East Carolina hits hardwood for start of practice

Greyson Sargent still looks forward to the first day of practice.

After going through months of offseason workouts, he finally got that chance on Saturday as the East Carolina men's basketball team officially began its 2009-10 campaign.

The team practiced for an hour and a half and then conducted an intrasquad scrimmage at Minges Coliseum.

"The offseason seems to sort of drag on," said Sargent, one of two seniors on ECU's roster. "You do the same thing every day and it seems like there's no real end in sight.

"To do this gets everybody excited. There's a football game so there's a lot of people around, which makes this day feel a little more real with practice starting."

Junior Jamar Abrams shined in Saturday's scrimmage. The 6-foot-6 swingman went 11-of-19 from the floor for 26 points. He went 4-of-6 from beyond the arc.

Point guard Brock Young, who finished second in the nation in assists per game last year with a 7.57 average, had 16 assists and eight points.

Big man Darrius Morrow had 18 points and Sargent chipped in with 14.

Mack McCarthy, entering his third season as ECU's head coach, said recent NCAA rules have allowed for more intense offseason workouts, but Saturday still felt a little different.

"There's still something about putting a whole group together and being out there for two or three hours, instead of the limited amount of time (during the offseason)," he said.

The Pirates have improved each year under McCarthy and finished with a 13-17 record last season, but gone are top scorers Sam Hinnant and James Legan.

McCarthy said Young has emerged as the leader on this year's team. Joining Young as returning starters are Abrams and Chad Wynne (6-10).

"We're deeper than we've been, we're bigger than we've been and probably more skilled than we've ever been," McCarthy said. "We're still young and still a little fragile. The schedule is daunting, but the upside is pretty good."

ECU returns six other letterwinners and will have five newcomers hit the court this season.

The Pirates' first game is on Nov. 13 when they hosts Virginia-Wise.

Sargent said getting in game shape is one of the main focuses during the upcoming practice slate.

"We've been playing against each other in free play, but there's something a little different when everybody straps it up and we play in front of the coaches," he said. "It's the first time that we've really done it and we'll see where we're at."

Contact Ronnie Woodward at rwoodward@coxnc.com or (252) 329-9592.