GREENVILLE — The East Carolina frontcourt looked like it would be makeshift at best after the loss of Marshall Guilmette, but the early-season performance from newcomers and veterans alike has left a feeling of optimism in the post.

Clarance Williams and Kentrell Barkley are in their first year in the program —  Williams through junior college and Barkley a true freshman. Both are contributing pieces under the basket. Barkley has been a force in his first seven games as a Pirate with eight points per game, good for third on the team, and a team-high 6.1 rebounds per contest.

“KB (Barkley) is a dog, man,” said senior forward Michael Zangari. “He grabs all the boards for us right now and Clarance, too. Both of those guys just bring a level of toughness and that’s something we definitely needed this year.”

Barkley and Williams stepped up in the absence of Michel Nzege, who missed the last game with an ankle injury. The pair combined for 10 points and 10 boards in a blowout of Florida Atlantic.

Head coach Jeff Lebo said Williams provides decent scoring off the bench and a good presence defensively.

“Clarance is more of a face-in kind of guy at 6-foot-9,” Lebo said. “He’s a very good shooter and a good passer particularly against the zone. He’s athletic and defensively he’s been a factor.”

Lebo said back-to-the-basket scoring is and will be an issue this season, but Nzege helps to relieve that. However, Lebo said he is doubtful for Friday’s matchup with South Carolina Upstate.

Nzege leads the team in field goal percentage (64 percent) and has played well when called upon. Aside from the big names in the post for ECU, the depth has been a real factor to the Pirates’ success early in the season.

Against FAU Tuesday night, sophomore Grant Bryant played his first significant minutes of his career and took advantage of them. Bryant poured in 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting and pulled in two rebounds. Even though the Owls team was much weaker underneath than the Pirates, it was still an impressive performance.

“Luckily we have some depth (in the post), but we’ve got to be creative,” Lebo said. “Against the better teams, like the Cal’s of the world and San Diego State’s of the world that are a lot bigger down low, it’s been a struggle. When we’ve had a size advantage, I feel like they’ve done a good job of exploiting that.”

Zangari had a breakout game against the oversized Cal team last week and even tied a career high in points with 17. His performance kept ECU in the game and held the Pirates within two points with under two minutes to go. The Pirates eventually let the game slip away, but it was a confidence-building game for the senior.

“That definitely gave me a big confidence boost there, especially against the No. 15 team in the country and being able to put up numbers like that,” Zangari said. “I just hope to keep building on that going forward.”