Box Score HAMPTON, Va.- Savannah State rallied from a 14-point deficit but fell short in a 84-80 setback to Hampton, in a game played at the HU Convocation Center, before a crowd of 1,234.

The Tigers trailed 64-50 with 9:51 remaining, after a 3-pointer by Hampton's Lawrence Cooks.

SSU chipped away at the Pirates lead using 3-pointers from Casey Wells, Robert Kelly and Zach Sellers to get within 71-68 with 5:32 left in the game.

Hampton led 78-70 with 3:47 on the clock but a 10-3 spurt by the Tigers made the score 81-80 with just 17 seconds remaining.

SSU could get no closer as the Pirates closed the contest with three free throws to earn the win.

Sophomore guard Dexter McClanahan led SSU with 22 points and 12 rebounds while Wells came off the bench to contribute 17 points, hitting five 3-pointers.

The loss drops Savannah State to 4-11 overall and 1-1 in conference play.

Joshua Floyd nailed a 3-pointer to open the game to give SSU the early lead but Hampton stormed back to go ahead 17-9 with 12:14 left in the opening period.

Hampton led by as many as 14 in the first half before SSU clawed their way back into the game and went into intermission down 41-34.

SSU was down by six early in the second half before the Pirates scored eight consecutive points to extend their lead to 14 with just under 10 minutes remaining.

Kelly added 15 points for the Tigers in the loss.

In the second half, Savannah State shot 51.9 percent from the field while making 53.3 percent of the 3-point shots.

For the game, the Tigers shot 41.7 percent from the field, 38.9 percent from beyond the arc and 61.5 percent from the free throw line.

Hampton (5-10, 2-0) was led by Jermaine Morrow's game-high 25 points.

The Pirates, who out-rebounded SSU 43 to 41, shot 43.5 percent from the field, made 35.7 of their 3-point attempts and converted 73.7 of their free throw shots.