Hampton, Va. – Senior guard Rashad West recorded his first, and the team’s first, double-double of the season with 20 points and 11 rebounds in a 55-48 victory over the Bonnies of St. Bonaventure University.
With the victory, the Pirates improved to 5-4 on the season, while the Bonnies fell to 5-6. All six of St. Bonaventure’s losses came on the road.
The Pirates held St. Bonaventure to just 28% (19-66) shooting from the floor on the night while they shot 39% (22-56). Hampton snatched 49 rebounds on the night while St. Bonaventure was limited to 39 boards. Hampton scored 32 points in the paint and 11 points off 15 Bonnies’ turnovers.
Coming into the game, the Pirates were ranked 17th in the NCAA in scoring defense, allowing just under 56 points a game. Against the Bonnies, Hampton showed why they were ranked that high as they held the Bonnies to just 48 points.
“I think that we did a great job defensively, holding St. Bonaventure to only 48 points on the night. This is something that we pride ourselves on each and every night that we play,” stated HU head coach Nickelberry. “We also did an outstanding job of holding their top two scorers in Michael Lee, who is currently ranked among the nation’s top scorers, and Zarryon Fereti, to 10 combined points. Our guys are starting to get excited after games when we look at the stat sheet and see that we stop the opponent’s top players. That is a huge part of our defensive philosophy and we have done a good of executing it all year,” said Coach Nickelberry.
“Right now, our offense is struggling a bit but we are trying to get the ball inside as much as possible, added Nickelberry. Other than Donte’ Harrison, tonight we missed some easy shots.”
St. Bonaventure led by as many as five points at one point, but it was not long before the Pirates regained the lead with less then 8:00 left in the contest.
Besides West, also having a great game for the Pirates was Donte Harrison, who scored 13 point in the Pirates’ victory. Leading the way for the Bonnies was Hillary Haley and Tyler Relph, who scored 13 points each for St. Bonaventure.
“Coming from some of the great defensive institutions, I understand that it does not matter the margin of victory or how pretty the victory is, but at the end of the day, it’s about winning,” said Nickelberry. “I truly believe to build a program and win championships it starts with great defense.”
The Pirates will be back in action on Wednesday, December 19, as they travel to Charlottesville, VA to face the Cavilers of the University of Virginia. Game time has been set for 7 p.m. For more information on HU athletics, go to
www.hamptonpirates.com or contact the HU Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811.
