Saturday, March 21, 2015

Hampton U. hopes late season success is springboard for next season

HANPTON, Virginia -- If such a quality as exhausted enthusiasm exists, Hampton University's men's basketball team displayed it Friday.

The Pirates arrived back at campus Friday afternoon following a four-day, two-city whirlwind in which they won the second NCAA tournament game in program history, went toe-to-toe with the No. 1 team in the country, and heard their names mentioned on radio and TV broadcasts all over the nation.

"Amazing," forward Quinton Chievous said. "Just bonding with my teammates. Playing in the NCAA tournament, winning the MEAC championship. It's been a fun and amazing experience that I'll remember forever, and we're a part of history."

Hampton's NCAA tournament trip actually concluded a 10-day journey in which the Pirates overcame an inconsistent regular season and the loss of their leading scorer and rebounder to win the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament title.

"I think the biggest joy for any coach is watching his players finally get it and become a team," coach Ed Joyner Jr. said. "Over the last two weeks, they got it."

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