Mississippi State University men’s and women’s basketball teams kicked off the season with some madness Friday night. 
While the primary focus was basketball, Maroon Madness also featured the National Pan Hellenic Council (NPHC) Stroll Off and performances by rapper Ace Hood. The NPHC Stroll Off was a step-show competition between the MSU chapters of the “Divine 9,” which are the nine historically black Greek letter organizations. Delta Sigma Theta sorority and the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity won the competition. 
MSU’s homecoming court was also introduced,  including homecoming queen Shawanda Brooks. Brooks, who is the first African-American homecoming queen in 15 years. Brooks said after the event she enjoyed every part of Maroon Madness. 
“I absolutely loved Maroon Madness,” Brooks said. “From the NHCP Stroll Off to the introduction of the homecoming court, it has been phenomenal.”
After a one-song performance from Ace Hood, MSU fans were introduced to their 2016-17 men’s and women’s basketball teams for the first time. The players were announced alternating  between the men’s and women’s teams. 
A shootout was the first of three competitions. There were four teams with each team composed of a women’s player, a men’s player and a fan. The winning team was Victoria Vivians and Tyson Carter. Carter sunk the half-court shot just seconds before the team of Morgan William and Mario Kegler sunk theirs.
Carter, a freshman from Starkville, Mississippi, talked about the shootout  finish.
“When I shot it, I saw he was shooting at the same time I was shooting, I was just hoping mine went in before his,” Carter said. “It felt good to come out in front of the fans and was exciting.”
The biggest surprise of the night was the winner of the dunk contest, Xavian Stapleton. Stapleton, a sophomore from Flora, Mississippi, is currently sidelined recovering from an ACL tear. Stapleton tore it last March and, according to Ben Howland, is expected back on the court sometime around the end of December. However, Stapleton said he expects to be 100 percent sometime in the middle of November, but that Howland would not let him back until after Dec. 27. Stapleton said winning the dunk contest helped rebuild his confidence. 
“It let me know that I am getting back to myself,” Stapleton said. “Being able to do the things I was able to do before I got hurt, it meant a whole lot.”
A note from Maroon Madness is that Abdul Ado did participate. Ado, who was born in Lagos, Nigeria, is currently ineligible to play or practice with the basketball team due to a paperwork issue with the NCAA. While he did participate, his status remains unchanged and he remains ineligible. 
MSU men’s and women’s basketball teams will both play exhibitions games this week in the Hump. The women’s team will play on Thursday against University of Arkansas–Fort Smith. The men’s team plays Friday against Delta State University. They will both officially start their seasons on Nov. 11. The men’s team take on Norfolk State University here in the Hump and the women’s team takes on Villanova University in the Maine Tipoff tournament.