WICHITA STATE ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS
WICHITA, Kan. — Wichita State fell to East Carolina, 83-56, on Saturday afternoon at Charles Koch Arena as the Pirates used early momentum and a strong defensive effort to pull away.
East Carolina (11-6, 3-1 American) opened the game on a 15-0 run and never relinquished the lead, forcing 27 Wichita State turnovers that led to 34 points.
"We gave them too many points off turnovers, so we've got to figure out how to handle the ball better," head coach Terry Nooner.
Wichita State (3-14, 0-4 American) was led by Treasure Thompson, who finished with a near double-double, scoring a team-high 12 points and grabbing nine rebounds off the bench. Jaila Harding added nine points and two steals, and Diamond Richardson chipped in eight points. The Shockers received a spark from their bench, which accounted for 28 points on the afternoon.
After sitting out the first 16 games due to an injury sustained in the exhibition game, Karys Washington made her Shocker debut, tallying seven points, four rebounds and three assists.
After trailing, 26-13 at the end of the first quarter, Wichita State had its best offensive quarter in the second, scoring 18 points, but ECU still extended its lead to 50-31 at halftime. Harding hit the Shockers' lone three of the game in the second quarter, extending her streak to 17 games with a three pointer this season and moving up to tie for fifth all-time in Wichita State history for single-season threes (51).
East Carolina kept its foot on the gas after the break, holding Wichita State to 25 points in the second half while extending its advantage behind efficient shooting and points off turnovers. The Pirates finished the game shooting 44.8 percent from the field
East Carolina closed out its dominant performance with a 17-15 fourth quarter to win 83-56 in a wire-to-wire win and improve to 3-1 in conference play.
The Shockers finished the game shooting 33.3 percent from three-point range and scored 32 points in the paint. Wichita State also totaled 28 bench points and 13 fast-break points.
The Shockers head to the Sunshine State to face Florida Atlantic on Tuesday, Jan. 13 at 6 p.m. CT and South Florida on Saturday, Jan. 17 at 6 p.m. CT.