Michigan will face No. 16 seed Howard on Thursday night (7:10 p.m., CBS) in Buffalo to open the 2026 NCAA Tournament. The Bison have won 16 of their last 18 games and knocked off UMBC, 86-83, in Dayton on Tuesday night.
This is the third time in the NCAA Tournament in the last four years for Kenny Blakeney’s squad. They dropped a 96-68 game as a 16 seed to Kansas in 2023 and fell short in the First Four, 71-68, against Wagner in 2024.
The Bison dominated the MEAC but only played three games against high-major foes: a season-opening 88-67 home loss to Missouri, a 93-56 loss at Duke, and an 80-60 loss at Northwestern that was a two-possession game until midway through the second half. The Bison are designed to win MEAC games, ranking 183rd on Torvik as a conference-only team compared to 247th (6-7) in non-conference games.
Howard’s statistical profile has a lot of extremes, and many are a product of its league — keep that in mind throughout the preview. Out of 31 conferences, the MEAC is ranked last in offensive efficiency, last in turnover rate, first in offensive rebounding rate, first in free-throw rate, third-to-last in effective field goal percentage, and second-to-last in 3-point rate.
The Bison
This Howard team is defined by its undersized but aggressive defense. The Bison are ranked 205th overall by KenPom, but are much better on defense (129th) than on offense (268th) in adjusted efficiency. They held MEAC opponents to just 0.9 points per possession this season.
The defense thrives on forcing turnovers. The Bison force giveaways on 21.3% of opponent possessions (8th-best nationally) and use a full-court press, traps, and a matchup zone defense to keep opponents off guard. The press has been the primary weapon and is utilized on 19.3% of possessions, grading out in the 91st percentile for pressing volume and 97th percentile for pressing efficiency. Howard opponents turn it over on 26% of possessions against the press, per Synergy.
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