#5 “HORNETS” (15-16; 9-7 MEAC) vs. #12 Savannah State “Tigers” (9-21; 5-11 MEAC)
Mon., Mar. 9, 2015 - 6:30 p.m.
Norfolk, Va. (Scope Arena - 11,000) 
Live Video: WATCH ESPN/ESPN3

Live TV: n/a
Live Audio: n/a
Live Video: WatchESPN/ESPN3
Live Stats:  MEACSports.com; DSUHornets.com
Twitter updates: @DSUAthletics
Delaware State Head Coach Keith Walker (Clemson, '81): 20-22 at DSU (1st year, plus 11 games as interim in 2013-14); 111-124 career (9th year); 2-0 vs. SSU; 14-12 MEAC regular season         
Savannah State Coach Horace Broadnax  (Georgetown, '86): 122-168 at SSU (10th year); 163-266 career (14th year); 1-10 vs. DSU   

THE GAME
Delaware State (15-16; 9-7 MEAC regular season) takes on the Savannah State Tigers in a 2015 Mid-Eastern
Athletic Conference Tournament opening round game. The Hornets are the fifth seed in the tournament based on their fifth place finish in the MEAC regular season race. Savannah State is seeded 12th. The winner of the contest will face No. 4 Howard in the quarterfinals on Thurs. at 8 p.m. 

The Hornets closed out the regular season with a historic 104-92 victory over Coppin State on Mar. 5. Kendall Gray had career-highs of 33 points and 30 rebounds to become the first player in DSU and MEAC Div. I history to reach 30 points and 30 boards in a game. Gray's 30 rebounds in the contest marked just the 11th time the feat was achieved in a NCAA Div. I contest; and first since 2000. It's also the Div. I high this season. Gray was 12-for-13 from the field in the game; and also had three blocks to set the DSU single-season mark (83) for the third straight year.  He leads all Div. I players in rebounding at 12.4 per game entering the MEAC Tournament. Gray was honored as the MEAC's Player-of-the-Year and Defensive Player of the Year, becoming the second player in league history to earn the awards in the same season.

In addition, DSU guard Amere May scored 40 points and had five assists in the regular season finale, marking the first time the Hornets had 40-point and 30-point scorers in the same game. It was May's second 40-point game of the season. He had the 2014-15 Div. I high of 48 points vs. St. Francis Brooklyn on Dec. 17. May is tops in the MEAC and sixth in Div. I in scoring at 20.9 points per game.  He has topped the 20-point mark in eight consecutive games; and has reached double figures in 21 straight. He has also knocked down at least one three-pointer in each of the last 24 games.

Savannah State (7-21; 5-11 MEAC regular season) brings a two-game losing streak into the tournament. The Tigers suffered a 64-57 loss to Florida A&M in their regular season finale on Mar. 5. SSU led 28-23 at the half but was outscored 41-29 in the final 20 minutes. Khalen Pinkett was high scorer for the Tigers with 11 points in the game.  Terel Hall tops the team in scoring at 10.6 points per game, while Brian Pearson is the leading rebounder at 4.6 per contest. Hall also has a team-high 82 assists. 

DSU vs. SAVANNAH STATE SERIES HISTORY (DSU leads 2-0)
The Hornets and Tigers are meeting for the second time this season and third time overall. Delaware State won this year's lone regular season meeting 59-50 on Jan. 19 at DSU's Memorial Hall. The Hornets trailed 29-21 at the break, but outscored the Tigers 38-21 in the second half.  Tyshawn Bell and Amere May led DSU with 16 points each in the contest., while Kendall Gray tallied eight points and a game-high 17 rebounds, Terel Hall was high man for Savannah State with 12 points. This is the first MEAC Tournament meeting between the teams.