BALTIMORE, Md. – The Hampton University men's basketball team will wrap up the 2016 Barclays Classic at the SECU Arena, taking on Robert Morris on Friday at 7:30 p.m. before squaring off against either Stony Brook or Towson on Saturday.
 
Live Stats: Click here.
Game Notes: Click here. 
 
The Series: The Pirates are 0-2 against Robert Morris, with the last meeting between the two teams coming in the 2012-13 season, and Hampton is 1-2 against Towson – having won the last meeting between the two teams 78-67 at the HU Convocation Center in the 2010-11 season. Hampton has never faced Stony Brook.
 
Pirates Against the NEC: The Pirates are 0-3 against schools currently in the NEC, including an 0-2 mark against Robert Morris and an 0-1 mark against Sacred Heart. Hampton has never faced Bryant, Central Connecticut, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU Brooklyn, Mount St. Mary's, St. Francis Brooklyn, St. Francis, or Wagner.
 
Pirates Against the America East: The Pirates are 2-4 against schools currently in the America East Conference, going 0-2 against Maryland Baltimore County and 2-2 against Maine. The Pirates have never faced Albany, Binghamton, Hartford, UMass Lowell, New Hampshire, Stony Brook, or Vermont.
 
Pirates Against the CAA: The Pirates are 10-24 against schools currently in the CAA. Hampton is 0-1 against Charleston, 1-5 against Delaware, 1-4 against James Madison, 1-2 against Towson, 0-1 against UNC Wilmington, and 7-11 against William & Mary. Hampton has never faced Drexel, Elon, Hofstra, or Northeastern.
 
Pirates on the Road: In head coach Edward Joyner Jr.'s first seven-plus seasons at the helm, the Pirates are 43-62 on the road, including an 8-7 mark last season. Hampton has won at least eight road games in three of its first seven seasons under Joyner – and in all three of those seasons, the Pirates made the postseason (2011 and 2016 NCAA, 2015 CBI). Hampton's best road mark came in 2010-11, when the Pirates were 8-5 in true road games.
 
Scouting the Colonels: Robert Morris, in its seventh season under head coach Andrew Toole, is 0-5 so far this season following a 61-40 loss at Kansas State this past Tuesday. Sophomore guard Isaiah Still leads the Colonels in scoring, averaging 15.8 points per game, while senior forward Billy Giles is averaging a team-best 4.8 rebounds per contest.
 
Scouting the Seawolves: Stony Brook, in its first season under head coach Jeff Boals, is 0-3 on the season after a 77-63 loss at Maryland this past Tuesday. Junior forward Tyrell Sturdivant leads four Seawolves in double figures, averaging 15.3 points per game, while also grabbing nine rebounds per contest. Redshirt freshman swing player Akwasi Yeboah is averaging 11 points and six rebounds a game.
 
Scouting the Tigers: Towson, in its sixth season under head coach Pat Skerry, is 2-2 this season following an 80-70 loss at Boston College this past Tuesday. Junior guard Mike Morsell is averaging 20.5 points per game to lead the Tigers, while senior forward Arnaud William Adala Moto is averaging 18.0 points and a team-high nine rebounds per game.
 
Pirates Picked to Finish Third: Despite winning back-to-back MEAC titles, the Pirates were picked to finish third in the conference this season in a poll conducted by the league's head coaches and sports information directors. Hampton, which returns just one starter from last season, picked up two first-place votes and racked up 250 points in the poll. Howard was tabbed the preseason favorite, while South Carolina State – which fell to the Pirates in last season's MEAC Tournament championship game – was picked to finish second.
 
Cooks the Only One: Lawrence Cooks is the lone returning starter for the Pirates, and he comes into 2016-17 as the team's top returner in scoring (7.8 ppg), rebounding (3.7 rpg), assists (47), and steals (19). He is also the only player on this year's team that isn't a freshman, sophomore, or junior – though he does have two MEAC championship rings and NCAA Tournament appearances to his credit. Cooks dropped a career-high 22 points at Winthrop last season, a campaign in which he scored in double figures 11 times. Cooks had 10 points in Hampton's season opener against Rider.
 
Wilson-Fisher Looking for a Bigger Role: Charles Wilson-Fisher was a key role player in the Pirates' run through the MEAC Tournament in 2015, and he was a key reserve down low for the Pirates last season. 2016-17 could figure to be a breakout season for the Los Angeles native with the graduation of Jervon Pressley, and Wilson-Fisher will be looking to improve on his scoring and rebounding averages (2.7 and 2.5, respectively) this season. He tied his career high in points with 10 last season against Northern Arizona, and this past Friday against Rider, he set new career highs in rebounds (15) and blocks (two).
 
Strong Start for Marrow: Four games into his collegiate career, freshman Jermaine Marrow leads the Pirates in scoring, averaging 13.8 points per game. He opened his career with 13 points against Rider, before dropping 11 points on Nov. 17 in an overtime win over Chowan and then scoring 15 points at Kansas State this past Sunday and dropping 16 at Richmond on Tuesday. The Heritage High graduate from nearby Newport News, Va. was 4A East State Player of the Year last season, proving to be one of Virginia's best scorers – averaging over 25 points a game in 2015-16.
 
Astroth Making an Impact: AJ Astroth was key in Hampton's win over Chowan on Nov. 17 – not just because he poured in a season-high 18 points and nine rebounds in just his second game with the program, but because it was his layup in the closing moments that gave the Pirates the lead. Astroth is third on the team in scoring, averaging 9.3 points per game.
 
For more information on Hampton University basketball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5757, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.