Women's basketball falls, 74-64, to East Carolina

[PonyPride]

From SMUMustangs.com:

SMU Falls To East Carolina

DALLAS (SMU)- The SMU women's basketball team fell to East Carolina 74-64 on Saturday afternoon in Moody Coliseum.

Amirah Abdur-Rahim led SMU (13-13; 7-8 American Athletic Conference) with 14 points, five rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Reagan Bradley added 11 points, two boards, five assists, and two steals, and Tiara Young tallied 11 points, five boards, three assists, and two steals. Maya Chandler scored 11 points and grabbed six boards, and TK Pitts turned in 12 points, two rebounds, an assist, and a block. Chantae Embry finished with five points, four rebounds, one assist, and two steals, and Jiya Perry grabbed six boards.

The teams battled back and forth to start the fourth. Young finished a drive to reach double figures and bring the Mustangs within eight with two minutes left. A bucket from Pitts brought SMU within seven with 38 seconds remaining, but ECU iced the game with free throws down the stretch.

The Mustangs came out strong in the second half, narrowing the gap with a 9-2 run. Chandler's third three-pointer of the afternoon, a bucket and two free throws from Pitts brought SMU back within single digits. SMU forced ECU's fourth turnover of the quarter and knocked down two more free throws to extend its run to 9-0. The Mustangs outscored the Pirates 19-10 in the third to cut the deficit to 10 heading to the fourth.

Bradley countered six unanswered from the Pirates with a three-pointer to start the second. ECU used 10 points in a row to extend its lead to 40-22 at the media timeout. SMU trailed 51-32 at the break despite finishing the half making its final three shots from the field. SMU forced three turnovers to jump ahead early, but the Pirates countered with a 9-0 run to finish the first with a 21-16 lead.

NEXT GAME
at Wichita State– Wednesday, Feb. 28– 6 p.m. CT- Moody Coliseum
TV: ESPN+

NOTES
Starters vs. ECU: #13 Reagan Bradley, #1 Tiara Young, #10 Maya Chandler, #33 Chantae Embry, #23 Amirah Abdur-Rahim
Eighth time with this starting lineup, 5-3 record with this lineup
Five Mustangs scored in double figures for the third time this season
SMU made more three-point field goals than its opponent for the for the ninth time this season
SMU recorded more steals than its opponent for the 14th time this season
SMU scored more fast break points than its opponent for the 13th time this season
SERIES HISTORY
Sunday was the 27th meeting between the two programs. ECU leads the all-time series 14-13
ADDITIONAL INDIVIDUAL NOTES
Chantae Embry (#33, Jr., F)
5 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals
Shot 3-6 from the free throw line. Entered the night shooting 78.9% from the charity stripe (8th AAC)
Tiara Young (#1 Gr., G)
11 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals
Scored double-digit points for the 22nd time. Entered the night averaging 17 points per game (5th AAC)
Grabbed five plus rebounds for the 16th time
Reagan Bradley (#13, Gr., G)
11 points, 2 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals
Made 111th start at SMU
Scored double-digit points for the 16th time this season.
Passed out five plus assists for the eighth time this season. Entered the night averaging four per game (6th AAC)
Amirah Abdur-Rahim (#23, Sr., F)
14 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block, 3 steal
Scored double-digit points for the 18th time this season
Fourth time with three plus steals
Maya Chandler (#10, Sr., G)
11 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist
Scored double-digit points for the second time this season
TK Pitts (#2, So., G)
12 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assists, 1 block
Career-high eight made free throws
Scored double-digit points for the third time this season
Jiya Perry (#4, So. G)
6 rebounds, 1 assist
Second straight game with five plus rebounds

[Hop Sing]

Next year is going to be absolutely brutal for our womens team. Counting Stanford, there are currently 6 AAC teams in the top 25. Tied for 10th place currently in the American does not bode well for what next years schedule will be.

[ALEX LIFESON]

There are injuries for almost all teams, in year three....this team is a big disappointment.

[GrapevineMustang]

Wilson inherited a team with 4 studs: Wilkinson, Smith, Wiggins and Bradley. 3 are gone and have not been replaced.