Jan. 26, 2009

IRVING, Texas - Freshman center Jean Best earned her first career weekly Conference USA honor on Monday as she was selected as the Rookie-of-the-Week, according to an announcement by league officials.

Best helped East Carolina to a pair of C-USA victories over Memphis and UAB last week as the team evened its league record at 3-3 and improved its home ledger to 8-1. The Wilson, N.C. native turned in two double-digit scoring efforts with 11 points against the Tigers and a team-high 13 versus the Blazers. Best also hit 67 percent (10-of-15) of her shots over the weekend to keep her C-USA lead in field goal percentage (59-of-97, .608) and recorded one block in each contest to continue to rank second among C-USA freshmen in total blocks. Additionally, the rookie notched 80 percent efficiency from the charity stripe, hitting 4-of-5 attempts.

The selection marks the second weekly honor for the program this season, as senior guard LaCoya Terry earned C-USA Player-of-the-Week honors on Dec. 8.

The Lady Pirates return to court on Thursday, traveling to Orlando, Fla. for a contest with UCF. The game is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside the UCF Arena.