Norfolk State men to face Howard in MEAC semis

By Gameday AI

Posted on March 14, 2024

Norfolk State and Howard University will go head-to-head at Scope Arena in Norfolk this Friday evening. The Spartans took down the Bison in their most recent face-off at Joseph G. Echols Memorial Hall in March 2024. The final score in that one was 77-58.

Friday’s semifinal will pit the two teams that met in the 2023 MEAC title game. Howard got the better of NSU in that matchup, but both teams have had solid turnover on their rosters since then.

Norfolk State | OVR 21-10 | MEAC 12-3 (1st) | NEUTRAL 3-2

Norfolk State took care of business against Coppin State on Wednesday to advance to the semifinal round. It has averaged 8.6 second chance points, and 69.0 total points, in its five prior contests at neutral sites.

Norfolk State will need to focus on forcing difficult shots, especially after a challenging stretch in which it allowed opponents to shoot at a 42.9% accuracy from the field. This is a notable jump from a season-long figure of 41.2%.

Howard | OVR 16-16 | MEAC 10-5 (3rd) | NEUTRAL 1-3

Howard punched its ticket to the semifinals on Thursday by taking down Morgan State 78-65. Bryce Harris had a monster game with 28 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two steals and three blocks in the win.

Howard back to the @MEACSports Final Four. HU defeats Morgan State 78-61 behind a Monster 28 point, 9 rebound, 3 assist, two steal and three block game. pic.twitter.com/VIwAz5vkI0

— HBCU Gameday (@HBCUGameday) March 15, 2024

Over its last five contests, Howard’s bench made limited offensive impact, averaging only 10.4 points per game in that duration.

The Bison have forced an average of 13.5 turnovers, and have converted those into 12.8 points on average, over their four prior neutral site games.

Key Metrics

• Look for Norfolk State to get out quickly in this one. The Spartans average 34.8 first half points per game, which ranks third in the MEAC (conference average is 31.9).
• Howard tends to finish games strong. The Bison average 38.8 second half points per game. This number is the second highest in the MEAC (conference average is 36.3).

Gameday AI content is produced using Artificial Intelligence technology powered by Boost Sport before being approved and published by HBCU Gameday.

Norfolk State men to face Howard in MEAC semis