Maryland HBCU Football rivals Morgan State and Bowie State kicked off the 2010 College Football season Labor Day Weekend in Baltimore and SportsGroove TV and Sports One Television was there. Mark Gray has the story of the free state’s Black College Football Classic from Charm City.

The nation’s oldest HBCU’s renewed their rivalry as Cheyney University and Lincoln University met Labor Day Weekend in Philadelphia. Mark Gray and SportsGroove TV covered the game for the nationally syndicated TV program Inside The Game and filed this report.

“We are pleased to have a coach with the distinguished career and success of Kevin Nickelberry lead our men’s basketball program,” said Charles Gibbs, Director of Athletics. “This is an exciting day, not only for Howard University, but for our alumni and loyal supporters. We look toward the future under Coach Nickelberry’s direction as we take the steps necessary to propel our program to a new era of excellence.”

Nickelberry, a native of Washington, D.C. and no stranger to Howard, spent the last year as the head coach of the Libya National Basketball Team. He was the head coach at Hampton University from 2006-2009. During his three years with the Pirates, Nickelberry helped guide his teams to 20 non-conference wins. He collected 49 Division I wins during his tenure, which ranks second among MEAC schools.

“This is an opportunity of a lifetime for me to be able to return to the sidelines at Howard because of its rich tradition, heritage and a strong academic dimension,” Nickelberry said. “I look forward to getting to know each of the players, building a staff and making sure that we put things in motion for the upcoming academic year.”

Nickelberry began his coaching career as the head women’s basketball coach at Columbia Union College in 1991 and moved to Howard University for four seasons, from 1994-1998.

During his time in the coaching ranks, Nickelberry worked in all areas including recruiting, fundraising, marketing and public relations. The 45-year-old has been a major part of every aspect, especially during his three-year tenure at Clemson from 2003-2006 when he recruited nine players on the Tigers’ 2007-08 and 2008-09 NCAA Tournament teams.

Nickelberry was the assistant coach at UNC Charlotte for two seasons. Over this period in 2001-03, he helped develop Eddie Basden, the second player in Conference USA history to win Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season. He also contributed to successful programs at Holy Cross and Monmouth. For his efforts, Nickelberry was rated among the Top 25 “Up-and-Coming” college basketball coaches by The Sporting News and Hoopscooponline.com in 2008.

Off the court, Nickelberry expects his players to succeed in the classroom and contribute to their community. “We are committed to building competitive intercollegiate programs to ensure that our student-athletes succeed in the classroom and perform at the highest level. We are looking forward to Coach Nickelberry’s leadership,” said Howard University President Sidney A. Ribeau.

Before hitting the road for another championship quest – Mark Gray – host of The SportsGroove Mon – Fri 7-10 pm ET - spent time with the Lady Bulldogs who routed St. Augustine’s 18-0 to close their regular season and filed this report.

By Mark F. Gray

There are teams and schools in college sports that make the game better when they are good. Baseball is not the same when the New York Yankees stink and football is not the same when the Dallas Cowboys are bad. When the San Antonio Spurs were dominating the NBA’s western conference fans were still clamoring for the Los Angeles Lakers to make a comeback.

In the world of HBCU sports things are better when Howard University is contending in football and basketball. Since there is no job opening on the gridiron sidelines there is no need to counsel there. However, with the Bison men’s basketball program in shambles and searching for a new head coach hopefully that athletic administration will hire one of two outstanding young coaches from this area who could turn things around quickly.

Former Binghamton head and Georgetown assistant coach Kevin Broadus is a native of the District and would be a great fit on Georgia Ave. because of his grass roots connections in the DMV. Bowie State coach Darrell Brooks restored discipline and credibility to the Bulldogs program in his first season at the helm and is well connected locally after spending time on the bench at under Karl Hobbs at George Washington. Either would be the perfect fit to make the Bison a contender in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

Howard has been able to attract the best and brightest students, professors, and administrators from around the country to establish its reputation as one of the premiere academic institutions in the country. However, what the athletic administrators have to realize is that for this critical hire there is no need to waste time spanning the globe for a new coach when the best candidates are in their backyard.

Broadus put Binghamton on the map as something other than Tony Kornheiser’s alma mater when he led them to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in his first year at the helm. It would reflect a certain degree of administrative savvy to hire someone that played a pivotal role in helping to construct Georgetown’s last Final Four team with ties to the most fertile recruiting base in the country.

