Game Notes

HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University men's basketball team will return to the HU Convocation Center on Saturday to kick off a three-game homestand to end the regular season, beginning at 6 p.m. against Florida A&M.

The Pirates (12-15, 9-4 MEAC), in their fourth season under head coach Edward Joyner Jr., beat Delaware State 57-50 on Monday, behind 12 points from junior guard Ramon Mercado (Hollywood, Fla.) and 11 points from freshman guard Deron Powers (Williamsburg, Va.).

Sophomore center Emmanuel Okoroba (Garland, Texas) added 10 points in the win, Hampton's seventh in its last nine games.

The Rattlers (8-19, 5-8 MEAC) beat South Carolina State 75-72 in double-overtime on Monday, thanks to 21 points from junior guard Reggie Lewis and 17 points from junior guard Muhammad Abdul-Aleem.

The Rattlers went 10-23 overall last season and 6-10 in the conference, before advancing all the way to the semifinals of the MEAC Tournament and falling to eventual conference champion Norfolk State. Florida A&M is in its second season under head coach, and former Rattler, Clemon Johnson, and the Rattlers were picked to finish 11th in the MEAC this season.

Junior guard Jamie Adams leads Florida A&M in scoring so far this season, pouring in 14.0 points per game. Lewis is second on the team with 10.9 points per game, and senior forward Markee Teal is the team's top rebounder, pulling down 5.0 boards per contest.

The Rattlers are averaging 65.5 points per game on offense, while giving up 72.1 points per contest.

Since moving up to the Div. I level in 1995, the Pirates are 18-11 against Florida A&M, including a 74-59 win in Tallahassee, Fla. last season. Prior to that win, the Pirates had lost two straight and three of five against the Rattlers. Since the 2003-04 season, neither team has won more than three straight games in the series. Hampton is 10-3 against the Rattlers at home.

Hampton is 208-123 all-time as a Div. I program (since 1995) against teams currently in the MEAC, including a 6-10 mark in the conference last season. So far this season, Hampton is 9-4 in MEAC play and sits fourth in the conference. The Pirates have faced every team currently in the MEAC at least once, including newcomers North Carolina Central and Savannah State.

Since joining the MEAC in 1995, the Pirates have won two regular-season conference titles (2000-01, 2001-02) and four MEAC Tournament crowns (2001, 2002, 2006, 2011).

For his career as a head coach, Joyner is 25-18 at home, and the Pirates were 6-5 at home last season – beating William & Mary, High Point, Howard, South Carolina State, Morgan State and Maryland Eastern Shore, while losing to Savannah State, Norfolk State, Coppin State, Delaware State, and North Carolina Central.

Hampton defeated Howard 58-50 in its 2012-13 home debut, before falling 66-54 to Robert Morris on Dec. 8, beating American 72-65 on Dec. 18, falling 54-52 to Northern Kentucky on Dec. 20, beating James Madison 69-65 on Jan. 7, beating Quinnipiac 70-64 on Jan. 14, falling 80-78 to Morgan State on Jan. 19, falling 67-65 in overtime to Coppin State on Jan. 21, beating Delaware State 85-84 in double overtime on Feb. 11, and falling 62-59 to Norfolk State on Feb. 18.

The Pirates are 5-5 at home this season.

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.