ROCK HILL, SC—The time has arrived as the Winthrop men's basketball team is set to open the 2015-16 season when it hosts Hampton on Saturday, Nov. 14 at 4 p.m.
 
GAME SNAPSHOT 
Winthrop (0-0) vs. Hampton (0-0)
Game Time: 4 p.m. EST / Site: Winthrop Coliseum
Live Video: Big South Network (Mike Pacheco/Bobby Stevens) / Audio: 104.1 The Bridge with pregame beginning at 3:30 p.m. (Dave Friedman/Ron Mikels)
Live Stats / Live Video / Live Audio
Twitter: @WUGameDay
Promotion: "Homecoming" weekend

SERIES HISTORY
This is only the 5^th meeting between Winthrop and Hampton with the series tied at 2-2. The Eagles have won both meetings played at the Winthrop Coliseum. The first meeting came in 2004 and the two teams last met in Rock Hill on Dec. 30, 2012 in Pat Kelsey's first season as head coach. Winthrop won the first meeting on Dec. 6, 2003, 84-74 and the 2012 meeting 50-43. The teams met in Winston-Salem, NC in 2010 as the Pirates edged the Eagles 45-44. And the last meeting came in 2013 as Hampton survived two overtimes for a 101-95 win.
 
SEASON OPENERS
The Eagles have won 9-of-10 openers and are 24-14 all-time. When opening the season at home the Eagles are 30-6.

THE MATCHUP
Winthrop is coming off a 19-13 season and its second consecutive trip to the Big South Conference championship game. With the departure of two 1,000 point scorers in Andre Smith and Keon Moore, the Eagles will look to some new and familiar faces to step into scoring roles. Hampton is coming off a 17-18 campaign in which it qualified for the NCAA Tournament by winning the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and then advanced in the tourney with a first round win over Manhattan before falling to Kentucky (79-56).
 
PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
Winthrop was selected third in the Big South preseason poll. Keon Johnson was named preseason All-Big South First Team and Xavier Cooks All-Big South Second Team. Hampton was selected to finish second in the MEAC with Quinton Chievous, Brian Darden and Jervon Pressley being preseason All-MEAC selections.

PLAYERS TO WATCH
The two biggest names receiving preseason recognition are junior Keon Johnson and sophomore Xavier Cooks.  Johnson is the top returning scorer from last year at 11.5 ppg. Johnson is an all-around threat as he's knocked down more than 100 threes in his first two seasons and attempted over 200 free throws. Cooks averaged 7.8 points and 6.1 rebounds as he landed on the Big South All-Freshman Team. Cooks seemed to improve with each game and will be looked upon to be a bigger contributor offensively this season. Senior Zach Price will see his first game action since Mar. 21, 2013 and there is great anticipation from the fans on his debut as an Eagle. Hampton's Chievous is the top returning scorer for the Pirates as he averaged 10.6 ppg and 6.5 rebounds. Chievous, a 6-6 guard, shot a team-high 154 free throws last season. Darden averaged 9.8 ppg last season and was the top three-pointer shooter connecting on 69 while shooting 36 percent. Jimmy Gavin is a graduate student that transferred from UW-Parkside where he scored 1,004 points in two seasons.

THE COACHES
Pat Kelsey begins his fourth season at the helm of the Winthrop men's basketball program. He holds a record of 53-43 in the first three seasons with appearances in the Big South championship game the past two seasons. In his first three seasons the Eagles are 3-0 in season openers. Hampton's Edward "Buck" Joyner Jr. begins his seventh season with the Pirates and is the winningest coach in the program's history. He's led the Pirates to NCAA Tournament appearances in 2011 and 2015. In his six seasons Joyner has a record of 99-96.