65 Teams in 65 Days: No. 57 Morgan State

Morgan State Guard Reggie Holmes

 

Location: Baltimore, MD
Nickname: Bears
Conference: Mid-Eastern Athletic
Last Year’s Record: 23-12

 

Why they’ll make it: Senior guard Reggie Holmes is simply the best returning player in the MEAC. He averaged close to 17 points per game last season and this team goes as he goes. He returns with key frontcourt players Kevin Thompson and Rodney Stokes. They form the nucleus of a squad that has won the last two regular season titles and is trying to make a repeat appearance in the NCAA tournament.

Freshman guard Keith Spellman out of New York City helps complete the Bear team. Spellman was one of the top scorers in the New York Public School League and had scholarship offers from three Big East schools. Coach Todd Bozeman is starting to get to the point where he’s not rebuilding, he’s reloading.

 

Why they won’t make it: Replacing Jermaine “Itchy” Bolden and Marquise Kately will not be easy. Kately was the Bears' second-leading scorer last season and Bolden led the MEAC in assists. Major teams have difficulty replacing that kind of production and it will be no different with the Bears.

Coach Bozeman believes he has enough collective talent to fill their shoes. That sounds good now, but even he knows that task will be easier said than done.