HBCU Basketball: Invesco QQQ Legacy Classic Had Thrilling Wins For Grambling And Hampton As Over 13,800 Fans Watched
The 2024 Invesco QQQ Legacy Classic had four of the top HBCU men's basketball teams in Newark, New Jersey to square off in front of 13,834 fans. Saturday's event at the Prudential Center, was the third installment for actor, director, and philanthropist Michael B. Jordan.
GRAMBLING DOWNS JACKSON STATE
The first match of the showcase pitted the Grambling State Tigers (6-2 SWAC) against the Jackson State Tigers (4-4). It was an intense battle going into halftime, tied at 29 apiece before Grambling State eventually won 70-62.
Grambling pulled away off a strong game-high-scoring performance from the game's MVP, Tra'Michael Moton, with 19 points. Jonathan Aku grabbed eight rebounds, and Mik Stevenson notched three assists in the winning effort.
Jackson State's Ken Evans led the Tigers with 15 points and five assists, while Treyo Johnson cleared nine rebounds off the glass.
The game's story was how Grambling's second-half scoring at 58.3% outpaced Jackson State's 38.7%. The G-Men dominated the paint, 34 points to 22 points for JSU, and its bench scored 23 points to 11.
Credit: EJ Morton, Hampton Athletics
HAMPTON RALLIES TO DEFEAT HOWARD
Howard University and Hampton University have always been and will always be an intense rivalry for who is the real "H.U." In a thrilling contest, the Pirates rallied to edge out a 63-61 victory over the Bison. At one point, Hampton University trailed by 12 points.
Howard took a 34-27 lead at halftime with forward Dom Campbell's 14 first-half points.
The Pirates were behind for most of the game, but they managed to take the lead with 24 seconds left on the clock after Jerry Deng scored a three-point dagger from the corner making the score 60-58. Deng was the game's MVP and high-scorer with 21 points and hitting 4-6 treys on the afternoon.
Twelve seconds remained as Jordan Nesbitt split a pair of free throws, giving Hampton a 61-58 advantage. After a Bison foul, Nesbitt would bury two more from the charity stripe with 0:01 sec left to go up 63-58. Howard sank a final three-pointer as time expired. The game was for the Hampton Pirates, 63-61, to claim bragging rights for the "Real H.U." mythical title in men's basketball for 2024.