NCAA Basketball: 15 underrated storylines to root for in 2020-21 season

Howard Bison – Makur Maker’s freshman season

This is bigger than Makur Maker, bigger than Howard University, and bigger than basketball itself. The historical implications of Maker’s decision are one reason to cheer, the fact that Maker’s addition turns Howard into a MEAC contender is a reason to watch. Whatever your preference, if you are not interested in the daily happenings at Burr Gymnasium you will be the only college basketball fan that falls into that particular category. Not only will the gym be to capacity with 2,700 people watching, but the nation will also be interested in the box scores and highlights.

The 2019-20 basketball season saw the Bison finish with their second-worst conference winning percentage in the school’s 49-year history. The only season in which they were worse than 1-15 was the 1999-00 season when they went 1-17 in MEAC play. With the addition of Maker, they have an opportunity to go from worst to first and participate in just their third NCAA Tournament.

In the final Recruiting Services Consensus Index of 2020 Maker was ranked as the No.15 recruit and was expected to enter his name into the NBA Draft, until the unexpected happened. Yet, when you have lived in four countries since birth, attended five different high schools/prep schools to be where you want to be, nothing should be considered unexpected.

As the highest-ranked recruit to ever attend a historically black college or university, Maker and the Howard Bison are an easy choice to cheer for.