Game Notes

ORANGEBURG, S.C. – The Hampton University men's basketball team will look to get back into the win column on Wednesday, squaring off against South Carolina State at 730 p.m. at the Smith-Hammond Middleton Memorial Center.

This will be the second of five straight road games for the Pirates.

The Pirates (5-13, 2-3 MEAC), in their fourth season under head coach Edward Joyner Jr., fell 74-67 at Norfolk State on Saturday for their third straight defeat. Freshman guard Deron Powers (Williamsburg, Va.) led the Pirates with 20 points, while sophomore center Emmanuel Okoroba (Garland, Texas) added 13 points and junior guard/forward Du'Vaughn Maxwell (Manhattan, N.Y.) recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

The Bulldogs (4-15, 0-6 MEAC) fell 64-49 to Savannah State on Saturday for its 12th straight loss. Junior center Matthew Hezekiah led SCSU with 13 points and seven rebounds, while freshman forward Darryl Palmer added 10 points.

The Bulldogs went 5-26 overall last season, finishing last in the MEAC with an 0-16 mark before falling to Bethune-Cookman in the first round of the MEAC Tournament. South Carolina State, in its sixth season under head coach Tim Carter, was picked to finish last in the MEAC in 2012-13.

Hezekiah is the team's leading scorer with 13.8 points per game, while also pulling down a team-high 8.1 rebounds per contest. Senior guard Khalif Toombs is the only other Bulldog in double figures, averaging 12.1 points per game.

The Bulldogs are averaging 62.3 points a game on offense, while giving up 74.8 points a night.

Since moving up to the Div. I level in 1995, the Pirates are 18-17 against South Carolina State and have won the last two meetings – including a 78-66 win at the HU Convocation Center last season. Prior to Hampton's two-game streak, the Pirates dropped three in a row against the Bulldogs. Overall, Hampton has won five of the last eight meetings.

The Pirates are 6-9 against SCSU on the road.

Hampton is 201-122 all-time as a Div. I program (since 1995) against teams currently in the MEAC, including a 6-10 mark in the conference last season. So far this season, Hampton is 2-3 in MEAC play this season, with both wins coming against rival Howard. The Pirates have faced every team currently in the MEAC at least once, including newcomers North Carolina Central and Savannah State.

Since joining the MEAC in 1995, the Pirates have won two regular-season conference titles (2000-01, 2001-02) and four MEAC Tournament crowns (2001, 2002, 2006, 2011).

The Pirates went 1-13 on the road last season, with that lone win coming at Florida A&M, 74-59, on Feb. 25. For his career, Joyner is 16-34 on the road after Hampton's season-opening loss at William & Mary, a 68-58 loss at Richmond, a 75-67 loss at Ohio, a 61-60 loss at UNC Wilmington, a 73-64 loss at Radford, a 50-43 loss at Winthrop, and a 68-49 loss at USC Upstate.

Hampton's first road win of the season came on Jan. 12 in a 51-49 win over Howard, but the Pirates fell at Norfolk State 74-67 this past Saturday.

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.