East Carolina went toe-to-toe with Memphis for the first 13 minutes Sunday, but the Tigers' offensive firepower was too much for the visiting Pirates, who were trounced 83-53 at Minges Coliseum in Greenville, N.C.

Guard Avery Woodson scored 20 points to lead three other Tigers in double figures.

Forward Shaq Goodwin scored 17 and hauled in eight rebounds, freshman forward sensation Dedric Lawson chipped in 14 points, five rebounds and five assists, and forward Trahson Burrell contributed 13 points.

Guard B.J. Tyson led the Pirates with 12 points.

The score was tied at 20-all when Woodson put Memphis (17-14, 8-10 American) in the lead for good with a 3-pointer. The Tigers went on to outscore the Pirates 15-2 in the next three minutes to open up a 37-22 lead.

Goodwin's dunk put Memphis up 41-26 at halftime.

East Carolina (12-19, 4-14) stumbled through the early minutes of the second half and fell further behind.

Woodson connected on a pair of 3-pointers, and layups by guard Ricky Tarrant Jr. and Goodwin pushed the lead to 53-34 at the 14:04 mark.

The Pirates went more than five minutes without scoring. Prince Williams ended the East Carolina drought, but by then Memphis had the game in hand and led 68-38.

The Tigers forced the Pirates into 20 turnovers and recorded 13 steals.

East Carolina connected on 21 of 55 field-goal attempts, a 38.2 percent clip.