Game Notes

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The Hampton University women's basketball team will begin its quest for a second straight Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Tournament title on Wednesday, as the Lady Pirates take on No. 8 South Carolina State on Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. at the Joel Coliseum.

The Lady Pirates (22-6), in their second season under head coach David Six, closed out the regular season with their 10th straight win on Thursday, beating Howard 60-54 at Burr Gymnasium. Senior forward Quanneisha Perry (Decatur, Ga.) and junior forward Melanie Warner (Tallahassee, Fla.) each recorded double-doubles; Perry had a team-high 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Warner added 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Junior guard Jericka Jenkins (Lancaster, Texas) added 16 points and nine assists.

South Carolina State (12-16) picked up its fourth straight win on Tuesday in the first round of the MEAC Tournament with a 62-52 win over No. 9 seed Bethune-Cookman. Senior guard Whitney Wiley led three SCSU players in double figures with 19 points, thanks mostly to a 10-for-11 effort from the free throw line, while sophomore guard Trinese Fox and sophomore center Paris Alston each added 10 points.

Hampton is 23-10 all-time against South Carolina State, having won the last five meetings in the series, including a 77-57 win at the HU Convocation Center on Feb. 5. The Lady Pirates swept last year's meetings, winning 67-47 in Orangeburg, S.C. on Feb. 6 before beating the Lady Bulldogs 57-46 in the MEAC title game. In all, Hampton has won eight of the last nine games against SCSU. The Lady Bulldogs won the first two games in the series, including a 79-50 decision on March 10, 1978, before Hampton won seven in a row from 1997 to 2000.

Hampton's stellar journey to the 2010-11 MEAC regular-season title did not escape the conference's notice; the conference's sports information directors and head coaches selected Six as the Coach of the Year. He is the first Hampton coach to earn the honor since Patricia Cage-Bibbs was named MEAC Coach of the Year in 1997-98.

Perry, the 2009-10 MEAC Defensive Player of the Year and a First Team All-MEAC selection, was again named Defensive Player of the Year this season, on top of earning Second Team All-MEAC honors. Jenkins, one of the nation's most prolific point guards, raked in First Team All-MEAC honors.

Wiley leads the team in scoring with 11.4 points per game, while sophomore guard Tiara Knotts is pouring in 8.8 points a contest. Junior center Fannie Goodwin is the team's leading rebounder, pulling down 6.9 boards per game.

SCSU, winners of four straight, finished eighth in the MEAC this season. The Lady Bulldogs are averaging 55.8 points per game on offense, while giving up 62.1 points a contest.

The Lady Pirates are 1-0 in neutral-court games this season, having beaten Troy 61-43 in Atlanta, Ga. on Dec. 29, 2010 as part of the Georgia State Invitational in Atlanta, Ga. Hampton was 4-2 on neutral courts last season, including a 3-0 mark to win the MEAC Tournament. For his career, head coach David Six is 5-2 on neutral courts.

The winner of Wednesday's quarterfinal will advance to the semifinal game on Friday at noon.

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.