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NCAA Basketball: 5 keys to a successful and continuing HBCU movement

By Caleb Hightower

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 20: The MEAC logo on the floor before a college basketball game between the Yale Bulldogs and the Howard Bison at Burr Gymnasium on January 20, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 20: The MEAC logo on the floor before a college basketball game between the Yale Bulldogs and the Howard Bison at Burr Gymnasium on January 20, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /
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JACKSONVILLE, FL – MARCH 20: The NCAA March Madness logo (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
JACKSONVILLE, FL – MARCH 20: The NCAA March Madness logo (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /

How HBCUs should perform in the NCAA Tournament

Key #5:  HBCUs must get to the point where they are getting past the Round of 64 in the NCAA tournament consistently

As everyone already knows, every Division 1 Conference gets at least one team into the NCAA tournament, so conferences like the MEAC and SWAC will be able to get one HBCU a piece, to punch their ticket to the big dance. And while that is terrific, the teams that do make it to the tournament don’t stay in it for very long. North Carolina Central has reached the NCAA tournament four times in the last seven seasons (2014, 2017-2019), but have lost in the play-in game (or the First Four) three times, and the Round of 64 once.

Texas Southern won the SWAC tournament championship two years in a row (2017 and 2018), and even won a play-in game against North Carolina Central in 2018, but lost 102-83 to Xavier in the Round of 64. Hampton has crowned MEAC Tournament champions in back to back seasons (2015, 2016), but never made it past the Round of 64 (but they did win a play-in game against Manhattan in 2015).

Morgan State also captured the MEAC Tournament championship two seasons in a row (2009, 2010), but lost to Oklahoma 82-54 in the Round of 64 in the 2009 NCAA tournament, and West Virginia 77-50 in the Round of 64 in the 2010 NCAA tournament.

I could go on and on, but are you starting to get the point? If the HBCU movement wants to be a complete success, more of the short and long term prospects will have to help HBCUs get to the NCAA tournament, and stay there a while.

Of course, this mission will not be a breeze, because they will still be competing with the elite power 5 programs, who will get their share of top-ranked (or former top-ranked) prospects every year, but it is something that needs to happen.

The HBCU movement would be in even better shape if several HBCUs are able to receive at-large bids in the future, but I think that the HBCUs that do get an opportunity to compete in the NCAA tournament, need to start advancing past the Round of 64 (which will be feasible once the big-time high school prospects and top transfers start committing to HBCUs).

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