GREENVILLE, N.C. – Senior guard Necole Hope contributed team-best totals of 14 points and six rebounds for the North Carolina Central University women's basketball team in a 75-34 road loss at East Carolina University on Monday evening inside Williams Arena.
 
The Pirates held the Eagles to 17.4-percent shooting on the way to their most decisive win of the season. ECU (5-5) entered the contest leading the American Athletic Conference (AAC) in total steals and the Pirates added to that sum with a season-high 22 thefts.
 
NCCU (0-7) was held to a season-low point total while committing a season-worst 37 turnovers.
 
Junior guard Taniyah Thompson took ECU's first five shot attempts, swishing four of them to stake the Pirates to quick 9-0 lead. Her opening outburst including a driving layup, a made 3-pointer from the left wing, a baseline jumper and a transition lay-in.
 
East Carolina would hold NCCU scoreless in the first quarter to extend its advantage to 27-0 after 10 minutes of play. The Eagles went 0-for-11 from the field and 0-for-4 from the free throw line over that span while losing possession of the ball 11 times.
 
Thompson would score 13 of her game-high 21 points in the first quarter. She also had seven rebounds in the contest.
 
Senior Ashlyn Lockard finally put the maroon and gray on the board with a made free throw at the 9:26 mark of the second quarter and sophomore Paris McBride tallied NCCU's first made field goal with a pull-up jumper with 7:54 left in the frame. However, ECU remained comfortably ahead, including a 37-9 margin at halftime.
 
Hope connected on NCCU's only other two made field goals of the half as the Eagles were held to 14.3-percent (3-21) shooting accuracy from the floor before the intermission.
 
The Eagles started the second half on a 12-5 run, but the Pirates outscored NCCU 16-3 for the rest of the third quarter to extend their cushion to 58-24 heading into the fourth quarter. ECU led by 20-plus points for the entire second half before prevailing by 41 points.
 
McBride and Lockard each scored seven points for the Eagles.
 
Junior Danae McNeal netted 12 points for the Pirates and sophomore Morgan Moseley flirted with a double-double with nine points and a game-high nine rebounds.
 
NC Central concludes its season-long, eight-game road swing to start the season with a showdown against in-state rival North Carolina A&T State University on Saturday at 2 p.m.