March Madness – that portion of the college basketball season that’s filled with the unpredictability that tournament play brings – is fast approaching.
However, before the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) delves into the madness that is its conference tournament, which will be held March 7-12 at the Scope Arena in Norfolk, Va., it must get through a frenetic February as both the men’s and women’s races are a mad scramble with a precious few games remaining.
Defending tournament champion Hampton is atop the men’s standings with 10-2 conference record, just ahead of Norfolk State at 9-2. South Carolina State, this season’s surprise team, is lurking just behind with a 9-3 mark.
On the women’s side, Hampton, trying to win its six straight regular season title, is holding down the top spot with a 9-2 mark. Bethune-Cookman, North Carolina A&T State and Morgan State all are in hot pursuit at 9-3.
The Nos. 1 and 2 seeds will receive opening round byes and will avoid having to play on three consecutive days in order to win the tournament championship. In addition, the No. 1 seed is assured of a berth in the NIT if it doesn’t win the conference tournament and the accompanying berth in the NCAA Tournament.
“I don’t think this will be worked out until the last week of the season,’’ said South Carolina State men’s coach Murray Garvin. “There is a lot of parity in this conference. On any given night, any team can beat the other from top to bottom. I think this thing will be decided March 3 (the last day of the regular season). That is when we will know who our MEAC champion is, and how everything fits into place going into the tournament.’’
A similar scenario may be on the horizon on the women’s side as well.
On the men’s side, Norfolk State hosts Hampton on the final day of regular season. It is the only head-to-head matchup remaining on the schedule that involves the top three teams. South Carolina State finishes at home against Bethune-Cookman.
In the meantime, each of the contenders will have to guard against being upended by regular season also-rans trying to build momentum heading into the conference tournament.
“The team that’s going to be the most focused will come out on top,’’ said Norfolk State coach Robert Jones. “As you get closer to the prize, you don’t want to think past it or think you have it. You have to keep focused, not get to anxious.’’
Having to play on the road – Hampton still has to play at Delaware State in addition to playing at Norfolk State in the season finale, Norfolk State goes to Delaware State and Morgan State and South Carolina State plays at Maryland Eastern Shore, Howard and Savannah State – adds to the degree of difficulty they will face. Hampton and Norfolk State have each lost one on the road while two of South Carolina State losses were away from home.
“It’s always difficult to win on the road not only in this conference, but in any conference,’’ said Hampton coach Ed Joyner. “We’re all very familiar with each other. At this point in the game you’re not going to change a whole lot. Being able to play on the road and take care of the road will be big.’’
Hampton, which captured the 2015 tournament title as the No. 6 six seed, started this season with a six-game conference winning streak and had everybody else playing catch up.
“You want to provide as much cushion as you can especially when you’re playing in a one (NCAA Tournament) bid league,’’ Joyner said. ”During the regular season, you’re not really playing to get into the (NCAA Tournament). You’re playing for positioning to put yourself in the best possible position to get to NCAA Tournament. Getting off to a fast start was good for us. At the end of the day, you’re not chasing a record, you’re chasing positioning.’’
The Pirates are led by the high scoring backcourt duo of Reginald Johnson (18.7) and Quinton Chievous (17.1), who are Nos. 2 and 3, respectively in the conference. Chievous also leads in the conference in rebounding with 10.7 boards a game.
Norfolk State entered the season facing uncertainty after 6-9 forward RaShid Gaston, who averaged 15.5 points and 9.6 rebounds during the 2014-15 season, transferred to Xavier (Ohio). The Spartans switched their style this season, going with a smaller lineup, shooting more three-pointers and playing at a faster pace, and have remained in contention.
“We’re excited to be in this race for a team that a lot of people counted,’’ Jones said. “A lot of people didn’t expect us to be in the race right now. The guys have worked hard. They believe they have a chance. They’re playing with a little chip on their shoulder and won’t to prove people wrong. The guys believe we can win the regular season title.’’
The Spartans rely on balanced scoring with guards Jeff Short (16.1), Charles Oliver (12.8) and D’Shon Taylor (12.6) leading the way.
South Carolina State has emerged as a serious contender after being picked eighth in a preseason poll of conference coaches and sports information directors. The Bulldogs face a daunting challenge heading into the home stretch of the conference race. Only with just one home game among their final four contests. However, they have had a one week break between a disappointing three-point home loss against Savannah State and their next game at Maryland Eastern Shore on Saturday. Garvin said he would use the time to breakdown his team’s recent games and fine tune some things.
