NORFOLK, Va. — The Norfolk State men's basketball team capped the 2025-26 regular season with an 84-76 loss to the Howard Bison on Senior Day inside Joseph G. Echols Memorial Hall. Prior to tipoff, the Spartans recognized the 2026 senior class of Dian Wright-Forde, Elijah Jamison, Anthony McComb III, Devon Ellis, Jaquel Morris and Keyontae Lewis for their hard work and dedication to the program.
With the loss, Norfolk State moves to 15-16 overall and 8-6 in MEAC play, finishing tied for third in the conference standings with N.C. Central. Following the league's tiebreaker procedures, Norfolk State secured the No. 4 seed entering next week's Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Basketball Tournament.
Devon Ellis led the Spartans with a career-tying 22 points, shooting an efficient 9-of-11 from the field while going 4-of-4 at the free throw line. Anthony McComb III added 14 points and surpassed the 1,000-career-point milestone during the second half of the contest. Elijah Jamison also reached double figures, finishing with 15 points.
Norfolk State opened the game with an early 8-3 advantage behind four points from Ellis and baskets from Keyontae Lewis and Adrean Newton. Howard responded with an 11-6 run to even the score at 14-14, but the Spartans answered with a 7-2 stretch to reclaim the lead, 21-16, with 9:47 remaining in the first half.
The Bison briefly moved ahead 23-21 with 7:34 left before halftime, but Norfolk State countered with an 8-2 run to take a four-point lead at 29-25 with 5:34 remaining. The Spartans maintained a narrow advantage for much of the closing minutes of the half, but Howard rallied to tie the game at 39-39 heading into the break.
Howard opened the second half on a quick run to take a 45-41 lead before Norfolk State responded with a jumper from McComb to tie the game at 45. After the teams were even again at 48-48, the Bison used a 12-4 run to build a 60-52 lead with 10:46 remaining.
The Spartans worked the deficit down to two points at 60-58, but Howard answered with another push, extending its lead to 69-62 following a three-pointer from Cam Gillus with seven minutes left to play. The Bison maintained at least a two-possession lead the rest of the way, securing the 84-76 victory.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- FINAL: Norfolk State 76, Howard 84
- Devon Ellis: 22 points (9-11 FG, 4-4 FT)
- Additional double-digit scorers: Anthony McComb III (14), Elijah Jamison (15)
- FG%: NSU 47.6% | HU 52.0%
- 3PT FG%: NSU 14.3% | HU 54.5%
- 3PT FGM-A: NSU 2-12 | HU 12-22
- FTM-A: NSU 14-17 | HU 20-26
- Points in the Paint: NSU 54 | HU 26
- Bench Points: NSU 25 | HU 11
SPARTAN NEWS & NOTES
- Devon Ellis tied his career high with 22 points in the contest.
- Anthony McComb III surpassed the 1,000-career-point milestone during the game.
- The last time Howard swept the season series against Norfolk State was during the 2022-23 season, when the Bison won both regular-season matchups and the MEAC Tournament meeting.
- This marks the first season since 2017-18 that the Spartans have finished below .500 overall (14-19; .424).
- The last time Norfolk State entered the MEAC Tournament lower than a No. 1 seed was the 2022-23 season, when the Spartans were the No. 3 seed.
- The last time NSU was seeded No. 4 or lower in the MEAC Tournament was the 2017-18 season, when the Spartans entered as the No. 5 seed.
- Norfolk State is 1-8 this season when opponents score 80 or more points.
- The lone win in those games came against South Carolina State on Jan. 17, when the Spartans earned an 89-82 victory.
UP NEXT
No. 4 seed Norfolk State will face No. 5 seed South Carolina State on Thursday, March 12, at 6 p.m. in the quarterfinals of the MEAC Basketball Tournament. The winner will advance to the semifinals to face top-seeded Howard on Friday at 6 p.m.
