NORFOLK, Va. (March 6, 2026)--The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) late Thursday night announced the women's pairings for the 2026 MEAC Basketball Tournament, scheduled for March 11–14 at the Norfolk Scope Arena.
 
The Morgan State Lady Bears (5-25, 4-10 MEAC) will enter next week's tournament as the No. 6 seed after ending the regular season with a 64-54 home victory over crosstown rival Coppin State on Thursday night at Hill Field House.
 
The win, coupled with Delaware State's regular season finale loss to Maryland Eastern Shore, helped Morgan State move up from seventh place to secure the sixth seed. The Lady Bears will face the reigning three-time champion, Norfolk State Spartans in Thursday's quarterfinal game at 2 p.m.

Howard returns to the top of the MEAC standings, earning the No. 1 seed after clinching the regular-season title with a 74–59 win over Norfolk State to finish with a 13-1 conference record.
Maryland Eastern Shore secured the No. 2 seed finishing with an 11-3 conference mark.

The three-time defending tournament champion, Norfolk State, also finished the regular season 11-3, and enters the tournament as the No. 3 seed.

Coppin State claims the No. 4 spot in the MEAC standings, while North Carolina Central secured the No. 5 seed for a second consecutive year with a 5–9 conference record.

Morgan State earned the No. 6 seed, followed by Delaware State at No. 7 after both teams finished 4-10 in conference play.

South Carolina State rounds out the field as the No. 8 seed and will open the conference tournament on Wednesday, March 11, against top-seeded Howard at noon.

No. 2 Maryland Eastern Shore will face No. 7 Delaware State immediately following Game 1.

Thursday's quarterfinal action begins at noon with No. 4 Coppin State taking on No. 5 North Carolina Central. No. 3 Norfolk State will follow against No. 6 Morgan State at 2 p.m.

Friday's semifinal games are scheduled for noon and 2 p.m.

The women's championship game will tip off Saturday, March 14, at 4 p.m. and will air live on ESPNews.

The 2026 MEAC Basketball Tournament is a single-elimination competition featuring both men's and women's teams from across the conference.
 
The MEAC Office contributed to this release.
 
 
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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.