FORT WORTH, Texas – No. 9 East Carolina made two defensive stands in the final 10 seconds to earn a 65-63 win over No. 8 Memphis in the second round of the 2024 American Women’s Basketball Championship Sunday, March 10 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth.
With the win, the Pirates (17-13) advance to play No. 1 Tulsa in the quarterfinals on Monday, March 11 at 1 p.m. ET/noon CT on ESPN+.
With Memphis (13-17) down one, 64-63, East Carolina’s Tatyana Wyche blocked a shot with three seconds remaining to maintain the Pirate lead. After a free throw by Amiya Joyner and timeout, Bobbi Smith stole a Tiger pass to run out the clock for ECU.
Wyche and Joyner both recorded double-doubles for the Pirates. Wyche recorded 14 points and 17 rebounds, while Joyner added 17 points and 13 rebounds. The Pirates as a team blocked 14 shots, a single-game Championship record, breaking the previous record of 12, set by Houston against Cincinnati in 2022. Wyche blocked six shots herself, one shy of the Championship record.
Memphis led 34-26 at halftime, but East Carolina opened the second half with an 8-2 run and took the lead later in the third with an 8-0 run. Both teams traded the lead in the middle of the fourth quarter, but Memphis was held scoreless for the final four minutes.
Madison Griggs led the Tigers with 16 points.
2024 American Women’s Basketball Championship Schedule
First Round | Saturday, March 9
Game 1: No. 13 Wichita State 64, No. 12 Florida Atlantic 50
Game 2: No. 14 Tulane 68, No. 11 SMU 62
Second Round | Sunday, March 10
Game 3: No. 9 East Carolina 65, No. 8 Memphis 63
Game 4: No. 13 Wichita State vs. No. 5 South Florida – 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT | ESPN+
Game 5: No. 10 Rice vs. No. 7 UAB – 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT | ESPN+
Game 6: No. 14 Tulane vs. No. 6 Charlotte – 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT | ESPN+
Quarterfinals | Monday, March 11
Game 7: No. 9 East Carolina vs. No. 1 Tulsa – 1 p.m. ET/Noon CT | ESPN+
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. No. 4 UTSA – 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT | ESPN+
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. No. 2 North Texas – 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT | ESPN+
Game 10: Game 6 winner vs. No. 3 Temple – 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT | ESPN+
Semifinals | Tuesday, March 12
Game 11 – Semifinal 1, Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner – 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT | ESPN+
Game 12 – Semifinal 2, Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner – 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT | ESPN+
Final | Wednesday, March 13
Game 13: Championship, Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner – 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT | ESPNU
