.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |