The Golden Lions are the No. 1 seed in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament for the first time.
The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff's men's basketball team didn't have the top seed in 2010 when it won the SWAC Tournament on the way to a play-in victory over Winthrop and a loss to Duke in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
That was the only time UAPB went to the Big Dance, and the Golden Lions will play the first game of the tournament in a place that has filled up like a dance hall all season.
"I think it's good to get a chance to play at home," 10-year UAPB Coach George Ivory said. "Really good for us to get that. I think a lot of people are very excited to see us. Now, we just have to take care of business."
UAPB is 6-4 this season at H.O. Clemmons Arena, where the Golden Lions will play No. 8 seed Mississippi Valley State tonight at 7:30.
The SWAC ruled that, starting last season, the top four seeds in the tournament received home-court advantage in the first round, with the winners advancing to the semifinals at the Delmar Fieldhouse in Houston. If UAPB beats Mississippi Valley State, it will face the winner of No. 4 Southern and No. 5 Jackson State in Houston.
UAPB didn't qualify for the SWAC Tournament last season, which makes this season a substantial turnaround.
Part of that change came from the addition of junior guard Martaveous McKnight, who transferred from Itawamba Community College (Miss.) and was named Monday the SWAC Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year. McKnight, who was also voted to the All-SWAC first team, was second in the SWAC in points per game (18.5), third in steals per game (2.0) and fifth in assists per game (3.5). He also made four game-winning shots during SWAC play.
The Golden Lions also had the SWAC's second-ranked scoring defense (71.1 points allowed per game). Senior forward Trent Steen was named the SWAC Defensive Player of the Year. He ranked third in the conference in blocks per game (1.4) and was voted to the All-SWAC second team.
UAPB finished the season ranked last in rebounding margin (-8.8), which Ivory said will be a key in the tournament.
The Golden Lions beat Mississippi Valley State 94-57 at home Saturday, and they beat the Delta Devils 80-71 on Jan. 1 to start the SWAC season.
UAPB finished the regular season in a tie with Prairie View A&M and Texas Southern for second place in the SWAC, one game behind Grambling State, which is ineligible for the postseason because of NCAA sanctions due to its low Academic Progress Rate.
UAPB owned the tiebreakers over Prairie View A&M and Texas Southern.
UAPB women get No. 1
The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff women's team clinched the No. 8 and final seed in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament by winning its final two games of the season over Jackson State and Mississippi Valley State.
The Golden Lions will play No. 1 seed Southern at 5:30 p.m. today at the F.G. Clark Center in Baton Rouge.
Southern, which has the third-ranked scoring offense in the SWAC (66.7 points per game), beat UAPB 71-52 on Jan. 13 and 59-46 on Feb. 10.
UAPB scored over its season average (56.6 points per game) in its victories over Jackson State (66-50) and Mississippi Valley State (79-64), and senior forward Faith Ohanta and junior forward Shawntayla Harris were both named to the All-SWAC second team.
If UAPB beats Southern, it will play the winner of No. 4 Prairie View A&M and No. 5 Jackson State noon Friday at the Delmar Fieldhouse in Houston.
Sports on 03/06/2018