Game Notes (PDF)

TOWSON, Md. – The Hampton University men's basketball team, after a week-and-a-half-long hiatus, will take to the road to face the Tigers of Towson University on Saturday at 4 p.m. in the Towson Center.

The Pirates come into Saturday's game having lost three straight games, including a 55-52 defeat at the University of Delaware on Dec. 9. Hampton will face its second straight CAA foe in Towson, which has lost its last two games; the Tigers fell 73-69 to George Washington this past Saturday at the Towson Center. Saturday's game against Hampton will be Towson's fourth straight home game.

Towson leads the all-time series with the Pirates 1-0, with the only meeting between the two teams occurring last season. The Tigers beat the Pirates 82-73 on Nov. 22, 2008 at the Towson Center.

The Tigers went 12-22 last season, finishing in a tie for 10th in the Colonial Athletic Association with a 5-13 conference mark. Towson only lost one starter from last year's squad, bringing a lot of experience back for 2009-10. Junior Hairston was an All-CAA selection last year as the Tigers advanced to the CAA semifinals before falling to George Mason, while Brian Morris was named to the CAA All-Academic Team.

Towson was picked to finish ninth in the CAA this season.

Senior forward Calvin Lee leads the Tigers in scoring, averaging 13.1 points a game; he'd led the team in scoring twice this season, including a season-high 25 points in Towson's season-opening win over Miami (Ohio). Senior guard Josh Thornton is averaging 13.0 points a night, recording back-to-back 20-point efforts against Dayton and Maryland-Baltimore County, while sophomore guard RaShawn Polk is averaging 10.6 points a game. Junior forward Robert Nwankwo is leading the team with 10.0 rebounds a game; he's led the team in rebounding in five of its seven games so far this season.

The Tigers are averaging 72.1 points a game on offense, while giving up 77.7 points a night. Towson is being out-rebounded by an average of 38.3-33.9 per game.

Since 1995, the Pirates are 11-29 all-time against teams in the Colonial Athletic Association. In addition to Hampton's 1-7 mark against VCU, the Pirates are 5-9 against William & Mary, 1-4 against George Mason, 0-1 against Towson, 1-0 against Georgia State, 2-4 against Old Dominion, 1-2 against Delaware and 0-2 against James Madison. Hampton faced four CAA schools last season, falling 82-73 to Towson after beating George Mason 50-44; the Pirates also beat Georgia State 62-53 and fell to Delaware 75-66 last season. Towson will be the last CAA school the Pirates face this year; after losing a home contest against VCU and falling on the road to William & Mary, the Pirates lost their last game 55-52 at Delaware.

The Pirates are a combined 2-6 away from the HU Convocation Center so far this season, going 1-4 in true road games and 1-2 on neutral courts. Hampton defeated Wyoming 78-67 during the World Vision Basketball Challenge for its only road win so far this season, before grabbing its first neutral-court win with a 59-56 decision over Monmouth. Hampton also lost the 2009 Big Apple Classic at Madison Square Garden, falling 56-54 to Howard on Dec. 5, before falling 55-52 at Delaware on Dec. 9. The Pirates will not return to the Convocation Center until after the New Year, when they take on Fordham on Jan. 3.

You can follow Saturday's action via live stats by visiting the official Tigers website, www.towsontigers.com, and clicking on the “Multimedia” link. You can hear Pirates basketball live on WHOV 88.1 FM, the home of all Hampton University athletics.

For more information on Hampton University basketball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.