1997 MEAC Men's Basketball Tournament

The 1997 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament took place on March 3–8, 1997 at Joseph G. Echols Memorial Hall in Norfolk, Virginia. Coppin State defeated North Carolina A&T, 81–74 (OT) in the championship game, to win its second MEAC Tournament title.

1997 MEAC Men's Basketball Tournament
ClassificationDivision I
Season1996–97
Teams9
SiteJoseph G. Echols Memorial Hall
Norfolk, Virginia
ChampionsCoppin State (3rd title)
Winning coachFang Mitchell (3rd title)
MVPTerquin Mott (Coppin State)
1996–97 MEAC men's basketball standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L PCT  W L PCT
Coppin State †15–3 .833  22–9  .710
South Carolina State12–6 .667  14–14  .500
North Carolina A&T11–7 .611  15–13  .536
Bethune-Cookman9–9 .500  12–16  .429
Morgan State8–10 .444  9–18  .333
Florida A&M8–10 .444  8–19  .296
Hampton7–11 .389  8–19  .296
Delaware State7–11 .389  7–20  .259
Howard7–11 .389  7–20  .259
Maryland-Eastern Shore6–12 .333  11–17  .393
† 1997 MEAC Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

The Eagles earned an automatic bid to the 1997 NCAA Tournament as #15 seed in the East region. In the round of 64, Coppin State upset #2 seed South Carolina 78–65. It was the first win for a MEAC team in the NCAA Tournament, the first time a #15 seed won an NCAA Tournament game by double figures, and only the third time a #15 seed beat a #2 seed.

Format

Nine of ten conference members participated, with the top 8 teams receiving a bye to the quarterfinal round.

Bracket
  First Round
March 3		 Quarterfinals
March 5–6		 Semifinals
March 7		 Final
March 8
                                     
       
  1 Coppin State 90  
    9 MD-Eastern Shore 88  
8 Howard 70
9 MD-Eastern Shore 76  
  1 Coppin State 76  
  4 Bethune-Cookman 70  
       
       
  4 Bethune-Cookman 70
    5 Florida A&M 61  
     
       
  1 Coppin State 81*
  3 North Carolina A&T 74
       
       
  3 North Carolina A&T 65
    6 Morgan State 54  
     
       
  3 North Carolina A&T 54
  2 South Carolina State 49  
       
       
  2 South Carolina State 85*
    7 Delaware State 82  
     

* denotes overtime period

[2]

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References
  1. sports-reference.com 1996-97 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Season Summary
  2. "MEAC Men's Basketball 2019–2020 Record Book" (PDF). Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
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