Memphis @ East Carolina preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 10, 2019 ) East Carolina 72, Memphis 78

After ending a three-game losing streak last time out, Memphis seeks its first road win in a month when it visits East Carolina on Wednesday night in an American Athletic Conference matchup. The Tigers got back on track by knocking off visiting Connecticut on Sunday and now will look to complete a season sweep of the struggling Pirates.

Memphis has lost three straight and five of six on the road this season and faces a critical juncture with a visit to Central Florida following Wednesday's game. "It's just good to get a win," Tigers coach Penny Hardaway told reporters after Sunday's game. "We've just got to pile up wins from this point forward." East Carolina has lost three straight after blowing a double-digit halftime lead in Sunday's 72-68 loss at South Florida. The narrow setback kept the Pirates winless away from home (0-9), including a 78-72 loss at Memphis on Jan. 10.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPN3

ABOUT MEMPHIS (14-10, 6-5 AAC): Senior forward Kyvon Davenport is coming off his best offensive output in more than a month, scoring a game-high 26 points against UConn, and he also came up big last month against the Pirates with 14 points and 11 boards. Senior guard Jeremiah Martin made his second straight appearance on the conference's weekly honor roll after knocking down a carer-high eight 3-pointers in a 26-point effort against Cincinnati before contributing 12 points and six assists in Sunday's victory. Martin is averaging a team-best 16.5 points overall and 21.9 over his past six games.

ABOUT EAST CAROLINA (9-14, 2-9): With perimeter shooting an ongoing issue for the Pirates, the offensive production has dipped for burly freshman Jayden Gardner, who had scored at least 20 points eight times during a stretch of 15 straight double-digit efforts earlier this season. Gardner has not eclipsed 15 points in his last six games and is averaging 10.3 points over the past three contests, although he leads the team in scoring (17.7) and rebounding (8.8). Senior Seth LeDay had a double-double in last month's matchup with 14 points and 10 boards to go with four steals and three blocked shots.

TIP-INS

1. Martin is tied for 19th on the school's all-time list with 1,313 points -- six behind Hardaway.

2. East Carolina was 4-for-22 from behind the arc in the first meeting, including 1-for-8 by G Shawn Williams.

3. Memphis is 4-1 in the last five meetings but East Carolina squeezed out an 88-85 OT win at home in February 2018.

PREDICTION: Memphis 74, East Carolina 71