March Madness begins now.
The Florida A&M men’s basketball team enters the Southwestern Athletic Conference tournament as the No. 2 seed in a 12-team, single-elimination tournament.
This is FAMU’s highest postseason seed since joining the SWAC for the 2021-2022 athletic year.
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“In March, anyone can win because it’s just one game,” FAMU graduate student and guard Jordan Chatman said. “But we’re very happy about it.”
The Diamondbacks (14-15) are riding a four-game winning streak heading into the postseason. In the regular season finale, SWAC regular season champion and No. 1 seed Bethune-Cookman was bitten by the Diamondbacks in a thrilling 81-77 victory on March 5 in Tallahassee.
It was FAMU’s first win over the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats since March 2022.
“Guys have to know what they’re good at and keep the momentum going,” first-year FAMU head coach Charlie Ward said in previewing the SWAC tournament.
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“I think we found our groove when it comes to how we want to play. And then guys have to step up and make plays on both ends of the floor.”
The Diamondbacks finished in the top six of the SWAC and automatically advanced to the quarterfinals.
Florida A&M Diamondbacks forward Tyler Shirley is excited after taking the court during a 2025-2026 basketball season game at the Al Lawson Jr. Multipurpose Center in Tallahassee, Florida.
The SWAC Tournament begins Monday, March 9, at the Gateway Center Arena in College Park, Georgia, near Atlanta. But the Diamondbacks won’t play until Wednesday, March 11, after receiving a double bye.
FAMU will face the winner of No. 9 Grambling State/No. 9. 12 Mississippi Valley State vs. Jackson State will be decided on Tuesday, March 10 at 8:30 pm ET.
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Whoever is eliminated will face the Diamondbacks on Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. ET.
If FAMU advances, it will compete in the semifinals on Friday, March 13 at 8:30 pm ET for a spot in the SWAC Tournament Championship Game on Saturday, March 14 at 7:30 pm ET.
Ward said FAMU is preparing for the unknown and resting, making game plans more complex and players continuing to complete their studies will be the focus before Wednesday’s game.
“We know we’re going to play guys we’ve played against already this season. We can prepare accordingly,” said Ward, a finalist for Joe B. Hall and Ben Job National Coach of the Year honors.
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“Guys have to stay locked in because it’s just a game and it’s over.”
As for the FAMU women’s basketball team, they are the eighth seed in the tournament and have a first-round bye. The Lady Rattlers will begin play Tuesday against the winner of Monday’s first-round game between No. 10 Texas Southern and No. 11 Bethune-Cookman.
All games leading up to the SWAC Tournament will be streamed live on ESPN+. Saturday’s championship game will be on ESPNU.
Florida A&M Diamondbacks guard Jaquan Sanders makes a three-pointer as teammates celebrate during their 66-58 NCAA Southwestern Athletic Conference victory over the Alcorn State Braves at the Al Lawson Jr. Multipurpose Center on Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, in Tallahassee, Florida.
If the FAMU men’s basketball team wins the SWAC Championship, it will be its first championship in the league’s history. This puts the program in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2007, when it won its most recent conference crown as part of the Mideast Athletic Conference.
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Gerald Thomas, III is a multi-award-winning national reporter for his coverage of the Florida A&M Diamondbacks for the Tallahassee Democrat.
Follow his award-winning reporting at RattlerNews.com and contact him by email at GDThomas@Tallahassee.com or via the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee.
This article originally appeared in the Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU basketball’s Charlie Ward heading into SWAC tournament: How the Diamondbacks can win
