NORFOLK, Va., March 3, 2022 — The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) has released its men’s pairings for the 2022 MEAC Tournament, March 9-12 at the Scope Arena in Norfolk, Va. The defending champion Spartans of Norfolk State will be the No. 1 seed.
Norfolk State went 12-2 in conference play and enter the tournament with a 21-6 record; the Spartans have won at least a share of a MEAC regular-season title three times in the last four seasons. Howard, at 9-5 in MEAC play, will be the No. 2 seed, with North Carolina Central (8-5) taking the No. 3 seed.
Morgan State claims the No. 4 seed after going 7-6 in conference play, and South Carolina State (7-7), in its first season under head coach Tony Madlock, will be the No. 5 seed. Morgan State got the edge on winning percentage, .538 to .500, since the Bears played one less conference game.
Maryland Eastern Shore takes the No. 6 seed; the Hawks and Coppin State both went 6-8 in MEAC play on the season, but UMES claims the No. 6 seed via head-to-head tiebreaker, leaving Coppin as the No. 7 seed.
Delaware State (0-14 MEAC) will be the No. 8 seed.
The men’s tournament will open at 6 p.m. on Wednesday with Norfolk State taking on Delaware State in the quarterfinal round; Howard-Coppin State will be the nightcap at roughly 8 p.m. Thursday’s quarterfinals will be Morgan State vs. South Carolina State at 6 p.m., with North Carolina Central and Maryland Eastern Shore wrapping up the evening.
Friday’s semifinals will tip of at 6 p.m., and the championship game will begin at 1 p.m. on Saturday and will broadcast live on ESPN2.
The 2021-22 regular-season champion, First Team All-MEAC honorees and other award winners, including Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Coach of the Year, will be recognized in pre-game presentations prior to the honorees’ first games in the tournament.
The 2022 MEAC Basketball Tournament tips off Wednesday, March 9, and will conclude on Saturday, March 12 with the men’s and women’s championship games. The quarterfinal and semifinal games will be streamed live on ESPN+.
The women’s championship game will air live on ESPN+, beginning one hour after the end of the men’s championship game. The women’s championship will re-air on Sunday, March 13, at 8 a.m. on ESPNU.
For tournament information, including live stats, log on to www.MEAChoops.com.