The Bulldogs are best shooting team in the MEAC. They make 44.8% of their field goal attempts, No. 1 in the conference, and 34.4-percent of their three-pointers, second best. Guards Eric Eaves (16.8 points) and Ed Stephens (13.7) and swingman Gabriel McCray (11.5) provide the Bulldogs with offensive firepower.
“Defense is going to be the key,’’ Garvin said, looking ahead to the Bulldogs’ stretch run, “and paying attention to detail and offensive execution. If you can’t execute in the half court you will have hard time winning. Your opponents are going to know everything you do, but you still have to execute with precision. You have to guard for 40 minutes, make every basket competitive for your opponents That’s what wins in March, defend in the half court and execute to in the half court.’’
On the women’s side, Hampton, picked second in the preseason, has managed to stay ahead of the field, albeit just barely, despite having two starters sidelined with injury and illness. Guard Ryan Jordan (5.9 points, 5.7 rebounds), a third-team All-MEAC selection last season, is out for the season after tearing an ACL on Jan. 9 against Bethune-Cookman. Forward Kaylah Lupoe, the Lady Pirates’ No. 2 scorer (10.0 points) and leading rebounder (7.8) missed three games with an illness. The Lady Pirates are 7-2 since Jordan went down, and they were 2-1 without Lupoe.
“I’m happy to be where we are, no question about it,’’ Coach David Six said, adding that he is bit surprised the Lady Pirates are still on track to extend their string of regular season titles considering he was down to eight healthy players at one point. “It definitely doesn’t get any easier. You can’t account for injuries, and you don’t know how new kids are going to develop. You have to totally play differently than you’re used to playing. I don’t expect anybody to feel sorry for us. That’s just life. The other teams are solid opponents and the coaches do a good job. It’ll come down to the end.’’
Six says all of the Lady Pirates have had to do more in order to maintain the conference lead. However, junior guard Malia Tate-DeFreitas, the reigning MEAC Player of the Year, is the linchpin. Tate-DeFreitas is the conference’s top scorer (21.1 points) and is in the top 15 in rebounding, assists, free throw percentage, free throw attempts, free throws made, steals, three-point field goal percentage and three-point field goals made.
But it is the Lady Pirates’ defensive prowess that Six is counting on to see them through.
“We’re pretty good defensively for the most part,’’ he said. “While it’s hard, the kids buy into our philosophy of how we play. We tried not to alter our philosophy along the way.
You don’t ever want to be comfortable. Anybody can beat anybody. We’ve got respect for all the MEAC teams. You just don’t know.’’
North Carolina A&T State, the preseason favorite, is the hottest team in the conference coming down the stretch. The Aggies have a four- game winning streak that includes a 13-point victory against Bethune-Cookman that kept them in the thick of the race. They have outscored opponents by 23.2 points a game during the streak.
Depth has been a key for the Aggies, who have 10 players who average 10 minutes or more a game. Center April McRae, a preseason All-MEAC choice, is the leading scorer (13.3 points) and rebounder (6.6). Dana Brown (11.1 points) is the only other double figures scorer.
Neither Bethune-Cookman nor Morgan State was expected to contend for the regular season title after being picked sixth and ninth, respectively, in the preseason.
Bethune-Cookman’s strength is its defense. The Lady Wildcats hold opponents to 36.4% shooting from the field and 57.0 points a game, both tops in the conference. Preseason All-MEAC picks Guard Kendra Cooper (15.1 points) and center Kailyn Williams (11.2 points) are the Lady Wildcats top offensive weapons. Williams is No. 2 in the MEAC in rebounding with 9.4.
Morgan State has remained in the race thanks to its ability to win close games. Four of their nine conference wins have been by six points or fewer, including a triple overtime thriller against Savannah State. They also have an eight-point overtime victory against Maryland Eastern Shore.
The Lady Bears are 11th among 13 teams in scoring (55.1 points a game) and last in field percentage (.310). Guard Braeannan Farrar is the Lady Bears main offensive weapon. Morgan State makes up for their offensive deficiency with hustle and aggressiveness. They are among conference leaders in offensive rebounds, opponents’ turnovers per game and steals.