Men's Basketball | 2/16/2022 10:19:00 AM

North Carolina A&T vs. Hampton Pirates
When: Wednesday, February 16, 7:00 p.m. 
Where: Hampton Convocation Center (Hampton, Va.) 
Stream/Radio: ESPN+ / Spencer Turkin (Aggie Sports Network-WWBG 1470 AM) 
 
A&T Team Leaders
Points: Marcus Watson (12.3 PPG)
Rebounds: Marcus Watson (5.7 RPG)
Assists: Kameron Langley (4.7 APG)
Blocks: Harry Morrice (19)
Steals: Kameron Langley (38)
Field Goal Percentage: Tyler Maye (.470)
3-pt Field Goal Percentage: Demetric Horton (.350)
Free Throw Percentage: Tyler Maye (.733) 
 
A&T Big South Leaders (Top-10) 
Rebounds: Marcus Watson (5.7) – 8^th
Assists: Kameron Langley (117) – 1^st
Blocks: Harry Morrice (19) – t-8^th
Steals: Kameron Langley (38) – 4^th; Demetric Horton (35) – t-7^th

 A&T National Leaders (Top-100)
Assists: Kameron Langley (117) – t-38^th 
 

NORTH CAROLINA A&T AGGIES (11-15, 6-6 BIG SOUTH): The Aggies have had their ups and downs over the course of their first season as Big South Conference members. After starting 4-1, they lost the next five, but have bounced back nicely to the tune of back-to-back wins, including Saturday's victory over North Division-leading Longwood. The Lancers had previously won 11 straight and were 10-0 in league action. 
 
Graduate point guard and preseason all-conference second-team selection Kameron Langley entered the week averaging a career-low 5.2 points per game. In two wins over Charleston Southern and Longwood, however, he averaged 15.0 points, including a season-high 17 points on 8-for-8 shooting from the the free throw line in Saturday's win over the Lancers. 
 
Langley was voted as the Big South men's basketball player of the week for his efforts last week. In the last 10 games Langley has scored in double-figures, A&T is 8-2. 
 
Coach Jones is in his third season overall and second full season after initially taking over on an interim basis on December 24, 2019. In that same year, Jones earned Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) coach of the year honors. He is 36-30 (.545) as the head coach at A&T.  
 
HAMPTON (7-16, 3-9 BIG SOUTH): The Pirates are coming off a 60-54 home loss to Radford on Saturday and are 1-4 in their last five. 
 
Graduate transfer forward Najee Garvin paces the team in both scoring (15.4 ppg) and rebounds (6.4 rpg). He is the only player in the Big South in the top-five of both respective categories. Garvin has scored in double figures in 21 of the 23 games he has played. Preseason all-conference second-team selection Russell "Duece" Dean follows closely behind with his 13.9 points per game. 
 
As a team, the Pirates are last in the league in points per game (62.0) and field goal percentage (.388). The biggest discrepancy in these two teams lies in the steals per game, where A&T is tops in the conference averaging 8.2, while Hampton is last at just 5.7 per game. 
 
Head coach Edward Joyner, Jr. is in his 13^th year as the Pirates' head coach, nine of those being spent in the MEAC. In that time, he has three MEAC tournament titles (2011, 2015, 2016) and two MEAC regular-season titles (2016 & 2018). Since transitioning to the Big South, his best finish was fifth-place finishes from 2018-20. Joyner has amassed an overall record of 204-206 (.498) during his tenure. 
 
THE SERIES: Wednesday will be the 66^th all-time meeting between the Aggies and the Pirates in a series that Hampton leads, 35-30, but A&T won the most recent matchup earlier this season on Jan. 12, 67-59, inside Corbett. 
 
QUOTABLE: "It is a process. You can't get too high, you can't get too low. You have to look at your team every day and see where they are, understanding the individuals on the team and try to put them in the right situations every day. Not just every game, but every day."
   
"In the blink of an eye, with some resolve and toughness, and will and togetherness, you can look up and be on a two-game win streak. We just have to do it one day at a time, one practice at a time and go in this week with a 1-0 mindset." 
   
GAME NOTES: 

• A&T and Hampton have been conference opponents in three separate leagues: the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA), the MEAC and the Big South. 
• The CIAA was founded on Hampton's campus in 1912. 
• Since then, these storied rivals have competed 65 times, with Hampton leading the all-time series, 35-30. 
• Under head coach Will Jones, however, the Aggies are 1-0 against the Pirates. 
• The Aggies have had 18 games decided by 10 points or less this season. They are 8-10 (.444) in those games. 
• The team is also 10-4 (.714) all-time in February under Jones, but just 2-4 (.333) on the road. 
• Hampton is last in the conference in scoring offense (62.0 PPG) while the Aggies are eighth (68.0). 
• The Pirates are 5-4 at home this season, but just 1-3 in their last four. 
• Graduate guard Kameron Langley leads the Big South in assists per game (4.7). His 874 career dimes are first in the country among active players. He is 18^th all-time on the NCAA list.