Game Notes

PRINCESS ANNE, Md. - The University of Maryland Eastern Shore men's basketball team plays their first home game in over a month when they host Savannah State on Saturday afternoon. UMES (9-9) tries to climb over .500 with a matchup against the Tigers at William P. Hytche Athletic Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. following the conclusion of the women's basketball game.

The Hawks evened their overall record with a commanding 78-53 victory in Baltimore on Monday, handily defeating in-state rival Morgan State. The Hawks led wire-to-wire, fending off a run by the Bears early in the second half. The 25-point margin gave UMES their most lopsided victory over Morgan State since the 1968-69 season. Devin Martin, playing in his hometown, tallied 26 points on 10-of-16 shooting, just one point shy of his career-high.

With the win, UMES now sits in fifth place in the MEAC standings with a 2-1 conference record. The Hawks are looking up at North Carolina Central, Norfolk State and Hampton, each undefeated at 4-0. South Carolina State currently occupies fourth place with a 3-1 mark in MEAC play.

The Hawks faithful will get a chance to see the men's team play for the first time since early December. UMES has spent a large chunk of the season on the road, coming off a 4-2 stretch away from Princess Anne. On the season, the Hawks have six road wins in total, the second-most in the country behind only Hofstra.

Now, UMES has an opportunity to move into more uncharted territory. At 9-9, this is the latest that a Hawks' squad has been .500 or better since the 1995-96 season. UMES has not completed a season with a winning record since 1993-94, when they finished at 16-12 under then-head coach Rob Chavez.

A matchup with a young Savannah State team awaits UMES on Saturday afternoon. Savannah State finished in fifth place in the conference at 10-6 a year ago. However, Horace Broadnax's squad has gotten off to a rocky 0-2 start with road losses to North Carolina A&T and North Carolina Central. The Tigers have just one senior and one junior that receive significant playing time, relying heavily on underclassmen with 11 freshmen and sophomores on the team. The impact senior is Terel Hall, a guard who leads Savannah State in scoring (10.1 points per game) as well as creating for teammates (2.9 assists per game).

The biggest weakness for Savannah State aligns with one of the Hawks' greatest strengths. The Tigers rank dead last in the MEAC in terms of 3-point accurary at 25.5%. Meanwhile, UMES has held opponents to a 30.3% shooting clip from long range, the third-best 3-point defense in the league. On the other end of the court, the Hawks are one of the deadliest shooting teams in the conference. With sharpshooters Devon Walker, Devin Martin and Ryan Andino, UMES makes 35.8% of its three-point attempts as a team, second-best in the MEAC.

The Saturday doubleheader is "Take A Kid To The Game" at William P. Hytche Athletic Center. Kids ages 17 and under receive free admission with a paying adult. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. following the conclusion of the women's basketball game. Fans can listen live to Doug Newton and Dave Byrd on the Hawks Radio Network powered by SFMSports.net and Fox Sports 960 AM in Salisbury, Md.