North Carolina Central Eyeing a Five-Peat at the 50th Annual MEAC Tournament


By Harrison Vapnek
In what’s been a wild regular season in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, including preseason favorite Howard opting out of the season after five games, a eight win in nine game stretch for NC A&T, and a winless season for Delaware State, it is finally time to crown a champion in Norfolk for the 50th time in the MEAC’s history.
Key Players to Watch:
CJ Keyer of North Carolina Central has been one of the top players in the MEAC all season long. In just 11 games, the fifth year senior is averaging 17.2 points per game on 49.3% shooting. Morgan State’s strong duo of Troy Baxter Jr. and De’Torrion Ware combine for nearly 32 points per game and both shoot above 33% on three pointers. North Carolina A&T guard Kameron Langley is leading the conference in assists by a hefty margin, dishing out more than 6.5 per game, to go along with 10.6 points and 5 rebounds.  Also, keep an eye on Jordan Perkins of North Carolina Central, the lone remaining starter from the Eagles’ 2019 MEAC Championship team. Perkins is all over the stat sheet, averaging six points, four rebounds, and five assists per-game. When it comes to March, experience matters.
Sleeper Team:
Is it crazy to say that the team that’s won this conference four years in a row is a sleeper? The North Carolina Central Eagles won the MEAC Tournament in 2017, 2018, 2019, and after the cancellation of last year’s tournament, they were declared champions due to regular season record. Back in mid-December, they went neck and neck with North Carolina in Chapel Hill before falling by six. After that loss, they didn’t play a basketball game for 48 days after a COVID-19 breakout amongst the team. NC Central came out of the pause at a strong 3-2 before two more games getting cancelled due to COVID cases. Ignore the record and amount of games played, Eagles head coach LeVelle Moton is still the best coach in the conference and, even as the #3 seed on the South side of the bracket, NC Central still might be the most dangerous team playing in Norfolk.
The Pick:
After taking a lot of time to think over this one over and filling out a bracket on an index card, I have come to the championship game between Coppin State and North Carolina Central. Coppin State uses their strong finish to the regular season to win their semifinal game to advance to the Championship, as NC Central uses their experience to win three straight games as the 2nd lowest seeded team, upsetting Norfolk State and NC A&T to get their chance to five-peat. But in the end, it is going to be Coppin State, led by the brother combination of Nendah and Anthony Tarke combining for 45 points in the MEAC Championship Game, pulling away in the second half to win, 77-68, to advance to their first NCAA Tournament since 2008.
All MEAC Tournament Team
Anthony Tarke, Coppin State
Nendah Tarke, Coppin State
Dejuan Clayton, Coppin State
CJ Keyer, NC Central
Jordan Perkins, NC Central
Edited by Tyler Kading

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