Alcorn State wins back-to-back SWAC regular season titles for first time in over two decades

LORMAN, Miss. (WLBT) - After beating Arkansas-Pine Bluff on the road Saturday night, the Alcorn State men’s basketball team secured back-to-back Southwestern Athletic Conference regular season titles for the first time since the 1998-1999 and 1999-2000 seasons.

The Braves share the regular season title with Grambling State, making it their 18th regular season title in program history, the most in the SWAC.

Alcorn State had to come from behind to beat the Golden Lions Saturday after trailing 29-26 at half time. Led by guard Byron Joshua’s 23 points, the Braves were able to outscore Arkansas-Pine Bluff 37-29 in the second half to beat the Lions 63-58.

Third-year head coach and 2021-2022 SWAC Coach of the Year Landon Bussie led his squad to an 18-12 overall record and finished the regular season with a 15-3 league record, the best in his tenure.

Alcorn will be the No. 1 seed in the SWAC Tournament that will begin Wednesday, March 8, on their quest to claim their first conference tournament championship since 2002.

The Braves will play the No. 8 seed and back-to-back winning SWAC Tournament champions Texas Southern Wednesday at the Bartow Arena in Birmingham, Alabama. The tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m.

Below is the tournament bracket provided by the SWAC:

2023 SWAC Men's and Women's Basketball Tournament Brackets Seedings by Garrett Busby on Scribd

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