East Carolinian

Issue date: 1/13/09 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Ashley Yarber

The ECU women's basketball team fell to SMU, 80-73, on Saturday afternoon inside Moody Coliseum. The Lady Pirates fell to 10-6 overall and 1-2 in conference play while the Mustangs improved to 9-7 on the season and 2-1 in C-USA action.

ECU hit three of its first four shots to take a 6-2 advantage at the 18:25 mark. With 12:06 remaining in the half and the Lady Pirates leading by four (21-17), SMU put together four-straight points to tie the score at 9:52. Then, sophomore Allison Spivey hit a three to return the lead to ECU. From there, the Mustangs would take charge, using a 15-6 run to assume a 36-30 advantage. A jumper by senior Jasmine Young pulled the Lady Pirates to within 40-36 with 1:30 left in the period, but a deep three-pointer by LaShandra Hill restored a seven-point lead for SMU. Two free throws by senior LaCoya Terry would leave the scoreline at 44-40 going into the break.

Young led ECU at the half with eight points while sophomore Tiahana Bowens grabbed a team-high five rebounds. The Lady Pirates shot the ball well, firing at a .447 clip but the Mustangs dominated the glass, pulling down 34 rebounds as compared to just 18 for ECU. Additionally, each team turned the ball over 10 times.

The Lady Pirates came within two points at 46-44 with 17:28 on the second half clock, but SMU piled up 13-straight points to take its largest lead of the game at 57-46 at the 13:04 mark. An 8-2 run by ECU over the next three minutes brought them to within 59-54 with 10 minutes remaining, but the Mustangs pushed through with a 14-10 run to put the game away and earn their second conference victory.

The Lady Pirates shot the ball well, turning in a percentage of .492 while SMU also was efficient, making .439 percent of its shots. The Mustangs had a large advantage on the boards, out-rebounding ECU 45-29. The squads also finished with 19 turnovers apiece.

Young led three Lady Pirates in double figures with 16, as she was joined by Terry (14) and Gay (12). Young also dished out a team-high five assists. Bowens ended up with seven rebounds, a season-high.

The Lady Pirates return to action against Marshall next Sunday, Jan. 18. Tip off inside the Cam Henderson Center is set for 2 p.m.

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