# 2021–22 East Carolina Pirates men's basketball team

The 2021–22 East Carolina Pirates men's basketball team represented East Carolina University during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Pirates were led by fourth year head coach, Joe Dooley, who previously coached the Pirates from 1995 to 1999, and played their home games at Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum as eighth-year members of the American Athletic Conference.

## Previous season

The Pirates finished the 2020–21 season 8–11, 2–10 in AAC play to finish in last place. They lost in the first round of the AAC tournament to UCF.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Derrick Quansah | 0 | F/C | 7'0" | 230 | Freshman | Cape Coast, Ghana | Left the team for personal reasons |
| Jayden Gardner | 1 | F | 6'7" | 235 | Junior | Wale Forest, NC | Graduate transferred to Virginia |
| Noah Farrakhan | 3 | G | 6'0" | 165 | Freshman | Newark, NJ | Transferred to Eastern Michigan |
| Tyrie Jackson | 10 | G | 6'2" | 215 | RS Senior | Tifton, GA | Graduate transferred to Prairie View A&M |
| Ian Jones | 13 | G | 6'3" | 195 | Senior | Lillington, NC | Walk-on; graduated |
| Bitumba Baruti | 20 | G | 6'7" | 225 | RS Senior | Lubumbashi, DR Congo | Graduate transferred to Florida Atlantic |
| Ludgy Debaut | 21 | C | 7'0" | 245 | Senior | Les Abymes, Guadeloupe | Graduate transferred to Northeastern State |
| Evan Umastead | 24 | G | 6'0" | 195 | Senior | Cary, NC | Walk-on; graduated |
| Samson Strickland | 25 | F | 6'5" | 220 | Junior | Wilson, NC | Walk-on; didn't return |
| Charles Coleman | 32 | F/C | 7'0" | 255 | Sophomore | Boston, MA | Transferred to Saint Joseph's |
| Miles James | 33 | G | 6'6" | 215 | Junior | Inglewood, CA | Transferred to Cal State Northridge |
| Edra Luster | 44 | F/C | 7'0" | 230 | Senior | Oakland, CA | Graduate transferred to Northeastern State |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Num | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school |
| Wynston Tabbs | 10 | G | 6'2" | 195 | RS Junior | Suitland, MD | Boston College |
| Vance Jackson | 13 | F | 6'9" | 230 | Graduate Student | Pasadena, CA | Arkansas |
| Alanzo Frink | 20 | F | 6'8" | 270 | RS Junior | Jersey City, NJ | South Carolina |
| Brandon Johnson | 23 | F | 6'8" | 210 | Sophomore | Raleigh, NC | Brunswick CC |

