HAMPTON, Va.  – The Hampton University men's basketball team didn't celebrate Nenior night the way it hoped, dropping the final game of the regular season 60-45 to North Carolina Central Thursday night at the HU Convocation Center.

The Pirates (10-20, 6-10 MEAC) were trying to finish the regular season on a high note and send their seniors out with a win, but the Eagles had a different idea – as did the baskets. Hampton made just 13 of 48 shots (27.1 percent) from the floor.

Senior guard Darrion Pellum (Hampton, Va.) led the Pirates with 12 points, while senior guard Mike Tuitt (Bronx, N.Y.) added 10 points.

The two teams went back-and-forth until the 7:06 mark in the first half, when the score was tied at 19-19. The Eagles then went on an 8-0 run to take an eight-point lead and never looked back. Hampton would answer back with an 8-5 run to end the half down by five points, 32-27, following two good free throws by Pellum.

NCCU started the second half by making its first two buckets and taking a nine-point lead. The Eagles went up by eight points when Dominique Sutton hit a basket at the 14:29 mark to make the score 41-33, but senior guard Christopher Tolson (Laurel, Md.) cut that lead to six with a layup.

The Pirates went on a scoring drought that lasted almost 10 minutes, during which time NCCU went on an 11-0 run and take a 17-point lead. Tuitt made two free throws for the Pirates, but their next basket came at the 3:14 mark with freshman forward Emmanuel Okoroba (Garland, Texas) got a layup to go in the lane to cut the Eagles' lead to 56-39.

The Eagles (16-14, 10-6 MEAC) were led by Ray Willis, who finished the game with 18 points and was one rebound shy of a double-double, while Sutton finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds.

NCCU scored 30 points in the paint and 14 points off the Pirates' 19 turnovers.

With the regular season over, the Pirates will now await their final seeding for the 2012 MEAC Tournament, which begins on Monday at the Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem, N.C. The Pirates will play on Tuesday against an opponent yet to be determined.

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.