Brooks has established Bowie State as a more than just a halfway house for Division I and junior college vagabonds whose emphasis was strictly basketball. This year’s roster included true freshmen players from Montrose Christian, Riverdale Baptist, Progressive Christian, and Good Counsel. He has laid a foundation for his program to remain consistent in the CIAA.

Four years ago Howard dropped the ball on hiring Todd Bozeman – another of the DMV’s finest – and all he has done at Morgan State is taken the Bears to the last three MEAC championship games and made back to back appearances in the NCAA Tournament. While Bozeman’s reputation and visibility has helped them land difference making transfers from major programs, he has been vigilant in finding talent from both sides of the parkway which is what Howard needs to do in order to become relevant in basketball again.

Just because there is interest from coaches around the country doesn’t mean that they understand the culture of “The Mecca”. The men’s basketball coaching hire at Howard has to be able to sell recruits from around the country while pounding the pavement of the DMV. Broadus and Brooks are the prefect candidates to do just that and if the athletic administration wants to bring Bison mania back to Burr Gymnasium, one of them should get the call.

Two local college basketball players, who previously won Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference player of the year awards respectively, earned national player of the year honors as selected by HBCU sports fans around the country. Morgan State’s Reggie Holmes and Bowie State’s Duke Crews won the annual Heritage Sports Radio Network (HSRN) National Player of the Year fan poll.

HSRN developed the fan poll to get all HBCU alumni, students and fans involved with the national process and to also give everyone a chance to consistently keep up with the individual performances around the country. This web site and our broadcasts are designed to keep fans abreast of all action around HBCU athletic competition.

Holmes, the Division I Men’ National Player of the Year, led the MEAC in scoring with 22.0 points per game, 9th best in the nation. He is the Bears all-time leading scorer with 1,901 points and has scored 30 or more points five times this season. Holmes lead the MEAC in made 3-point field goals (88) and ranks No. 2 in free-throws (.821) and No. 11 in steals (1.4 spg). Holmes earned the MEAC’s Player of the Week accolade five times this season and was named to the Dr. Pepper All-Tournament Team while competing in the two-day classic. Holmes, the 2009 MEAC All-Tournament MVP, was also named to the 2010 MEAC First-Team.

Katrich Williams of Alabama A&M earned the Divisiom I Women’s National Player of the Year award. The 5’8, senior guard from is the SWAC 2010 Player and Defensive Player of the Year. Williams had a standout year for the Bulldogs as she led the conference in scoring, averaging 17.7 points per game. She also led the SWAC in free-throw percentage (.807), was second in 3-point field goals made (1.9 per game), and fourth in steals (2.4 per game). Williams had a conference-best 11 games with 20 points or more for the Bulldogs. Corin Adams of Morgan St finished second.

Duke Crews, the Divsion II Men, National Player of the Year is the 2010 CIAA Player of the Year. Crews’ is the only player in the CIAA that averaged a double-double, recording 16.8 points and 10.3 rebounds per game. In addition, he ranks second in the conference in blocked shots, averaging 2.5 per game.

Brittany Powell of Xavier (NO) is the Divsion II Women’s National Player of the Year. The 6’0 senior from Milwaukee, Wisconsin for the second straight year, was All-GCAC as well. Powell averaged a team-leading 14.2 points and 5.7 rebounds for the Gold Nuggets. Powell leads GCAC in field-goal percentage and is the only GCAC player in the top four in the conference in points per game, field-goal percentage, free-throw percentage (.766) and blocked shots.

The fan voting for the National Player and Rookie of the Year ran on the HSRN.com web site from March 18 thru March 29.

March 19, 1993 is a red letter day in SWAC basketball history. It was a day when the unthinkable happened as Southern University and Jackson State pulled off a pair of stunning postseason upsets.

Southern, the SWAC Tournament champion ran circles around Georgia Tech as they defeated the Yellow Jackets 93-78 in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Later that night, Jackson State, the regular season champion, ambushed the University of Connecticut 90-88 in overtime on the Huskies’ home floor in Storrs, Conn., in the first round of the NIT.

“That was a good night for SWAC,” says Ben Jobe, who coached Southern to its landmark victory over Georgia Tech. “Two teams went further than they had ever gone.”

The victories were the first in the postseason for a SWAC school – or a Division I HBCU for that matter – since 1984 when Alcorn State beat Houston Baptist in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

“When you beat two stable and winning teams over the years, that has to be a big deal,” says SWAC and NABC Hall of Famer Davey Whitney, coach at Alcorn State when the Braves in 1979 became the first HBCU to win a game in the NIT and the following year became the first to win an NCAA tournament contest.

