As the calendar turns to February, HBCU D-I basketball’s conference races are picking up steam as teams jockey for the best position possible entering tournament time.
With just one spot in both the MEAC and SWAC up for grabs, there’s a lot of basketball left to be played in addition to the high-level hoops that have occurred so far. Let’s look back at some of the important moments from last week.
Hampton prolongs Howard men’s struggles
On the list of toughest ways to lose a basketball game, a four-point play has to be near the top. Just ask the ‘99 Indiana Pacers or, most recently, defending MEAC champion Howard, who dropped an 80-79 overtime decision to Hampton in Atlanta on Saturday.
Georgetown transfer Wayne Bristol Jr. banked in a three-pointer while being fouled with 18 seconds left in the extra session, then made the free throw to give the Pirates their third straight win over the reeling Bison, who have lost four in a row.
The Bison can still contend for a MEAC title but will have to right the ship quickly. Hampton meanwhile sits 13th in the 15-team Coastal Athletic Association, so a conference title might be beyond their reach this year, but another year of being “The Real HU” is a nice consolation prize.
Southern men remain unbeaten in the SWAC
The Southern Jaguars are the SWAC’s last unbeaten team at 8-0 in conference play, and that will be put to the test Monday night with a visit from third-place Jackson State.
The Jaguars are doing it with defense, leading the SWAC in fewest points (68.4 per game) and rebounds allowed (33.4 per game) as well as most steals (217 so far) and are second in the conference in forcing turnovers (16.1 per game).
Scoring points is indeed the name of the game, but when you can stop other teams from scoring, you greatly enhance your chances at victory, as SU has proven this season.
Patrick Crarey II: Coach of the Year?
Patrick Crarey II has turned doubters into believers on the Highest of Seven Hills.
The Florida A&M men’s basketball team has already won more games in 2024-25 than they did in 2023-24. The Rattlers are currently tied with blood rival Bethune-Cookman for fourth place in the SWAC with a 5-3 conference record and an 8-11 overall mark.
If FAMU is able to secure their first winning season since their MEAC title year of 2007, that one-year contract the Board of Trustees gave Crarey will look like a bargain…then they’ll have to pay up to keep who could be the conference’s coach of the year.
Grand opening, grand closing
For about 10 minutes, the biggest upset of the season seemed possible as South Carolina State’s women’s team blazed out to a stunning 17-4 first-quarter lead over defending MEAC champion Norfolk State.
Unfortunately for the Lady Bulldogs, the next 30 minutes were all NSU as the Lady Spartans woke up and secured an 83-37 win, improving to 10-0 in conference games and a sterling 19-4 overall.
Five Norfolk State players reached double figures, led by a monster double-double from senior forward Kierra Wheeler (19 points and 16 rebounds).
It seems the only chance anyone has at beating coach Larry Vickers’ Spartans this year is if they play 40 minutes like they played the first 10 against SCSU. That, however, seems unlikely at the moment.
