HOUSTON (April 1, 2023) – Bison men's basketball head coach Kenneth Blakeney is set to represent Howard University in the second annual HBCU All-Star Game Sunday (April 2) in Houston at the prestigious Texas Southern University H&PE Arena. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. (ET) / 3 p.m. (CT), live on CBS and available to stream on Paramount+.
 
Comprised of some of the best HBCU men's basketball student-athletes in the four HBCU NCAA Division I and II conferences in the country (MEAC, SWAC, CIAA & SIAC), the 24 selections will be split into two 12-man teams for the historic game, named after a pair of HBCU legends – Team Willis Reed versus Team Dick Barnett.
 
"The 24 players that have been selected represent the best in college basketball at our country's prestigious black colleges and universities," said HBCU All-Stars, LLC Founder and CEO Travis L. Williams. "Our HBCU All-Stars national scouting staff did an amazing job for the past five months evaluating some of the most talented players from the 49 participating HBCUs. We know there were many players deserving of this great opportunity to play in this historic and second annual HBCU All- Star game."
 
Blakeney, HBCU All-Stars Ben Jobe NCAA Division I National Coach of the Year, joins Tuskegee University head coach Benjy Taylor in leading Team Barnett, who is made up of student-athletes from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) and INDEPENDENT schools: Tennessee State; Hampton and North Carolina A&T State.
 
Team Barnett is led by two-time MEAC Player of the Year and HBCU All-Stars Bob Love NCAA Division I National Player of the Year Joe Bryant Jr. of Norfolk State University.
 
A year ago, forward Randall Brumant (Houston) and guard Kyle Foster (Hampton, Va.) represented HU in the inaugural HBCU All-Star Game in New Orleans at the UNO Lakefront Arena.
 
"This is history in the making and first-time ever that an HBCU All-Star Game will be played on a HBCU campus," Williams continued. "I am just being obedient to this GOD-driven vision and it has been a long journey to get to this point, but we are just getting started and expect to put on a great event in Houston. We will continue honoring and celebrating the rich history, tradition and contributions of HBCUs to the sport of college basketball."
 
With a mission to advocate, educate, expose, mentor and invest in HBCU student-athletes and coaches across the country, the event aims to showcase the best in Black college basketball.
 
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com or HBCU All-Stars, LLC at www.HBCUAllStarGame.com.