However, Whitney says Southern and Jackson State have been slighted over the years in terms of being recognized for they were able to accomplish.

“Everybody was happy that they won, but the media didn’t do it justice,” he says. “I really don’t know why. It was a tremendous upset.”

Whitney says Jackson State and Southern were “opportunistic” and “solid” teams, and he wasn’t surprised that were able to break through.

Whitney was undoubtedly in an underwhelming minority, considering the reputations and track records of UConn and Georgia Tech. UConn boasted a roster that included five future NBA draft picks – Donyell Marshall, Donny Marshall, Scott Burrell, Kevin Ollie and Tate George.

Georgia Tech was fresh off beating North Carolina and Duke to win the ACC Tournament championship and featured point guard Travis Best and forwards Ivano Newbill and Malcolm Mackey, who went on to play in the NBA.

On that night, neither the Huskies nor the Yellow Jackets were a match for their unheralded opponents.

“I felt the NIT gave us to UConn as a present,” Stoglin says, hinting that NIT organizers, because of UConn’s proximity to New York, wanted the Huskies to have an easy path to the semifinals at Madison Square. “They knew they could bring a lot of people to New York.”

If that was the plan, someone should have told Lindsey Hunter. That year’s SWAC Player of the Year caught fire in the second half and burned UConn for 34 points after scoring just five in the first half. The Tigers, who sailed through their conference schedule with a 13-1 record before losing to Southern 101-80 in the SWAC Tournament final, built a 10-point lead in the second half against UConn. Donyell Marshall made three three-pointers down the stretch to send the game into overtime, but Hunter scored eight of the Tigers’ 10 points in the extra period to seal the win for Jackson State, which ended the year 25-9.

“That’s the thing about Lindsey,” says Andy Stoglin, Jackson State’s coach at the time. “At winning time, he steps up. The bigger the game, the better he played. When the game was on the line, that’s when he played his best. Put Lindsey in a setting with pro scouts, he’s going to raise up.”

Hunter’s performance against UConn helped convince the Detroit Pistons to pick him No. 10 overall in the 1993 NBA draft.

For more visit www.swac.org.

DAYTON, Ohio - Allen Smith scored 14 points and Tyree Glass added 10 as the Southwestern Athletic Conference Champion University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff defeated Winthrop 61-44 in the 2010 NCAA Tournament Opening Round Game. The Golden Lions advance to play Duke Friday in Jacksonville, Florida.

The win by the Golden Lions was the first by a SWAC team in the NCAA Basketball Tournament since Southern, led by head coach Ben Jobe, defeated Georgia Tech 93-78 in 1993. It also comes on the 30-year anniversary of the first SWAC win in the NCAA Tournament as 2010 College Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Head Coach Davey Whitney led Alcorn State to an 80-62 win over South Alabama in 1980.

Add UAPB head coach George Ivory to the list of SWAC coaches with NCAA Tournament victories as the Golden Lions got a win in their first NCAA game. Leading 24-23 at halftime, UAPB shot 52.6 percent in the second half in outscoring Winthrop 37-21 in the final 20 minutes.

University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff held its third straight opponent under 46 points. Winthrop scored just 21 points in the second half on nine-of-29 shooting after halftime.

Tavaris Washington scored eight points with a game-high 13 rebounds and five assists for the Golden Lions, who improved to 18-15 on the year, their first overall winning season since joining the SWAC in 1997-98.

Now the Golden Lions advance to play Duke, a familiar opponent to SWAC teams in the NCAA Tournament. This will be the fifth time a Conference team has played the Blue Devils in the NCAAs and third since 2004 (Alabama State in ’04, Southern in ’06).

The first time the SWAC went head-to-head with Duke in the NCAA Tournament was in 1986 when Ivory led his Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils to the NCAA Tournament. Ivory scored 14 points in the 85-78 loss. Friday Ivory again faces the Dukies, this time as head coach.

SWAC wins in the NCAA Tournament

1980 Alcorn St. defeated South Alabama 80-62
1983 Alcorn St. defeated Xavier 81-75
1984 Alcorn St. defeated Houston Baptist 79-60
1993 Southern defeated Georgia Tech 93-78
2010 Univ. Arkansas-Pine Bluff defeated Winthrop 61-44

This is UAPB’s first trip to the NCAAs in school history. The Golden Lions entered the SWAC in 1997-98 and have qualified for the SWAC Tournament each of the last six years.

