While the MEAC usually gets sent home early in the NCAA Tournament, teams from this conference have a couple of memorable upsets to their name. One was #15 Hampton over #2 Iowa State in 2001 and the other #15 Norfolk State over #2 Missouri in 2012. Memorable though they may be, they are also few and far between for the MEAC.
This conference was won by North Carolina Central, who is currently projected as a 16 seed for the most part. This may go up though if teams projected to win their conference continue to flame out in their respective tournaments (See: Belmont, OVC; Oakland, Valparaiso, Horizon) There is not much separation between the Eagles and the rest of the conference in the standings, so expect a tightly fought tournament.
12 teams from the MEAC will participate in the tournament. Savannah State was ineligible for the postseason due to APR sanctions. The MEAC Tournament will take place from March 6th to 11th at the Norfolk Scope in Norfolk, Virginia.
First Round-Monday, March 6th/Tuesday, March 7th
#9 Bethune-Cookman vs. #8 Delaware State
#12 North Carolina A&T vs. #5 Maryland-Eastern Shore
#10 Florida A&M vs. #7 South Carolina State
#11 Howard vs. #6 Coppin State
Quarterfinals-Wednesday, March 8th/Thursday, March 9th
#8 Delaware State vs. #1 North Carolina Central
#5 Maryland-Eastern Shore vs. #4 Hampton
#7 South Carolina State vs. #2 Norfolk State
#6 Coppin State vs. #3 Morgan State
Semifinals-Friday, March 10th
#8 Delaware State vs. #5 Maryland-Eastern Shore
#3 Morgan State vs. #2 Norfolk State
Championship-Saturday, March 11th
A few years ago, the MEAC Tournament was turned upside down when the top four seeds all lost in the quarterfinals. I expect a more mild version of that this year, with Delaware State making a title game run. Norfolk State, however, has been around the top of the conference for a long time now and that experience will carry them to the NCAA Tournament.
Delaware State 65, Norfolk State 72
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