Spartans boast 9 new players
Coach: Larry Vickers.
Last season: 19-11 overall, 12-4 MEAC.
Fans in the stands?: Attendance at Echols Hall will be limited to 250.
Whereto watch: www.nsuspartans.com
Storylines: Coming off a season in which they were expected to contend for a MEAC tournament title before it was canceled due to COVID19, the Spartans are essentially a group of strangers. Nine new players dominate the roster, and an abbreviated preseason will force coach Larry Vickers to use the first few games to figure out what he’s got. Injuries, particularly among post players, have made the task even more challenging. Vickers expects to have fewer slashers and more perimeter shooters than last season. “We were planning to be just a bigger, more physically imposing team,” Vickers said. “We would’ve looked like an all-airport team. I would’ve said we would’ve been all-airport at this point because wehad the basketball look.”
Predicted order of finish: MEAC Northern Division: Norfolk State, Morgan State, Delaware State, Howard, Maryland Eastern Shore, Coppin State. Southern Division: Bethune-Cookman (canceled its season), North Carolina A&T, N.C. Central, South Carolina State, Florida A&M.
Schedule
Nov. 25 at UNC Wilmington Nov. 29 vs. Salem University Dec. 1 at Liberty
Dec. 5 at Robert Morris
Dec. 13 at Wake Forest
Dec. 15 vs. Hampton
Dec. 17 vs. Richmond
Dec. 20 vs. William & Mary
Jan. 2 vs. Coppin State^
Jan. 4 at Howard^
Jan. 6 vs. Morgan State^
Jan. 9 vs. Md. Eastern Shore^ Jan. 16 at Morgan State^
Jan. 18 at Coppin State^
Jan. 23 at Md. Eastern Shore^ Jan. 30 vs. Coppin State^
Feb. 3 vs. Md. Eastern Shore^ Feb. 6 at Delaware State^
Feb. 13 vs. Howard^
Feb. 15 at Delaware State^
Feb. 17 at Md. Eastern Shore^ Feb. 22 vs. Morgan State^
Feb. 27 vs. Delaware State^ March 1 at Howard^
March 8-13 MEAC tournament at Scope