Preview: SWAC Men’s Basketball Championship

COLLEGE PARK, Ga. (Interstat) — The Grambling Tigers and Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils meet Monday with a season on the line in the opening round of the SWAC Men’s Basketball Championship.

The single-elimination tournament game at Georgia Tech’s McCamish Pavilion pits the league’s bottom two seeds in a battle for survival. seed Mississippi Valley State (3-29) faces a monumental challenge against seed Grambling (13-18), which handily defeated the Delta Devils just two weeks ago.

Grambling enters with momentum from a 65-63 road win at Alabama State on Thursday, led by a season-high 27 points from guard Jamil Muttilib. The Tigers won the regular-season meeting 83-62 on Feb. 23, holding Mississippi Valley State to 36.2% shooting.

The Delta Devils, whose three wins are the fewest in Division I this season, are led by the prolific scoring of guard Michael James. He averages 21.5 points per game over his last eight contests, including a 40-minute, 22-point effort in a 77-85 loss at Jackson State on Thursday. James scored 19 points in the loss at Grambling last month.

Mississippi Valley State’s only victories since January came in a 72-71 home win over Texas Southern on Feb. 21 and a 70-69 road win at Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Feb. 28. Grambling has struggled for consistency, alternating wins and losses over its past five games.

The winner advances to face seed Southern in the second round on Tuesday. The loser’s season ends.

Tip-off is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. EDT Monday. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.