# 2023–24 Howard Bison men's basketball team

The 2023–24 Howard Bison men's basketball team represented Howard University during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bison were led by fifth-year head coach Kenny Blakeney, and played their home games at Burr Gymnasium located in Washington, D.C. as members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). They finished the season 18–14, 9–5 in MEAC play, to finish in a three-way tie for second place. As the No. 4 seed in the MEAC tournament, they defeated Morgan State, Norfolk State and Delaware State to win the tournament championship. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as a No. 16 seed in the West region, where they lost to Wagner in the First Four.

## Previous season

The Bison finished the 2022–23 season 19–12, 11–3 in MEAC play, to finish in first place. As the No. 1 seed, they defeated South Carolina State, Maryland Eastern Shore and Norfolk State to win the MEAC tournament. They received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, Howard's first appearance in the tournament since 1992. As the No. 16 seed in the West Region, they were defeated by No. 1 seed Kansas in the first round.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition ||||||
| October 25, 2023* 7:00 p.m. | | Capital | W 83–79 | – | Burr Gymnasium Washington, D.C. |
| October 31, 2023* 7:00 p.m. | | American | W 69–61 | – | Burr Gymnasium Washington, D.C. |
| Regular season ||||||
| November 6, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Hampton | W 92–80 | 1–0 | Burr Gymnasium (2,500) Washington, D.C. |
| November 9, 2022* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | | at Georgia Tech | L 85–88 | 1–1 | McCamish Pavilion (3,802) Atlanta, GA |
| November 12, 2023* 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at James Madison | L 86–107 | 1–2 | Atlantic Union Bank Center (4,443) Harrisonburg, VA |
| November 14, 2023* 7:30 p.m. | | Boston University | W 64–53 | 2–2 | Burr Gymnasium (2,413) Washington, D.C. |
| November 18, 2023* 6:00 p.m., BTN | | at Rutgers | L 63–85 | 2–3 | Jersey Mike's Arena (8,000) Piscataway, NJ |
| November 20, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Bryant | L 61–67 | 2–4 | Chace Athletic Center (754) Smithfield, RI |
| November 25, 2023* 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Mount St. Mary's | W 87–83 $^{2OT}$ | 3–4 | Knott Arena (1,215) Emmitsburg, MD |
| November 28, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Cincinnati | L 81–86 $^{OT}$ | 3–5 | Burr Gymnasium (1,324) Washington, D.C. |
| December 11, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Penn | L 68–78 | 3–6 | Palestra (1,062) Philadelphia, PA |
| December 13, 2023* 1:00 p.m., MSN | | Regent | W 88–49 | 4–6 | Burr Gymnasium (298) Washington, D.C. |
| December 17, 2023* 12:00 a.m., ESPNU | | vs. Jackson State CP3 HBCU Challenge | L 74–81 | 4–7 | Michelob Ultra Arena (1,306) Paradise, NV |
| December 17, 2023* 6:00 p.m., ESPNU | | vs. Texas Southern CP3 HBCU Challenge | L 78–79 | 4–8 | Michelob Ultra Arena Paradise, NV |
| December 20, 2023* 10:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at UC Santa Barbara | L 81–94 | 4–9 | The Thunderdome (1,073) Santa Barbara, CA |
| December 30, 2023* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at La Salle | W 71–66 | 5–9 | Tom Gola Arena (1,732) Philadelphia, PA |
| January 3, 2024* 4:00 p.m. | | Yale | L 78–86 $^{OT}$ | 5–10 | Burr Gymnasium (557) Washington, D.C. |
| January 6, 2024 12:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at North Carolina Central | L 54–73 | 5–11 (0–1) | McDougald–McLendon Arena (1,852) Durham, NC |
| January 8, 2024 7:30 p.m. | | at South Carolina State | W 82–78 | 6–11 (1–1) | SHM Memorial Center (225) Orangeburg, SC |
| January 13, 2024 4:00 p.m. | | Maryland Eastern Shore | W 72–61 | 7–11 (2–1) | Burr Gymnasium (1,200) Washington, D.C. |
| January 15, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Morehouse MLK Day Classic | W 78–72 | 8–11 | Burr Gymnasium (1,256) Washington, D.C. |
| January 20, 2024 4:00 p.m. | | Norfolk State | L 61–65 | 8–12 (2–2) | Burr Gymnasium (1,943) Washington, D.C. |
| January 27, 2024 4:00 p.m. | | at Morgan State | L 79–85 | 8–13 (2–3) | Talmadge L. Hill Field House (3,571) Baltimore, MD |
| January 29, 2024 7:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Coppin State | W 81–66 | 9–13 (3–3) | Physical Education Complex (612) Baltimore, MD |
| February 3, 2024* 4:00 p.m., TNT | | vs. Hampton Invesco QQQ Legacy Classic | L 61–63 | 9–14 | Prudential Center (13,834) Newark, NJ |
| February 5, 2024 7:30 p.m. | | at Delaware State | W 75–71 | 10–14 (4–3) | Memorial Hall (1,100) Dover, DE |
| February 17, 2024 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | North Carolina Central | W 90–82 | 11–14 (5–3) | Burr Gymnasium (1,245) Washington, D.C. |
| February 19, 2024 7:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | South Carolina State | L 68–75 | 11–15 (5–4) | Burr Gymnasium (1,452) Washington, D.C. |
| February 24, 2024 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Morgan State | W 78–72 | 12–15 (6–4) | Burr Gymnasium (2,064) Washington, D.C. |
| February 26, 2024 7:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | Coppin State | W 78–69 | 13–15 (7–4) | Burr Gymnasium (1,200) Washington, D.C. |
| March 2, 2024 4:00 p.m. | | at Maryland Eastern Shore | W 70–66 | 14–15 (8–4) | Hytche Athletic Center (911) Princess Anne, MD |
| March 4, 2024 7:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | Delaware State | W 85–66 | 15–15 (9–4) | Burr Gymnasium (1,250) Washington, D.C. |
| March 7, 2024 9:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at Norfolk State | L 58–77 | 15–16 (9–5) | Joseph G. Echols Memorial Hall (4,176) Norfolk, VA |
| MEAC tournament ||||||
| March 14, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | (4) | vs. (5) Morgan State Quarterfinals | W 78–65 | 16–16 | Norfolk Scope Norfolk, VA |
| March 15, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | (4) | vs. (1) Norfolk State Semifinals | W 80–74 | 17–16 | Norfolk Scope Norfolk, VA |
| March 16, 2024 1:00 p.m., ESPN2 | (4) | vs. (6) Delaware State Championship | W 70–67 | 18–16 | Norfolk Scope Norfolk, VA |
| NCAA tournament ||||||
| March 19, 2024 6:40 p.m., TruTV | (16 W) | vs. (16 W) Wagner First Four | L 68–71 | 18–17 | UD Arena Dayton, OH |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern. ||||||
Sources: