Gardner's play at both ends leads East Carolina to victory
GREENVILLE, N.C. -- Jayden Gardner had 23 points, 10 rebounds and a key blocked shot as East Carolina defeated South Florida 62-59 on Tuesday night.
East Carolina led 60-57 after a 3-pointer by Bitumba Baruti with 1:26 to go in the second half.
David Collins made an uncontested layup for South Florida, making the score 60-59 with 1:01 remaining but the Bulls did not score again.
Tristen Newton made both ends of a one-and-one with 15 seconds to go and Gardner blocked a potential tying 3-pointer with 6 seconds left.
Brandon Suggs had 12 points for East Carolina (7-8, 1-1 American Athletic Conference), which has won five in a row at home.
Laquincy Rideau had 16 points for the Bulls (8-8, 1-2). Collins added 14 points off the bench and Xavier Castaneda had 10 points.
South Florida shot 35%, including 4 of 21 from 3-point distance. The Bulls also missed 11 free throws (15-26), as did East Carolina (9-20).
East Carolina plays SMU at home on Saturday. South Florida faces Memphis at home on Sunday.
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Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights, http://www.automatedinsights.com/ap, using data from STATS LLC, https://www.stats.com
Game Information
- Referees:
- Mark Schnur
- Tony Greene
- William Covington
2023-24 American Athletic Conference Standings
Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
---|---|---|---|
South Florida | 16-2 | - | 25-8 |
Florida Atlantic | 14-4 | 2 | 25-9 |
Charlotte | 13-5 | 3 | 19-12 |
UAB | 12-6 | 4 | 23-12 |
Memphis | 11-7 | 5 | 22-10 |
SMU | 11-7 | 5 | 20-13 |
North Texas | 10-8 | 6 | 19-15 |
Tulsa | 7-11 | 9 | 16-15 |
East Carolina | 7-11 | 9 | 15-18 |
Tulane | 5-13 | 11 | 14-17 |
Temple | 5-13 | 11 | 16-20 |
Wichita State | 5-13 | 11 | 15-19 |
UTSA | 5-13 | 11 | 11-21 |
Rice | 5-13 | 11 | 11-21 |