ODU Monarchs fell short by one point against the ECU Pirates in overtime.

ECU Pirates win by one point in overtime.

The Monarchs hosted the ECU Pirates for the 2024 Anne Donovan Classic on Dec. 15th at 3:30 p.m. at the Chartway Arena. Anne Donovan won Olympic gold medals as a player and coach for the United States and was a 6-foot-8 center who played collegiate basketball at Old Dominion University. 

In this year's Anne Donovan Classic, the East Carolina Pirates defeated the Old Dominion Monarchs in overtime by one point. It was a tough defensive game. Both teams played with physicality, hustled back and forth down the court, fought for the ball, and went to war offensively and defensively. 

The ECU Pirates called their 1-2-2 full-court trap early in the game. ODU broke the trap and the Pirates didn’t see a lot of turnovers from it. Amia Joyner led the ECU Pirates in scoring and rebounds. Joyner grabbed 17 rebounds and scored 27 points. Khia Miller was right behind her with 13 points and seven rebounds. En'Dya Buford scored 11 points and pulled 14 rebounds on the Monarch's side. Simaru Fields scored 14 points and pulled four defensive rebounds. 

Mariah Clayton's presence was felt on the court when coming off the bench, scoring six points and grabbing four rebounds. Mariah led the Monarchs bench in scoring. 

Both teams shot mediocre from the field. The Monarchs went 30 percent from the field and 20 percent from the three-point land while shooting 52.4 percent from the free-throw line.

The ECU Pirates made 22 out of 70 shots, shooting a low 31.4 percent from the field. Their three-point percentage was lower at 28.6 percent while shooting over 50 percent from the free-throw line. Listen here for the full play-by-play. ECU’s record is now 6-4. ODU’s record is also 6-4. The ODU Monarchs take on the Howard Bison in Washington, D.C., at Burr Gymnasium on December 17th at noon. Then, they will host Delaware on Dec. 22nd at 2 pm. ODU's first conference game will be on Dec. 29th vs. South Alabama.