Cai Johnson, Staff Writer

The Morehouse Basketball team was welcomed to a packed home crowd this past Tuesday at Forbes Arena when they beat Fisk University 73-61. Morehouse came into this matchup ranked #25 in the country with hopes to increase their ranking as the season progresses.

There’s been no secret of the lofty expectations for this 2019–2020 season. If there ever was, the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) put the world on notice when they released their 2019–2020 preseason polls and picked Morehouse to finish first in the eastern division. 

The Maroon Tigers took home the 2017–2018 SIAC regular-season title and decided to double up in 2019, finishing their season with another SIAC season title and a 20–5 overall record. The team is projected to finish another strong campaign this year and has already been identified as title contenders. 

Coach Grady Brewer has earned the reputation as a proven winner in this conference and his resume speaks for itself- he is 279-222 in his 18-year tenure as Head Coach. This team is also star-studded, with younger players looking to break out in the backcourt and two returning players named to the All-SIAC preseason teams.

In the loss to UAB, Sophomore Guard Chris Brown showed his two-way ability by pacing the Maroon Tigers with 11 points and three steals. The Atlanta native looks to solidify his spot in the rotation after Redshirting his Freshman year at Morehouse. Freshman Guard Julian Alexander showed his talent off of the bench, going 3 of 7 from the three-point line and leading all bench players with 12 points. 

Just earlier this month, the SIAC 2019–2020 Basketball Preseason honors picked Senior Guard Robert Andrews as the Preseason Player of the Year award.

Senior Guard Robert Andrews #1, Detroit, Michigan

Andrews, a transfer from Oakland Community College, averaged 12.3 points per game and 3.2 rebounds a game while shooting 46.2 percent from the field. He finished his 2018–2019 campaign with honors as second-team all-conference and Newcomer of the Year.

He is joined by Atlanta native Michael Olmert*, the dependable veteran guard who has seen significant playing time since his freshman year. Olmert finished his 2018–2019 season by being named to 2018–2019 All-SIAC second-team while averaging 9.6 points per same, racking up 162 assists, and leading the conference in assists per game (6.9). *Olmert #11 is pictured in the Cover Photo

Morehouse Basketball looks geared for success this season and hope to fulfill the expectations of both Morehouse students and, apparently, other SIAC teams as well.