FORT WORTH, Texas – 22 points each from RJ Felton and Jaden Walker propelled No. 9 seed East Carolina to a 73-58 victory over eighth-seeded South Florida in the first game of the 2023 American Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Championship Thursday, March 9 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.
With the win, the Pirates (16-16) will face No. 1 Houston in the quarterfinals on Friday, March 10 at 1 p.m. ET/noon CT on ESPN2. It was the Pirates’ first win at the American Championship since defeating Temple in the First Round in 2017.
South Florida (14-18) led by as many as 10 halfway into the first half before the Pirates went on an 11-2 run to cut the lead to one at 26-25 with 5:42 remaining.