HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University men's basketball team dropped another close game on Saturday at the HU Convocation Center, as the Eagles of Coppin State slipped away with a 73-70 win. 
 
The Pirates (7-14, 3-5 MEAC) dropped their third game of the season by three points or less.
 
Senior guard Darrion Pellum (Hampton, Va.) led the Pirates with 24 points, despite going just 8-for-19 from the floor, while senior guard Mike Tuitt (Bronx, N.Y.) added 12 points and 10 assists (tying his career high) for his first double-double of the season.  
 
Senior guard Christopher Tolson (Laurel, Md.) added 11 points.  
 
The game was tight throughout, with eight ties but just one lead change.
 
The Pirates led by as many as six points in the first half on two different occasions behind 46.4 percent (13-for-28) shooting from the floor. Hampton used that shooting to go into the half up 29-26.
 
Hampton led by as many as eight points in the second half, with the score 34-26 following a 3-pointer by Pellum at the 18:21 mark. Coppin State went on an 8-0 run to tie the game at 37-37 after Logan Wiens hit a 3-pointer with 15:46 left in the second half.
 
Coppin State took its largest lead of the game when Tony Gallo when to the free throw line and hit all three for the free throws to put the Eagles up 46-43. The Eagles then went on a 10-2 run to turn that three-point lead into an eight-point lead.
 
Hampton battled back to tie the game two more times, most recently on a dunk by senior forward Danny Agbelese(Lanham, Md.) to tie the game at 58-58 with 5:28 to play, but Akeem Ellis gave Coppin State the lead back with a layup at the 5:03 mark.
 
The Eagles never relinquished that lead.
 
Pellum hit a pair of free throws with 24 seconds left to pull Hampton within one, 70-69, and sophomore center David Bruce (Linden, N.J.) added a free throw of his own with 12 seconds left to cut Coppin State's lead to 71-70.
 
Michael Harper clinched the game for the Eagles with 11 seconds left by hitting both of his free throws.
 
Gallo led the Eagles (10-11, 5-3 MEAC) with 21 points, thanks in part to an impressive 10-for-12 effort from the charity stripe, while Harper added 16 points.
 
Wiens also finished in double figures with 14 points.
 
Coppin State shot 41.8 percent (23-for-55) from the floor and 17-for-24 from the charity stripe. The Pirates scored 36 points in the paint and 18 points off of 14 Coppin State turnovers.
 
The Pirates will play host to the Bears of Morgan State on Monday night at the HU Convocation Center at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on ESPNU. 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.