Pirates stifled by Memphis, 75-69

by | Feb 2, 2025

By ECUPirates.com

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The East Carolina women’s basketball team dropped a frustrating 75-69 contest to the Memphis Tigers on Saturday afternoon in Elma Roane Fieldhouse.

Three Pirates scored in double figures in the game, led by Anzhané Hutton’s 20 points, but Memphis’ eight made three-point shots were timely and spelled doom as the second half wore on.

The game was a bit of a tale of two halves—one in which two teams battled and traded leads and one in which a hot-shooting home side took control. It was, perhaps, not an unfamiliar formula for the sport.

The Pirates (11-11, 3-7 AAC) got off to a hot start, taking a 6-0 lead which would prove to be the team’s largest of the game. Memphis (5-15, 3-6 AAC) came back and in the first half the game saw a pair of lead changes and four ties. The lead changed hands three more times in the early going of the second half before Memphis took the lead for good at the 6:48 mark of the third quarter.

Four Tigers scored in double figures on the game, but it was Tanyuel Welch and Tilly Boler who scorched the nets, both hitting three triples for 21 and 19 points, respectively. Welch did so without a miss from behind the mark and was simply impossible to defend in the second half as she scored 16 points after the halftime break and 12 in the fourth quarter alone.

Wherever a glimmer of hope for a comeback briefly shone for ECU, Welch and Boler were inevitably there to snuff it out.

Memphis went on to lead by as many as 15 in the second half and did so while taking care of the ball, turning the ball over only 11 times in the game. The Pirates, on the other hand, gave it away 18 times for 15 points off of turnovers for the Tigers.

Overall, the Pirates struggle again to score the ball, only 17 points in the game coming from field goals outside of the painted area. The team scored 44 points from the paint, which is great in ordinary circumstances, but when it is accompanied by 3-13 from behind the arc and 18 turnovers, it becomes markedly more difficult to come away victorious.

It is worth mentioning, too, that the Pirates found themselves in foul trouble early and often in the game, finishing the day with five players just getting by with four fouls.

Up Next
The Pirates are back out on the road on Wednesday as they travel to Birmingham, Ala. to face off with UAB at 7 p.m. ET.

Check out Pirate Radio

Website | Facebook | X (formerly Twitter) | Instagram | YouTube

Top Headlines

The Brian Bailey Show: ECU Pitching Coach Austin Knight

A familiar face will be the guest on Monday's edition of "The Brian Bailey Show." ECU Pitching Coach Austin Knight will be Brian Bailey's guest. He's been on a couple of Pirate Radio shows and will join Bailey to discuss the upcoming ECU baseball season. They'll also...

Pirates fall at Temple in overtime, 98-94

By ECUPirates.com PHILADELPHIA – C.J. Walker scored a career-high 33 points but East Carolina was unable to hold off a late-game surge from Temple as the Pirates fell in overtime to the Owls, 98-94, on Saturday afternoon at The Liacouras Center. Buccaneer Scoreboard -...

Clayton McCullough going extra mile to make Marlins successful

ECU Alum, Greenville native and J.H. Rose High School grad Clayton McCullough is keeping busy over the past couple of weeks. CBSNews.com followed him around to see what he’s been doing lately. Most of his time has been spent getting the team ready for the 2025 MLB...

PRL Friday: Heading into the weekend by talking sports

It's Friday and time to put a wrap on a busy week of sports with discussion about what's going on. You've got ECU men's basketball looking for four in a row against Temple, UNC vs. Duke and other college basketball action. There's also NASCAR and build-up for the...

Jeff Hoffman ranked among top 10 relief pitchers in MLB

ECU Alum Jeff Hoffman is ranked among the 10 top relief pitchers in Major League Baseball. Empire Sports Media put together its list of the most elite relief pitchers in the game. Their list doesn’t include all closers, so those that made the list are definitely among...

Connor Norby switching from No. 24 to No. 1 for Marlins in 2025

If you don’t happen to see Connor Norby on the field for the Miami Marlins this season, it may be that you’re just not looking for the correct number on his uniform. The ECU Alum is switching from the No. 24 he wore when he was traded from the Baltimore Orioles to the...

PRL Thursday: The gang’s all here for another busy show

Thursday's "Pirate Radio Live" has some familiar faces talking about familiar topics. Joining Clip Brock and Chandler Honeycutt on the show will be WNCT-TV's Zach Kaplan, Jeff Nadu to talk college basketball bets and Pirate Radio's Greg Hudson to talk football and...

What future plans do Ravens have for Keaton Mitchell?

The Super Bowl is set between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. Once again, the Baltimore Ravens are not involved. Fans are still reeling from the team's loss to the Buffalo Bills, the team the Chiefs beat in the AFC Championship. New York Times...