Dec. 8, 2001
GREENVILLE, NC - Sophomore Clay McGowen (Westerville, OH) came off the bench to pour in 15 points and 10 rebounds for his first career double-double as the Monarchs defeated former CAA rival, East Carolina, 53-32, this evening. The Monarchs improve to 5-2, while the Pirates fall to 2-6 in their sixth straight loss of the year.
The Pirates were led by forwards Jonathan Moore and Erroyl Bing, each with 10 points. Two other Monarchs join McGowen in double figures with junior Rasheed Wright (Greensboro, NC) netting 11 points and sophomore John Waller (Richmond, VA) adding 10.
The Monarchs held a slight advantage entering half-time with a 24-23 lead, but Old Dominion would need that extra point as both teams scored 29 points in the second half.
East Carolina took a six-point lead on a Moore lay-up at 11:29 in the first half, but Old Dominion quickly erased the Pirate lead by taking a 10-2 run, which including six points from the free throw line by the Monarchs. The lead went back and forth during the final seven minutes of the stanza, including two ties and four lead changes.
Again the Pirates took a six-point lead in the second half, but Old Dominion came fighting back, pulling within one at 10:39 on a fifteen-foot jump shot by senior Pierre Greene (Chicago, IL). East Carolina would hold the Monarchs scoreless over the next two minutes on a 7-0 run taking its largest lead of the game 46-39 with 8:49 to go. As the Monarchs had done throughout the game, they battled back taking the lead for good, 51-50, with 2:34 on the clock. McGowen used a turnaround jumper to give Old Dominion its first lead since the early minutes of the second half. Waller used a lay-up to seal the victory, giving the Monarchs a three-point cushion in the closing seconds while the defense held off a Pirate comeback for the win.
The Monarchs return to action on Saturday, December 15th against Coastal Carolina in the first of three consecutive games to be played at the Fieldhouse.