Harris led Bison roll past Morgan State

 The Howard Bison defeated the Morgan State Bears 78 - 65 in the MEAC Quarterfinals setting the stage for a highly anticipated rematch with Norfolk State

By Ray Rogers

Norfolk, VA– Excitement filled the Norfolk Scope arena heading to this quarterfinal matchup as these evenly matched teams battled to split the regular season series. A mere 6 points decided both contests. 

Thursday’s tilt began with a steal and fast-break dunk for Morgan State who jumped out to a 6 - 2 advantage. Howard quickly erased the deficit with 6 unanswered points. Each team settled into their half-court sets and were equally effective while trading baskets which resulted in a one-point edge for the Bison with 12:38 to go in the half. 

Howard Head Coach Kenneth Blakeney was then whistled for a technical foul which is rare for the generally even-keeled coach. Seeing that level of passion on display seemed to further motivate the Bison who raised the intensity from that juncture. Howard gained a six-point advantage with just under six minutes to go in the half as momentum started to shift in their favor. 

The Howard lead would expand to nine by halftime as the duo of Jordan Hairston and Bryce Harris combined for 28 of the Bison’s 40 first-half points.

Both teams were efficient in the first half with Howard shooting 50% and Morgan State shooting 43.3% from the field.

 

The second half of Thursday’s game played out similar to the previous matchups as both teams played extremely physical and traded big runs. Morgan State struck first to claw within 3 points of the Bison at 51 - 48 with 14:47 remaining in the game. The score was 52 - 50 until a Marcus Dockery three-pointer followed by an Isiah Warfield three provided a cushion which Morgan State couldn’t recover.

A Legacy is Born

Bryce Harris led all scorers while boasting an impressive stat line with 28 points 9 rebounds 3 assists and 3 blocks. The way the game played out it would appear that the plan for Howard was to play through Bryce Harris from the outset. However, following the game Howard Head Coach Kenneth Blakeney explained that adjustments were made based on what Morgan State chose to do defensively.

“When I saw who they had on him I just thought that we really had a matchup more for us than for them.”, stated Blakeney who also had the highest of praises for the junior forward. 

“He’s been the most important recruit that I’ve had at Howard University and he sets a tone for us with our culture.” 

That culture is becoming a winning one as Blakeney and the Bison look to repeat as MEAC tournament champions. Next up is a rematch with the Norfolk State Spartans on Friday, March 15th at 6 pm.