### 2021 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Tay Mosher SF | The Colony, TX | The Colony High School | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | 07/13/2020 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| RJ Felton SG | Aiken, SC | Aiken High School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 08/24/2020 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Alexis Reyes SG | Roxbury, MA | Cushing Academy | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 09/22/2020 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Marlon Lestin PF | Montreal, QC | Halton Prep | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Feb 17, 2021 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Javon Small CG | South Bend, IN | Compass Prep | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Mar 2, 2021 |
| Star ratings: 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: "East Carolina 2021 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 1, 2020. "2021 East Carolina Pirates Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 1, 2020. "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 1, 2020. "2021 East Carolina Pirates Basketball 24/7 Sports Commits". 247sports.com. Retrieved October 1, 2020. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| November 9, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | South Carolina State | W 70–62 | 1–0 | 18 – Miles | 13 – Tied | 9 – Robinson-White | Williams Arena (3,605) Greenville, NC |
| November 12, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Canisius | W 83–71 | 2–0 | 14 – Tied | 7 – Tied | 6 – Tied | Williams Arena (3,507) Greenville, NC |
| November 14, 2021* 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Western Carolina | W 95–79 | 3–0 | 30 – Newton | 6 – Tied | 6 – Newton | Williams Arena (3,245) Greenville, NC |
| November 18, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Oklahoma Myrtle Beach Invitational Quarterfinals | L 74–79 | 3–1 | 18 – Newton | 6 – Debaut | 6 – Suggs | HTC Center (1,237) Conway, SC |
| November 19, 2021* 7:30 p.m., ESPNU | | vs. Old Dominion Myrtle Beach Invitational Consolation round | W 73–60 | 4–1 | 18 – Newton | 9 – Johnson | 6 – Newton | HTC Center (1,183) Conway, SC |
| November 21, 2021* 6:00 p.m., ESPNU | | vs. Davidson Myrtle Beach Invitational – 5th place Game | L 67–76 | 4–2 | 28 – Newton | 11 – Jackson | 5 – Newton | HTC Center (1,101) Conway, SC |
| November 27, 2021* 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Coppin State | W 70–68 | 5–2 | 25 – Suggs | 19 – Johnson | 5 – Newton | Williams Arena (4,027) Greenville, NC |
| November 30, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Old Dominion | W 63–62 | 6–2 | 21 – Jackson | 8 – Suggs | 8 – Newton | Williams Arena Greenville, NC |
| December 4, 2021* 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Gardner–Webb | W 62–52 | 7–2 | 15 – Miles | 11 – Debaut | 4 – Newton | Williams Arena Greenville, NC |
| December 7, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | North Carolina A&T | W 82–71 | 8–2 | 23 – Jackson | 9 – Miles | 8 – Newton | Williams Arena (3,859) Greenville, NC |
| December 17, 2021* 1:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | vs. Liberty Basketball Hall of Fame Shootout | L 64–74 | 8–3 | 15 – Tied | 10 – Jackson | 3 – Tied | Spectrum Center Charlotte, NC |
| December 21, 2021* 12:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Southern Miss | W 68–67 | 9–3 | 22 – Newton | 7 – Jackson | 6 – Newton | Williams Arena (2,054) Greenville, NC |
| AAC Regular Season |||||||||
| December 29, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Wichita State | Postponed due to COVID-19 | Postponed due to COVID-19 | Postponed due to COVID-19 | Postponed due to COVID-19 | Postponed due to COVID-19 | Williams Arena (–) Greenville, NC |
| January 5, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Tulane | W 88–80 $^{OT}$ | 10–3 (1–0) | 32 – Newton | 10 – Johnson | 11 – Suggs | Williams Arena (1,414) Greenville, NC |
| January 8, 2022 12:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Temple | L 75–78 | 10–4 (1–1) | 15 – Frink | 6 – Tied | 9 – Newton | Liacouras Center (2,774) Philadelphia, PA |
| January 12, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Cincinnati | L 71–79 | 10–5 (1–2) | 35 – Jackson | 9 – Jackson | 4 – Tied | Fifth Third Arena (7,911) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 15, 2022 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Memphis | W 72–71 | 11–5 (2–2) | 17 – Jackson | 7 – Jackson | 7 – Newton | Williams Arena (5,107) Greenville, NC |
| January 18, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | UCF | L 85–92 $^{OT}$ | 11–6 (2–3) | 27 – Newton | 8 – Johnson | 5 – Tied | Williams Arena (4,167) Greenville, NC |
| January 22, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at No. 10 Houston | L 36–79 | 11–7 (2–4) | 14 – Newton | 6 – Newton | 1 – Tied | Fertitta Center (7,287) Houston, TX |
| January 27, 2022 9:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Memphis | L 54–71 | 11–8 (2–5) | 19 – Newton | 12 – Jackson | 4 – Robinson-White | FedExForum (13,418) Memphis, TN |
| January 30, 2022 12:00 p.m., ESPNU | | Cincinnati | L 59–60 | 11–9 (2–6) | 25 – Jackson | 10 – Jackson | 5 – Newton | Williams Arena (3,834) Greenville, NC |
| February 2, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Temple | L 63–71 | 11–10 (2–7) | 22 – Newton | 7 – Jackson | 4 – Tied | Williams Arena (3,321) Greenville, NC |
| February 5, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Tulane | L 66–86 | 11–11 (2–8) | 27 – Jackson | 9 – Newton | 8 – Newton | Devlin Fieldhouse (1,579) New Orleans, LA |
| February 8, 2022 8:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Tulsa | W 73–71 | 12–11 (3–8) | 22 – Jackson | 4 – Tied | 6 – Tied | Reynolds Center (2,809) Tulsa, OK |
| February 12, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPNU | | SMU | L 66–80 | 12–12 (3–9) | 19 – Newton | 11 – Debaut | 5 – Newton | Williams Arena (3,443) Greenville, NC |
| February 17, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at South Florida Previously scheduled for Jan. 1 | W 65–57 | 13–12 (4–9) | 16 – Jackson | 8 – Debaut | 10 – Newton | Yuengling Center (2,034) Tampa, FL |
| February 20, 2022 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at UCF | L 66–69 | 13–13 (4–10) | 19 – Newton | 9 – Debaut | 3 – Suggs | Addition Financial Arena (4,427) Orlando, FL |
| February 23, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | South Florida | W 64–60 | 14–13 (5–10) | 15 – Suggs | 10 – Debaut | 5 – Newton | Williams Arena (3,193) Greenville, NC |
| February 26, 2022 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Tulsa | W 64–59 | 15–13 (6–10) | 27 – Newton | 7 – Debaut | 5 – Newton | Williams Arena (3,569) Greenville, NC |
| March 5, 2021 3:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at Wichita State | L 62–70 | 15–14 (6–11) | 16 – Newton | 11 – Newton | 6 – Newton | Charles Koch Arena (8,177) Wichita, KS |
| AAC tournament |||||||||
| March 10, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPNU | (9) | vs. (8) Cincinnati First Round | L 63–74 | 15–15 | 26 – Newton | 10 – Jackson | 6 – Newton | Dickies Arena Fort Worth, TX |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
Source