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> 1183262400000) Dec 6, 2008

Game Notes: Hampton vs. Howard in the Big Apple Classic

Complete Game Notes 

Game 7
Hampton (4-3) vs. Howard (1-5)
Big Apple Classic

Date: Saturday, Dec. 6
Time: 7 p.m. EST
Place: Madison Square Garden, New York, N.Y.
Series: Hampton leads 38-17

The Game
This is a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference game between the Pirates of Hampton University and the Bison of Howard University.  The Pirates (4-3 overall, 0-0 in the MEAC) are coming off a 62-53 road win over Georgia State. Howard (1-5 overall, 0-0 in the MEAC) is coming off a 70-46 home loss to Canisius on Monday. The loss was the fifth straight for the Bison.

Howard
Probable Starters

No. 

Name

Pos.   

Cl.   

Ht.

2008-09 Stats

0

Curtis White

G

Jr.

6-4

8.3 ppg/2.3 apg

22

Calvin Thompson

G

Fr.

6-3

10.0 ppg/2.0 rpg

33

Eugene Myatt

F

Sr.

6-5

12.5 ppg/4.2 rpg

01

Kandi Mukole

F

Jr.

6-8

3.2 ppg/4.0 rpg

54

Paul Kirkpatrick

C

Jr.   

6-9  

7.8 ppg/4.5 rpg

Hampton
Probable Starters

No. 

Name

Pos.   

Cl.   

Ht.

2008-09 Stats

3

Jordan Brooks

G

So.

5-9

9.0 ppg/2.6 rpg

22

Christopher Tolson

G

Fr.

6-0

5.7 ppg/1.7 rpg

32

Jonathan Ntoko

G

Jr.

6-3

2.6 ppg/1.2 rpg

12

Theo Smalling

F

Jr.

6-7

4.4 ppg/4.0 rpg

21

Michael Freeman

F

Jr.   

6-8 

9.9 ppg/4.3 rpg

Scouting Hampton
Hampton is 4-3 with losses to Iona, Towson and San Diego State. Michael Freeman is averaging a team-high 9.9 points per game while Kwame Morgan is scoring 9.4 points per game off the bench for the Pirates. Freeman is also tops on the team with 4.3 rebounds per game. 

Hampton is coached by Kevin Nickleberry, who is in his 3rd season with the Pirates. He has a 33-28 record at Hampton and shares the same mark overall in his career as a head coach.

Pounding Pavement
Howard opens up its regular season with just three home games before January. HU hosted Oregon State in its season opener on Nov. 14 before making the trek to Navy on Nov. 16. The Bison played host to cross-town rival American on Nov. 19 before traveling north to face St. John's (N.Y.) on November 22. Howard hosted Illinois-Chicago (UIC) and Canisius on November 25 and December 1, respectively, before taking on Hampton in the Big Apple Classic on December 6.

HU is on the road again at Oregon State on December 20 and plays Portland two days later before facing off with Utah State in the Duel in the Desert Classic in Logan, Utah. Tourney play pits Howard against the host Aggies on December 29. Wyoming is the foe on day two and the Bison wrap up the month with a December 31 matchup against Houston Baptist on day three of the classic.

Bison Picked Ninth in the MEAC
The Howard University men's basketball team has been picked to finish ninth in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference's annual preseason poll, as voted on by the League's Head Coaches and Sports Information Directors. The announcement was made on October 15 in Winston-Salem, N.C. as part of the 2008-09 Tip-Off Media Luncheon. Morgan State (MSU) was picked first as the Bears garnered 15 first-place votes with 443 points. MSU was followed by Hampton (370 points) while Delaware State rounds out the top three 

Next Up
Hampton heads home to face Delaware on Tuesday at 7 pm while the Bison are off for two weeks before heading to Oregon State on December 20.