Box Score

HAMPTON, Va. – Despite leading at the half, the Hampton University men's basketball team fell to the Aggies of North Carolina A&T on Monday night 69-65 at the HU Convocation Center.

It was the second straight loss for the Pirates, who cut North Carolina A&T's lead to three, 68-65, on a Darrion Pellum (Hampton, Va.) layup with seven seconds remaining. Dwane Joshua responded with five seconds to play by sinking one of two free throws to push the game to its final margin.

The Aggies went on an 11-1 run, culminating at the 14:52 mark on a stickback from Thomas Coleman to give North Carolina A&T a 42-41 lead. That lead eventually extended to 49-45 after a 17-5 Aggies run, before another 8-2 spurt put North Carolina A&T up 55-47 with 9:16 to play after Nic Simpson hit a 3-pointer.

Pellum led four Pirates in double figures with 18 points on 7-for-15 shooting, while Michael Freeman (Alexandria, Va.) added 12 points to go along with a team-high eight rebounds. Vincent Simpson (Philadelphia, Pa.) and Kwame Morgan II (Largo, Md.) each added 11 points for the Pirates, who shot 42.9 percent (24-for-56) from the floor.

The Aggies out-rebounded Hampton 46-31 – including a 24-12 advantage on the offensive glass.

Robert Johnson led the Aggies with 13 points, while Tavarus Alston, Joshua and Coleman each had 11 points. Coleman also pulled down 11 rebounds.

The Aggies shot 41.0 percent (25-for-61) from the floor.

The Pirates (8-17, 4-8 MEAC) fell behind 11-4 to start the game, but tied the game at 22-22 with 7:40 left in the first half on a jumper from Mike Tuitt (Bronx, N.Y.). Hampton and North Carolina A&T would trade baskets, but the Pirates took the lead again at the 3:56 mark, when Morgan sank a layup to make it 28-26 in favor of Hampton.

Morgan would sink a 3-pointer 25 seconds later, helping the Pirates to an 11-3 run to go up 37-29 with 46 seconds left in the half. Alston hit a pair of free throws with two seconds left to cut Hampton's lead at the intermission to 37-31.

Freeman and Pellum led all scorers with nine points in the first half, as the Pirates shot 52.0 percent (13-for-25) from the floor and made seven of eight free throws. Charles Funches (Bayonne, N.J.) led Hampton with five first-half rebounds, but the Aggies held a 22-17 rebounding edge in the first half.

The Aggies shot 34.3 percent (12-for-35) from the floor in the first half; Alston and Johnson led the way with six points apiece.

The Pirates will return to action on Saturday, when they head to Daytona Beach, Fla. to take on Bethune-Cookman at 6 p.m. 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.