The four-day race to the NCAA tournament begins for the MEAC in Norfolk, Virginia Wednesday with the annual men’s and women’s basketball conference tournaments.
The Norfolk State men and women both won the regular season crown and earned the top seed in the tournament. The Spartan women (27-4 overall, 14-0 MEAC) will tip off the tournament Wednesday at noon against No. 8 seed South Carolina State (2-28, 1-13), followed by No. 2 Howard (19-10, 12-2) vs. No. 7 Delaware State (5-26, 1-13) at 2 p.m.
The men will take the court at 6 p.m., starting with No. 1 Norfolk State (21-10, 11-3) vs. No. 8 Maryland-Eastern Shore (6-24, 2-12), then Wednesday ends with surprising South Carolina State (18-12, 11-3) as the 2 seed facing 7th-seeded Coppin State (6-23, 4-10).
Thursday begins with the Coppin State women (17-13, 8-6), seeded 4th vs. No. 5 North Carolina Central (9-20, 6-8) at 12, followed by No. 3 Maryland-Eastern Shore (13-18, 8-6) vs. No. 6 Morgan State (13-18, 6-8).
The quarterfinal round ends Thursday night with No. 4 Howard (12-19, 7-7), the defending conference champion facing No. 5 seed Morgan State (13-18, 7-7) at 6 p.m., followed by 3 seed and 2024 MEAC finalist Delaware State (16-13, 8-6) vs. No. 6 North Carolina Central (13-18, 6-8).
The quarterfinal and semifinal rounds will air on ESPN+. The men’s final is scheduled for Saturday, March 15, at 1 p.m. EST on ESPN2, and the women’s final is for the same day on ESPN News at 4 p.m.
