HAMPTON, Va. (Jan. 25, 2024) … Hampton's Kyrese Mullen scored career highs with 32 points and six three-pointers. Teammates Tedrick Wilcox Jr. and Jordan Nesbit scored 17 points apiece to lead the Pirates but Charleston (14-6, 5-2) posted a 107-86 win over Hampton (4-16, 0-7) before 897 fans at the Hampton Convocation Center. The loss was Hampton's 11^th in in a row.

Charleston (14-6, 5-2) scored from the inside with 54 points in the paint and from the outside with 14, three-pointers to keep the Pirates at bay. Charleston leads the nation in three-point attempts and tossed up 36 shots beyond the arc.

Charleston's Ante Brzovic was dominating in the paint, hitting 15-of-19 shots for 31 points with 12 rebounds. Reyne Smith hit 5-of-10 from three-point range for 15 points. Charleston outrebounded the Pirates, 46-26, with 17 offensive boards.

After a tight first half, Charleston took a slim 43-39 lead into the locker room. But the Cougars never trailed in the second half to snap a two-game losing streak.

The score remained close in the final half until a 9-0 Charleston run upped the lead to 68-55 with 14:01 left. Hampton was able to make inroads but never fully closed the gap. The Cougars shot 73 percent from the field, making 7-of-12 from three-point range, in the second half.

With Charleston holding an 84-79 lead with 6:40 to go, the Cougars went on a 15-4 run to lead 99-83 with 2:34 remaining.

Charleston made 5-of-8 shots to start the second half and lead 55-45 after a Smith three-pointer. But Hampton closed to 57-53 after a Mullen trey. Charleston went on a 9-0 scoring run to build a 68-55 lead with 13:32 left. Another Hampton run, capped by a trey and an old fashioned three-point play by Mullen with 11:37 to go closed the gap to 70-67.

Neither team was able to gain the upper hand in the first half as there were five ties and six lead changes. Midway through the half, the Pirates led by five points but the Cougars battled back to lead by eight converting five-of-six shots from the field. Hampton closed to 43-39 at intermission.

The Cougars were led by Brzovic, who tallied 16 points with seven rebounds in the opening half, and teammate Smith added. 12.  Mullen paced the Pirates with 13 points including a pair of three-pointers. Wilcox Jr. had 11 points with three treys.

With the win, the Cougars remain undefeated against the Pirates with a 4-0 record against Hampton.

The Pirates return to action on Sunday, Jan. 28 when Hampton entertains Elon (8-11, 1-5) at the Hampton Convocation Center.