Norfolk, VA--The Howard University men's basketball team will be looking to extend its season when it takes on the Eagles of North Carolina Central University at 6 pm in the quarterfinal round of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament in the Scope Arena.
                 
The Bison (8-24) advanced to today's game following a grueling, hard-fought 57-53 win over North Carolina A&T in the first round on yesterday.  Howard survived despite having an off game from teal leading scorer, James "J-Byrd" Daniel, who finished with nine points, almost 13 below his season average.
                 
The Bison were able to win because they got some much-needed help from freshman forward Solomon "Solo" Mangham, who tallied 11 of his 14 points in the first half, junior forward Prince Okoroh, who hit some key free throws down the stretch, some unexpected scoring from freshman guard Kofi Andoh who scored five points off the bench and from red-shirt sophomore center Oliver Ellison, who did a yeoman's job on defense, blocking a career-high five shots.
                 
But in the end, it was the play of Daniel that made the difference.  The 5-11 freshman assisted on a big three pointer by James "JT" Miller and later what proved to be the game winner.  With the  Bison down by two with a little over a minute, Daniel buried a three from the right side.
                 
In the Eagles (25-5), Howard faces a formidable opponent.  North Carolina Central enters as the regular season champion, having won 17 straight.  The Eagles defeated the Bison in Washington, DC on February 1.  In that game, NCCU played without much of a contribution from MEAC Player of the Year, Jeremy Ingram, who picked up two early fouls.
                 
Ingram is the second leading scorer in the conference at over 20 points per game.  But the Eagles have overall balance and lead the MEAC in several statistical categories.  Emanuel Chapman leads the conference in assists with almost seven per game and in steals.
                 
"Our guys are very confident going into this game," said Howard head coach Kevin Nickelberry.  "We got that first game under our belt and now the players have the feel for what is involved in tournament play.  They feel that they can win."