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HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University men's basketball team opened the 2011-12 season against the Tribe of William & Mary in front of a crowd of more than 4,000 at the HU Convocation Center, winning 73-58.
 
Hampton (1-0) handed the Tribe their second loss of the season.
 
“It was a good first game and we still have a lot that we are trying to find out about the team,” said head coach Edward Joyner Jr. “We got out to a really slow start and William & Mary is a really good team and they shot the ball really well, so we knew that we had to play good defense.”
 
The Pirates started the game on a 5-0 run before the Tribe would get on the board by a score by Marcus Thornton.
 
Hampton shot 38 percent from the floor in the first half, making 12 of 31 shots taken and going five-of-14 from beyond the 3-point arc. The Pirates were led by guard Darrion Pellum, who scored 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting.
 
Thornton scored 11 to lead the Tribe at the half.
 
Hampton took the lead at the 5:54 mark in the first half and never looked back, going into the half leading 32-26.
 
The Pirates opened the second half on a 19-8 run, on their way to scoring 41 second-half points. William & Mary would follow that run by going on a 10-4 run to cut Hampton's lead to 55-45.
 
Despite the Tribe's advances, the Pirates were able to hold them off. Hampton's defense forced 15 turnovers and scored 28 points off of those turnovers. The Pirates also scored 32 points in the paint and 29 points off the bench.
 
Hampton out-rebounded the Tribe, grabbing 42 rebounds, with 17 of those offensive rebounds. Newcomer David Bruce led the charge on the glass by grabbing a game-high 12 boards to go along with 15 points for his first double-double of the season.
 
Hampton was led by Pellum, who scored a game-high 20 points, and Mike Tuitt scored 10 points. Orin O'Bryant also grabbed double-digit rebounds with 10. The Pirates only turned the ball over eight times on the night..
 
The Pirates finished the game shooting 42 percent from the floor, making 27 of 64 shots, and they shot 52 percent from the charity stripe. William & Mary closed the game with four players scoring in double figures, led by Quinn McDowell, who had a team-high18 points.
 
The Pirates will be back in action on Thursday, as they take part in the 2011 Triple Crown Cancun Challenge in their first of two games played in the United States. Hampton will travel to Richmond, Va. to take to the Spiders of the University of Richmond at 7 p.m.
 
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.