SEASON RECAP The Golden Lions opened the season with a 14-game road trip over the first two months of the season, playing the likes of Texas-El Paso, Oklahoma State, Georgia Tech, Missouri, and Kansas State – all teams that are in the 2010 NCAA Tournament field of 65.

UAPB finished second in the league race with a 14-4 conference record. In the Farmers Insurance SWAC Tournament, the Golden Lions defeated Mississippi Valley State (69-66), Alabama State (48-46), and Texas Southern (50-36) to win the tournament title for the first time. UAPB’s Allan Smith was named MVP.

SWAC IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT The Golden Lions will become the ninth league school to participate in the NCAA Tournament.

This will be the 30th NCAA Tournament appearance by a Southwestern Athletic Conference school. Southern has the most appearances with seven, followed by Alcorn State (six), Mississippi Valley St. and Texas Southern (four each), Alabama State and Jackson State (three each), and Alabama A&M and Prairie View A&M (one each). The SWAC is 4-29 overall in the NCAA Tournament. Alcorn State has won three times, while Southern has earned one NCAA win.

The Braves of 2010 College Basketball Hall of Fame Coach Davey L. Whitney posted three NCAA Tournament wins in five years from 1980-84. Alcorn State posted wins in 1980 (70-62 over South Alabama), 1983 (81-75 over Xavier) and 1984 (79-60 over Houston Baptist). Southern, led by Head Coach Ben Jobe, was the last conference team to win an NCAA Tournament game, defeating Georgia Tech 93-78.

SWAC IN OPENING ROUND GAME Univ. Arkansas-Pine Bluff will become the fifth SWAC team to play in the opening round game.

2002 Alcorn State (lost to Siena 81-77)

2003 Texas Southern (lost to UNC – Asheville 92-84 (ot)

2005 Alabama A&M (lost 79-69 to Oakland)

2009 Alabama St. (lost to Morehead St. 58-43)

2010 Univ. Arkansas Pine Bluff vs. Winthrop

#2 UAPB 50, #5 TEXAS SOUTHERN 38

Tavaris Washington 14 points and tournament MVP Allen Smith added 11 as the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff defeated Texas Southern 50-36 in the Farmers Insurance SWAC Basketball Tournament Men’s Championship.

#2 seed UAPB (17-15) qualifies for the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. Texas Southern, the #5 seed, finished 17-16.

The lead changed hands seven times early with one tie, but the Golden Lions took the lead for good at the 5:53 mark on a three-pointer by George Davis and never trailed again. UAPB led 26-20 at halftime.

In the second half, Univ. Arkansas-Pine Bluff extended to a double-digit lead at 41-31 on a pair of free throws by Washington with 8:45 to play and maintained its double-digit lead the remainder of the game.

Deandre Hall and Junior Treasure led Texas Southern with 14 points each.

Garrison Johnson, Jackson State

Tramayne Moorer, Alabama State

Junior Treasure, Texas Southern

Deandre Hall, Texas Southern

Allen Smith, Univ. Arkansas-Pine Bluff

MVP: Allen Smith, UAPB

Virginia Beach, Va., March 14, 2010 – The MEAC’s regular season and tournament champion Morgan State Bears earned a 15th seed in the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament announced Sunday night during the annual selection show. The Bears will face the Big East’s West Virginia, a number two seed, in the first round of the East Region on Friday, March 19 at the HSBC Arena in Buffalo, N.Y.

The game will air live at 12:15 p.m. ET on CBS.

The Bears clinched the conference’s automatic bid after earning their second straight tournament title with a 68-61 win over South Carolina State. MSU finished the season with a 15-1 MEAC mark and 27-9 overall record.

This is the second straight 15-seed in the NCAA tourney for the Bears.

MEAC teams has recorded two wins over No. 2 seeds when seeded 15th in the NCAA men’s tournament with Coppin State defeating South Carolina in 1997 and Hampton knocking off Boise State in 2001.

The West Virginia Mountaineers earned its first Big East tournament title and the conference’s automatic bid with a 60-58 win over Georgetown. WVU finished the 2009-10 season with a 13-5 Big East record and 27-6 overall mark.

West Virginia is currently riding a six game win streak and is making its 23rd overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament and the third in as many years under current head coach Bob Huggins. Huggins will be making his 18th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and boasts a 1-0 mark against Morgan State when he served as head coach of Akron.