The (10-7 SU, 12-5 ATS) East Carolina Pirates and (11-6 SU, 11-5 ATS) Cincinnati Bearcats will take the court on Wednesday at Fifth Third Arena for an American Athletic Conference hoops matchup. The Pirates, 1-3 on the road and 1-3 overall in conference, have lost three of their past four games. The Bearcats, 9-2 at home and 2-2 overall in conference, lost to Houston on Sunday.
Cincy beat ECU three times last season. It owns an 18-2 advantage in the series.
Tip-off from Cincinnati, OH, is at 9:00 p.m. ET. The Bearcats are 9.5-point spread favorites, and the game total is 141 points.
East Carolina was picked to finish dead last in the AAC preseason poll and had zero first or second-team conference players. The Pirates went 9-4 in non-conference games, including a win over SEC foe South Carolina. The start of conference play hasn't been as profitable for ECU bettors, though.
In their latest loss at Memphis, the Pirates were held to just 59 points on 40.7 percent shooting, including 32.1 percent from long range. East Carolina led 33-25 at halftime, but the Tigers stormed out of the locker room to a 44-26 second-half advantage. ECU shot itself in the foot, turning the ball over 22 times versus Memphis.
East Carolina scores 70.5 points on 41.5 percent shooting with a 32.3 three-point percentage. The Pirates boast a positive rebounding margin (+3.3) and an assist-per-turnover ratio of 1.05.
Headed to Ohio!?????#PurpleReign pic.twitter.com/asmFAPW87A
— East Carolina Men's Basketball (@ecubasketball) January 10, 2023
Sophomore guard Javon Small paces the Pirates, averaging 15.4 points, 5.6 assists, and 4.8 rebounds per contest. Other players to watch when ECU takes the court include sophomore forward Brandon Johnson (13.2 PPG and 9.1 RPG), sophomore guard RJ Felton (11.8 PPG and 4.6 RPG), and freshman forward Ezra Ausar (8.9 PPG and 3.6 RPG).
The Pirates give up 67.8 points on 42.6 percent shooting, including 31.1 percent from three-point range. Their schedule-adjusted offensive efficiency rating is 195th nationally, and their schedule-adjusted defensive efficiency rating is 142nd, per KenPom.