University of Richmond Athletics
Spiders Host Hampton In Final Home Game Of 2003
12/29/2003 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 29, 2003
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UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. - The second and final in-state rival on the 2003-04 schedule visits the Robins Center this evening when Richmond and Hampton square off at 7:30 p.m.
Although these two programs are located very close, the first-ever meeting didn't happen until last year when the Pirates stole a one-point victory at home.
Tonight's contest will be the first of two home games this week for the Spiders as Duquesne comes to town for the Atlantic 10 opener at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. Richmond will also play at Colorado on Wednesday.
STORYLINES
* Richmond and Hampton, seperated by only 71 miles, met for the first time last November when the Pirates stole a one-point victory at the Hampton University Convocation Center. Tony Dobbins led the Spiders with 19 points.
* Hampton is the first team Richmond has faced with a losing record heading into the contest.
* VCU is the only common opponent for Richmond and Hampton. The Spiders defeated the Rams 70-52 on Dec. 3, while the Pirates fell to VCU 67-51 on Nov. 29. Hampton and VCU are the only Virginia schools on the Richmond schedule in 2003-04.
* The Spiders set a season high with 13 steals in their last game, a 57-56 loss to Providence. Richmond forced the Friars into 20 turnovers, the most by a UR opponent this season.
* Either Tony Dobbins (4) has led the Spiders in scoring in the first 10 games. The Spiders are 5-1 when Skrocki leads Richmond and 0-4 when Dobbins scores the most.
* Gaston Moliva emerged with his best game against Providence. The freshman scored 10 points and grabbed seven boards.
GAME NOTES
Missing The Commonwealth ... Monday's game against Hampton will be the second of two games against teams from Virginia this winter ... That is the lowest total for a Spider team ever ... Richmond played four Virginia schools last season ... For the first time since the 1994-95 season there is not one player on Richmond's roster that hails from Virginia.
Good From The Line ... Although the season is only 10 games old, the Spiders are close to a record in free throw percentage ... Richmond is second in the Atlantic 10 with a 74.0 free throw percentage (151-for-204) ... The Spiders' all-time record is 74.9 (558-for-745) set in 1965 ... Seniors Tony Dobbins (82.1) and Mike Skrocki (80.4) are third and fifth respectively in the conference.
A Late Whistle ... Despite trailing by 13 at halftime, the Spiders fought back and led by three with 9:56 to play before succombing to Providence, 57-56, on Dec. 23 ... After Tony Dobbins' driving layup tied the game with nine seconds to play, Providence's Sheiku Kabba earned a foul with 0.3 seconds remaining and made the second of two free throws to seal the win ... The Spiders lost by an average of 28.5 points against PC in two games last winter.
Sportsline's Heroes ... Richmond junior manager Dan Woolley was listed among six college basketball heroes who have overcome adverse conditions by CBS Sportsline writer Gregg Doyel ... Woolley, who lost both of his kidneys eight years ago, has been with the Spiders all three of his collegiate years.
Auld Lang Syne ... Next for the Spiders is a date with Colorado in Boulder on Dec. 31 ... The last time Richmond rang in the New Year with a game was Dec. 31, 1977 when Boston University defeated Richmond 69-63 in the Robins Center. ... That is the only other time the Spiders played on the final day of the year.
Slow Down Tony ... An interesting trend has developed with senior Tony Dobbins in the first 10 games ... In Richmond's five wins, Dobbins is averaging 7.6 points; while in the five losses, Dobbins is averaging 15.0 points ... At least on offense, it appears the Spiders are better when Tony is dishing the ball as opposed to shooting ... He averages 4.4 assists in wins and 2.4 in losses.