Game Notes

HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University men's basketball team will return to the HU Convocation Center on Wednesday, where they will take on the Blue Hens of the University of Delaware at 7 p.m.

The Pirates (7-1), in their second season under head coach Edward Joyner Jr., are on a seven-game winning streak following Saturday's 67-55 win over Howard in the 2010 Big Apple Classic at Madison Square Garden. Four Pirates scored in double figures, led by senior forward Charles Funches' (Jersey City, N.J.) career-high 20 points. Junior guard Mike Tuitt (Bronx, N.Y.) tied his career high with 15 points, while junior guards Darrion Pellum (Hampton, Va.) and Kwame Morgan II (Largo, Md.) each added 14 points.

The Blue Hens (3-2) won their third straight game Saturday night by knocking off defending Colonial Athletic Association champion and preseason favorite Old Dominion 75-67 at the Bob Carpenter Center. Senior guard Jawan Carter led Delaware with 29 points for his third straight 20-point game. Freshman guard Devon Saddler added 13 points for the Blue Hens, while sophomore forward Jamelle Hagins added 12 points.

Since moving to Division I in 1995, Hampton is 1-2 all-time against Delaware. The Blue Hens have won the last two over the Pirates, including a 55-52 decision at the Bob Carpenter Center last season. Delaware beat Hampton 75-66 in the only meeting between the two teams at the HU Convocation Center on Dec. 9, 2008. Hampton won the first-ever meeting between the two teams, 51-50 in Newark, Del. on Nov. 27, 2007.

The Blue Hens were picked to finish ninth in the Colonial Athletic Association this season, coming off a 2009-10 campaign that saw Delaware go 7-24 overall and 3-15 in conference play. Carter was a Preseason Second Team All-CAA selection; he was third in the conference in scoring last season with 18.2 points per game, while coming in second in the CAA with 4.9 assists per contest, earning Second Team All-CAA honors.

Carter leads the team in scoring so far this season, averaging 16.8 points per game, while Saddler is averaging 11.6 points per contest and Hagins is pouring in 10.4 points a night. Hagins is also averaging a team-high 8.0 rebounds a game.

The Blue Hens are averaging 67.6 points a game on offense, while giving up 65.6 per contest.

Since moving up to Div. I in 1995, the Pirates are off to their second-best start, having won seven of their first eight games. The Pirates started the 2001-02 season 8-1 under former coach Steve Merfeld; that season, the Pirates also closed out the season with 18 wins in 19 games to win the MEAC Tournament title and advance to the NCAA Tournament. With a win over Delaware, the Pirates will match its best start as a Div. I program.

The Pirates, currently riding a seven-game winning streak, are among the nation's best teams on the defensive side of the ball. The Pirates (7-1, 1-0 MEAC) are fourth among all NCAA Division I teams in scoring defense, giving up just 53.9 points a contest, while Hampton is also second in the nation, behind only Florida State, in field goal percentage defense, holding opponents to 32.9 percent shooting on the season. Hampton is also sixth in the country in 3-point percentage defense, allowing teams to make just 24.1 percent of shots from behind the arc.

Live stats for Wednesday's game between Hampton and Delaware will be available through the Pirates' athletic website at www.hamptonpirates.com. 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.