HAMPTON, Va. (Feb. 22, 2025) (Courtesy of Hampton Athletics) … Steaking Hampton (15-13, 7-8) throttled UNCW (21-7, 11-4) 83-70 before an audience of 3,416 at the Hampton Convocation Center. The Pirates clicked on 15-of-23 shots from three-point range (65.2 percent) and George Beale Jr. and Wayne Bristol Jr. each scored 20 points to lead the way. The win was the fourth in a row for the for the Pirates and the fifth triumph in six games.

Hampton’s four seniors were honored in ceremonies prior to the game. Dan Banister Jr., Noah Farrakhan, Tyler Rice, Wayne Bristol Jr. were feted with family and friends on hand in midcourt celebrations.

“We shot very well today — from the field, on three-pointers and from the line,” Coach Ivan Thomas said. “But it was our toughness on defense that won the game for us. We challenged them on every shot and battled them every step of the way.”

Both teams got off to slow starts combining to make just 3-of-10 from the field in the opening minutes. But Hampton found the range and led 24-17 at the 12:00 minute mark following three-pointers by Bristol Jr and Etienne Strothers. A monster jam by Farrakhan after his steal was part of an 8-0 Hampton run that boosted the lead to 35-24. The Pirates then scored eight of the half’s final 10 points to go ahead 43-26. The final bucket of the half was a fall away twisting runner by Long.  

Bristol Jr. came off the bench to lead all scorers with nine points while Richard Good (six) and Strothers (five) were key players. Nolan Hodge led the Seahawks with six points at intermission. The hustling Pirates forced nine first half turnovers turning them into 12 points. UNCW forced five Hampton turnovers translating them into one point.

At the half, the Pirates made 7-of-9 shots from three-point range while UNCW was 0-for-5. The Pirates shot a sizzling 51.7 percent from the field in the opening half while the Seahawks shot 37.0 percent. As been the case all season, the Pirate bench helped stake Hampton to a lead contributing 20 of the team’s 43 first-half points.

A nine-point run by the Seahawks closed the gap to 46-38 with 14:55 left in the contest. But threes by Farrakhan, Beale Jr. and Farrakhan again stopped the UNCW rally. Hampton hit 7-of-9 shots during the stretch to extend the lead to 58-44 with 12:35 to go.

But UNCW wasn’t done. The Seahawks scored eight straight points to close to 71-61 with 5:09 left. But again, Hampton’s long-range shooting made the difference. Three-pointers by Beale Jr., Bristol Jr. and Bristol Jr. again sandwiched between a UNCW trey made the score 80-64 with less than 4:00 left.

Beale’s three-pointer with 3:17 remaining gave the Pirates their largest lead of the game, 83-64. UNCW scored the game’s final six points in Hampton’s 83-70 victory.

The win was the first-ever for the Pirates against UNCW. The Seahawks had won the four previous meetings.

Hampton returns to action on Monday, Feb. 24 at noon when the Pirates host Stony Brook. The game was originally scheduled for Feb. 20 but a snowstorm blanketed the peninsula forcing the game to be rescheduled. UNCW plays at Elon on Feb. 27.