Dance Card: Hampton, MEAC

Who? The Pirates of Hampton.

What? A very good question to which Googling provides no answer.

Where? Hampton, Virginia, part of the Hampton Roads region of Virginia.

When? March 15th, in Norfolk, Virginia.

Why? They won the Mid-Eastern Athletic conference tournament.

How? It wasn't pretty for the Lady Pirates, but it didn't have to be. Hampton shot 26.2% from the field and 55.6% from the line- but they held Coppin State to 25.7% shooting, and Nicole Hamilton's 20 points were the difference in Hampton's 50-47 win.

Surprise? Predicted to finish first in the conference, they ended up in first and undefeated in conference.

RPI: 74

SOS: 307

Record: 28-4 (16-0 MEAC)

Good wins: Southern Miss.

Bad losses: At Santa Barbara.

Who's running this show? David Six, since 2009, who came to the area through his military service.

Extra, Extra! The Daily Press.

Freshman guard Malia Tate-DeFreitas leads Hampton in scoring with 18.9 per game, but the strongest option remains senior forward Alyssa Bennett, with 18.1 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. Senior guard Nicole Hamilton adds 12.7 points and 4.8 assists. Hampton's strength has long been their defense, as evidenced by the 56.3 points they allow per game, but this year's squad isn't as tested as past teams.

Random observation: I miss the Lady Pirates logo. I know it goes against all my belief in gender equity and unified marketing, but that lady was a boss.