WASHINGTON, DC (WTKR)- Norfolk State's men's and women's basketball teams will enter next week's MEAC Tournament as the favorites, as both locked up the number one seeds in the conference Thursday night.
Robert Jones's men's squad capped off its regular season with an 81-69 win over Howard, while the Spartan women took down the Bison, 68-56, in Washington.
The men's contest saw the two rivals play a tightly contested battle throughout the first half as Norfolk State went into the locker room with a 31-29 lead.
Howard charged out of the locker room, opening the second half on a 16-4 run to take a 45-35 advantage with just under 16 minutes to play. However, NSU responded with a run of its own, going on a 14-2 spurt to retake the lead, 49-47. They would not relinquish and kept the Bison at arm's length down the stretch to secure the victory.
The green and gold wrap up their regular season 21-10, 11-3 in the MEAC, sharing the regular season title with South Carolina State. Due to tiebreakers, Norfolk State will be the top seed in next week's conference tournament.
Brian Moore Jr. led the Spartans with 21 points, while Jalen Moore chipped in a double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds. Chris Fields scored 12 points coming off the bench.
Norfolk State shot 53 percent in the second half and scored 24 points off 18 Howard turnovers on the night.
On the women's side, the Spartans capped off a 14-0 MEAC campaign for the first time in program history and looked primed to make another run an the NCAA Tournament.
Larry Vickers and company would use a strong second half to get the job done against their rivals. Howard held a slim 28-25 edge at the half, but the green and gold surged back and led by as many as eight in the third quarter. The Bison would trim the lead to four by the final quarter break, but the Spartans caught fire with about five minutes remaining. A 9-0 run gave NSU a 61-50 advantage with three minutes to play and Howard could not get close down the stretch.
Diamond Johnson led the way with 25 points, Kierra Wheeler added 15 points and 10 rebounds. Anjanae Richardson chipped in 12 points.
Norfolk State forced the Bison into 26 turnovers on the evening and shot 69 percent in the decisive fourth quarter. The green and gold end the regular season with an overall record of 27-4.
The Spartan women will open the MEAC Tournament Wednesday at noon, tipping off against South Carolina State at the Scope. The Norfolk State men will take on Maryland-Eastern Shore in the first round Wednesday at 6:00 PM.
