2017–18 East Carolina Pirates men's basketball team

The 2017–18 East Carolina Pirates men's basketball team represented East Carolina University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Pirates were led by interim head coach Michael Perry and played their home games at Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum as fourth-year members of the American Athletic Conference. They finished the season 10–20, 4–14 in AAC play to finish in 11th place. They lost in the first round of the AAC Tournament to UCF.

2017–18 East Carolina Pirates men's basketball
ConferenceAmerican Athletic Conference
2017–18 record10–20 (4–14 AAC)
Head coachJeff Lebo (First 6 games)
Michael Perry (interim)
Assistant coaches
Home arenaWilliams Arena (8,000)
2017–18 American Athletic Conference men's basketball standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L PCT  W L PCT
No. 6 Cincinnati162 .889  315  .861
No. 21 Houston144 .778  278  .771
No. 16 Wichita State144 .778  258  .758
Tulsa126 .667  1912  .613
Memphis108 .556  2113  .618
UCF99 .500  1913  .594
Temple810 .444  1716  .515
UConn711 .389  1418  .438
SMU612 .333  1716  .515
Tulane513 .278  1417  .452
East Carolina414 .222  1020  .333
South Florida315 .167  1022  .313
2018 AAC Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

Following a 2–4 start to the season, eighth-year head coach Jeff Lebo announced his resignation from ECU on November 29, 2017 and Perry was named interim head coach.[1] On April 4, 2018 the school announced that Florida Gulf Coast head coach Joe Dooley, who coached the Pirates from 1995 to 1999, would return as head coach.[2]

Previous season

The Pirates finished the 2016–17 season 15–18, 6–12 in AAC play to finish in ninth place. They defeated Temple in the first round of the AAC Tournament to advance to the quarterfinals where they lost to SMU.

On January 16, 2017, head coach Jeff Lebo underwent hip surgery and was unable to coach for the rest of the season.[3] Assistant coach Michael Perry took over as acting head coach beginning with the January 22 game.[4]

Offseason

Departures

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownReason for departure
Deng Riak0C6'10"225SophomoreMelbourne, AustraliaTransferred to Akron
Caleb White2G6'7"205SeniorBuckingham, VAGraduated
Elijah Hughes4G6'6"220FreshmanSomers, NYTransferred to Syracuse
Michel Nzege13F6'8"220RS SeniorGeneva, SwitzerlandGraduated
Clarence Williams23F6'8"195SeniorTallahassee, FLGraduated
Andre Washington31C7'1"235SeniorRoanoke, VAGraduated

Incoming transfers

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownPrevious School
Seth LeDay3F6'7"200JuniorThe Colony, TXTransferred from Virginia Tech. Under NCAA transfer rules, LeDay will have to sit out for the 2017–18 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.
Aaron Jackson10G6'8"215RS SeniorGahanna, OHTransferred from Akron. Will be eligible to play immediately since Jackson graduated from Akron.
Usman Haruna35C7'0"220JuniorKaduna, NigeriaJunior college transferred from Bismarck State College

Recruiting class of 2017

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
K.J. Davis
#87 SF
Portsmouth, VA I. C. Norcom High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) N/A Aug 3, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Justin Whatley
SF
Chesapeake, VA Oscar Smith High School 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Aug 2, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Dimitri Spasojevic
SF
Vršac, Serbia Gimnazija Čačak 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 230 lb (100 kg) Oct 24, 2017 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved 2017-11-13.

