Courtesy: MEAC
NORFOLK, Va., May 24, 2023 — The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) has announced the hiring of Eric Lewis, a veteran referee across several levels of the game, including the National Basketball Association (NBA), as the league’s new Coordinator for Men’s Basketball Officials.
Lewis’ tenure will begin on June 1.
“I couldn’t be more excited to bring Eric Lewis on board as our Coordinator of Men’s Basketball Officials,” MEAC Commissioner Sonja Stills said. “To have someone with ties to the conference and with the sterling resume Eric possesses to come aboard will be a tremendous asset for our league and how our men’s basketball games are officiated.”
Having refereed in the NBA since the 2004-05 season, and currently serving as a full-time crew chief (lead referee), Lewis has been a mainstay in the postseason in recent years — including assignments in the NBA Finals in four consecutive seasons (2019-22). His NBA officiating career encompasses nearly 1,100 regular-season games and 82 postseason contests (heading into the 2022-23 season).
Prior to his NBA stint, Lewis officiated in the NBA’s G League for three seasons (including the 2004 Finals), two years in the United States Basketball League (officiating the Finals in 2002 and 2004), eight seasons at the collegiate level and six at the high school level.
Lewis, a native of Daytona Beach, Fla., is a graduate of both Mainland High School and Bethune-Cookman University (Bachelor’s in Engineering, 1996). He is married to former Bethune-Cookman — and current George Mason University — head women’s basketball coach Vanessa Blair-Lewis, and the couple has two children: Blair and Bryce.
About the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) is in its 52nd year of intercollegiate competition with the 2022-23 academic school year. Located in Norfolk, Va., the MEAC is made up of eight outstanding historically Black institutions across the Atlantic coastline: Coppin State University, Delaware State University, Howard University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Morgan State University, Norfolk State University, North Carolina Central University and South Carolina State University.