NORFOLK, Va. (AP) Joe Bryant scored 17 points and Kashaun Hicks added 14, including a pair of clinching dunks, as Norfolk State defeated Morgan State 71-63 on Saturday in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament championship game to earn its first NCAA Tournament bid in nine years.

Norfolk State (16-7) claimed its second MEAC title in five championship-game appearances. Its other title came in 2012 when it went on to beat No. 2 seed Missouri in the NCAA Tournament before losing to No. 7 Florida. This is the first NCAA berth under eighth-year coach Robert Jones.

Bryant scored 10 straight points in a run that gave the Spartans a double-figures lead that eventually reached 16 points and lasted until there were three minutes remaining. The Bears (14-8) got as close as six with 30.6 seconds left before Hicks sandwiched a pair of dunks around Morgan State's final bucket to ensure the Spartans' seventh straight win.