    Recruiting class of 2018

    Roster

    2017–18 East Carolina Pirates men's basketball team
    PlayersCoaches
    Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
    G 0 Isaac Fleming 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)215 lb (98 kg) RS JrNational Christian Academy
    Hawaii
    Wilmington, DE
    G 1 Jeremy Sheppard  6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)160 lb (73 kg) SoJohn Marshall Richmond, VA
    G 2 K. J. Davis 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)185 lb (84 kg) FrI. C. Norcom Portsmouth, VA
    F 3 Seth LeDay  6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)200 lb (91 kg) JrThe Colony
    Virginia Tech
    The Colony, TX
    G 10 Aaron Jackson 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)215 lb (98 kg) RS SrLincoln HS
    Akron
    Gahanna, OH
    F 13 Justin Whatley 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)235 lb (107 kg) FrOscar Smith Chesapeake, VA
    G/F 15 Kentrell Barkley 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)205 lb (93 kg) JrNorthern Durham, NC
    G 21 B. J. Tyson 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)190 lb (86 kg) SrAnson Wadesboro, NC
    G 24 John Whitley (W) 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)160 lb (73 kg) SoWashington Washington, D.C.
    F/C 25 Jabari Craig  6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)235 lb (107 kg) SrTucker
    Pearl River CC
    Maumelle, AR
    F 32 Dimitri Spasojevic 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)230 lb (104 kg) FrGimnazija Čačak Vršac, Serbia
    F/C 35 Usman Haruna 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)215 lb (98 kg) JrBismarck State College Kaduna, Nigeria
    G 41 Addison Hill (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)175 lb (79 kg) JrSouth Central Winterville, NC
    G 52 Justice Obasohan (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)215 lb (98 kg) JrNC School of Science and Math Wallace, NC
    G 55 Shawn Williams 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)180 lb (82 kg) RS FrSouthwest Christian Academy Maumelle, AR
    Head coach
    Assistant coach(es)

    Legend
    • (C) Team captain
    • (S) Suspended
    • (I) Ineligible
    • (W) Walk-on

    Roster

    Schedule and results

    Date
    time, TV
    Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
    city, state
    Non-conference regular season
    Nov 12, 2017*
    5:00 pm
    Coppin State
    Showcase on the Banks
    W 76–50  1–0
    Williams Arena (3,228)
    Greenville, NC
    Nov 15, 2017*
    7:00 pm, ESPN3
    Radford L 66–73  1–1
    Williams Arena (3,384)
    Greenville, NC
    Nov 17, 2017*
    7:00 pm, ESPN3
    Central Connecticut
    Showcase on the Banks
    L 68–79  1–2
    Williams Arena (3,042)
    Greenville, NC
    Nov 20, 2017*
    7:00 pm, ESPN3
    Cleveland State
    Showcase on the Banks
    W 72–69  2–2
    Williams Arena (2,907)
    Greenville, NC
    Nov 24, 2017*
    1:00 pm, BTN Plus
    at Rutgers
    Showcase on the Banks
    L 47–61  2–3
    Louis Brown Athletic Center (4,336)
    Piscataway, NJ
    Nov 26, 2017*
    4:00 pm, ESPN3
    North Carolina A&T L 81–87  2–4
    Williams Arena (3,373)
    Greenville, NC
    Nov 30, 2017*
    8:00 pm, ESPN3
    UNC Wilmington W 93–88 OT 3–4
    Williams Arena (3,373)
    Greenville, NC
    Dec 2, 2017*
    5:00 pm
    Delaware State W 63–57  4–4
    Williams Arena (3,195)
    Greenville, NC
    Dec 4, 2017*
    7:00 pm, ESPN3
    Campbell W 69–66  5–4
    Williams Arena (2,980)
    Greenville, NC
    Dec 18, 2017*
    7:00 pm, ESPN3
    Charlotte L 50–69  5–5
    Williams Arena (3,162)
    Greenville, NC
    Dec 21, 2017*
    7:00 pm
    Grambling State W 76–68  6–5
    Williams Arena (3,302)
    Greenville, NC
    AAC regular season
    Dec 28, 2017
    5:00 pm, ESPNU
    at Tulsa L 53–79  6–6
    (0–1)
    Reynolds Center (8,355)
    Tulsa, OK
    Dec 31, 2017
    4:00 pm, ESPNews
    UCF L 39–59  6–7
    (0–2)
    Williams Arena (2,946)
    Greenville, NC
    Jan 3, 2018
    4:00 pm, ESPN3
    at South Florida W 67–65  7–7
    (1–2)
    USF Sun Dome (2,148)
    Tampa, FL
    Jan 6, 2018
    12:00 pm, ESPNews
    at UConn L 65–70  7–8
    (1–3)
    XL Center (6,717)
    Hartford, CT
    Jan 11, 2018
    9:00 pm, ESPN2
    No. 5 Wichita State L 60–95  7–9
    (1–4)
    Williams Arena (5,539)
    Greenville, NC
    Jan 14, 2018
    2:00 pm, ESPN3
    Houston L 49–65  7–10
    (1–5)
    Williams Arena (3,549)
    Greenville, NC
    Jan 17, 2018
    7:00 pm, ESPN3
    South Florida W 90–52  8–10
    (2–5)
    Williams Arena (2,857)
    Greenville, NC
    Jan 20, 2018
    4:00 pm, ESPNews
    at No. 12 Cincinnati L 60–86  8–11
    (2–6)
    BB&T Arena (8,879)
    Highland Heights, KY
    Jan 28, 2018
    2:00 pm, CBSSN
    at SMU L 61–86  8–12
    (2–7)
    Moody Coliseum (6,544)
    Dallas, TX
    Jan 31, 2018
    6:30 pm, ESPNews
    Tulane L 69–71 OT 8–13
    (2–8)
    Williams Arena (3,072)
    Greenville, NC
    Feb 3, 2018
    2:00 pm, ESPNews
    Memphis W 88–85 OT 9–13
    (3–8)
    Williams Arena (3,338)
    Greenville, NC
    Feb 7, 2018
    7:00 pm, ESPNews
    at Temple L 73–90  9–14
    (3–9)
    Liacouras Center (5,282)
    Philadelphia, PA
    Feb 14, 2018
    8:00 pm, ESPNews
    at Tulane W 82–80  10–14
    (4–9)
    Devlin Fieldhouse (1,098)
    New Orleans, LA
    Feb 18, 2018
    3:00 pm, ESPNews
    UConn L 80–84  10–15
    (4–10)
    Williams Arena (4,524)
    Greenville, NC
    Feb 21, 2018
    7:00 pm, ESPNews
    SMU L 58–77  10–16
    (4–11)
    Williams Arena (2,923)
    Greenville, NC
    Feb 25, 2018
    3:00 pm, ESPN3
    at No. 23 Houston L 58–109  10–17
    (4–12)
    Toyota Center (3,602)
    Houston, TX
    Mar 1, 2018
    7:00 pm, ESPNU
    Tulsa L 58–72  10–18
    (4–13)
    Williams Arena (3,205)
    Greenville, NC
    Mar 4, 2018
    3:00 pm, ESPN3
    at Memphis L 70–90  10–19
    (4–14)
    FedEx Forum (6,474)
    Memphis, TN
    AAC Tournament
    Mar 8, 2018
    8:30 p:m, ESPNU
    (11) vs. (6) UCF
    First Round
    L 52–66  10–20
    Amway Center (7,918)
    Orlando, FL
    *Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
    All times are in Eastern Time.
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    gollark: I don't know, I use a random NPM package which appears to work.
    gollark: It's even better on IRC because I have four instances of the bot running for reasons, along with a bridge to Discord.

    References

    1. Wiseman, Steve (November 29, 2017). "Jeff Lebo out as East Carolina basketball coach". The News & Observer. Raleigh, NC. Retrieved November 29, 2017.
    2. "East Carolina brings back Dooley as its men's hoops coach". kentucky. Archived from the original on 2018-04-06. Retrieved 2018-04-05.
    3. "East Carolina Pirates: Jeff Lebo Out for Hip Surgery Indefinitely". Old North Banter. 2017-01-14. Retrieved 2017-02-20.
    4. "ECU coach Lebo out indefinitely after hip surgery". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-02-20.
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