SWAC Tournament - Day One: Lady Wildcats Maul TSU, 3 Games Ready To Tip Off

The Gateway Center Arena opened the 2026 Pepsi SWAC Basketball Tournament on Monday with both women's and men's first-round action, as 24 teams (12 women and 12 men) from the Southwestern Athletic Conference compete for conference championships and automatic bids to the NCAA Division I Tournament.

The six-day tournament, running through March 14, is being held at the 5,000-seat arena in College Park and will be broadcast on ESPN+ throughout, with both championship games airing on ESPNU.

Women's First Round

No. 11 seed Bethune-Cookman opened the women's tournament with a 66-62 upset of No. 10 Texas Southern, eliminating the Lady Tigers in the opening round. Daimoni Dorsey and Mya Johnson each scored 12 points to lead the Lady Wildcats, with Sanai Tyler adding 10 points and three rebounds, and Tyler Butler contributing eight points and seven rebounds.

First-Team All-SWAC guard Taliyah Logwood closed her season for Texas Southern with 14 points and four rebounds. Senior guard Deaja Holmes, who may have played her final collegiate game, finished with five points and three rebounds in the loss.

Wildcats win! #SWACWBB pic.twitter.com/FvfGo31JgU
— Southwestern Athletic Conference (@theswac) March 9, 2026

Bethune-Cookman entered the tournament as the No. 11 seed after finishing SWAC conference play at 4-14, while Texas Southern went 6-12 in conference.

WILDCATS MOVE ON ‼️😤

Bethune-Cookman will play against Florida A&M tomorrow at 11AM EST! Live on ESPN+ #SWACWBB pic.twitter.com/pH1rSofg31
— Southwestern Athletic Conference (@theswac) March 9, 2026

The next women's first-round game tips off at 5:30 p.m. ET, with No. 9 Mississippi Valley State facing No. 12 Prairie View A&M.

Men's First Round

On the men's side, defending tournament champion No. 10 Alabama State tips off against No. 11 Alcorn State at 2 p.m. ET. The day's final contest features No. 9 Grambling State taking on No. 12 Mississippi Valley State at 8:30 p.m. ET.

𝐑𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 1️⃣ - @theswac Men’s Baketball Tournament

🆚: (12) Mississippi Valley State
📍: Gateway Center Arena | Atlanta, Ga.
⌚️: 8:30 p.m.
💻: https://t.co/hcG9xjBKsP | ESPN+
📊: https://t.co/L0AFFa4716 #GramFam | #ThisIsTheG🐯 pic.twitter.com/H0Do3922CP
— Grambling State Men’s Basketball (@gsutigers_mbb) March 9, 2026

Bethune-Cookman enters the men's tournament as the No. 1 overall seed after claiming the SWAC regular season title with a 14-4 conference record.

The tournament concludes Saturday, March 14, with both championship games broadcast on ESPNU.

Published 1 hour ago

KYLE MOSLEY

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