Pirates Escape Disaster: ECU Survives Scare Against D-II Elizabeth City State, 71-70
East Carolina nearly walked straight into a nightmare on Thursday night inside Minges Coliseum, coming one possession away from what would have been one of the worst losses in program history. Instead, the Pirates exhaled after a chaotic final sequence that ended with no whistle on a drive by ECSU guard Jaquantae Harris, allowing ECU to escape with a 71-70 win.
It wasn’t supposed to come down to that. It wasn’t supposed to be close at all. But on a night where ECU played without Jordan Riley (illness) and remained without Trevion LaBeaux (season-ending injury), the Pirates found themselves in a four-quarter fistfight with a Division II opponent that refused to back down.
Schwartz: “Feel fortunate we were able to win.”
Afterward, Head Coach Michael Schwartz didn’t sugarcoat the situation.
“Feel fortunate that we were able to win and come out in the right column,” Schwartz said.
Schwartz also acknowledged how thin his roster was and how much the foul trouble hurt.
“You're thin right now, and guys are stepping up, and we're trying,” Schwartz said.
“Numbers-wise, we were doing what we wanted to do defensively. They make some tough shots, and you feel like the world is coming down on you. That's basketball. Guys are going to make shots. They played 14 players tonight. We were basically down to a seven-man rotation. Any foul trouble gave us issues. I will find a way to look at the areas guys stepped up and did the right thing, and I think that's going to be growth.”
A dogfight from start to finish
This wasn’t a one-off run or a sloppy five-minute stretch. ECU was in a true battle from the opening tip to the final buzzer. The Pirates’ largest lead of the night was just seven points — and that came with 9:45 left in the first half.
Elizabeth City State didn’t just “hang around.” They matched ECU shot for shot, made contested jumpers, and attacked the paint with confidence. The Vikings looked like the team playing with nothing to lose, and every time the Pirates started to inch ahead, ECSU had an answer.
By the final minute, Minges was silent. ECU’s margin for error was gone, and the Vikings had the ball down one with a chance to win it. Harris drove hard to the rim with two seconds remaining, drew contact, and… nothing. No whistle. The ball slipped out of bounds, and ECU survived.
Emejuru continues breakout start
If there was one bright spot for ECU, it was Giovanni Emejuru, who has now stacked impressive performances in back-to-back games. The sophomore big man was the best player on the court, finishing with:
23 points
10 rebounds
8-for-11 from the field
He also threw down an emphatic dunk with 1:42 left that gave ECU brief momentum before the frantic finish.
Tybo Bailey steps up, but ECU cold from three again
With Riley unavailable, Tybo Bailey took on a huge scoring load, dropping 19 points while attacking the rim and going 9-for-10 at the free-throw line.
But the Pirates again struggled from deep, shooting 3-of-21 from three. That kept ECSU in the game and prevented ECU from ever delivering the knockout blow.
Rebounding saves ECU from disaster.
ECU dominated the boards 46–30, including 16 offensive rebounds that led to 21 second-chance points. Without that, the Pirates are walking off with the wrong kind of history.
Pirates move to 2–1, UNCW up next
It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t expected. And it won’t be one that gets celebrated. But the Pirates are 2–1, and now turn the page quickly before heading to UNCW next tuesday.
ECU has a lot to clean up, especially on the perimeter and with its rotation, but for now, the Pirates survived. And on a night like this, surviving was enough.