The countdown to Baltimore and the CIAA Tournament has begun, and few teams appear more prepared for takeoff than the Virginia Union University Panthers.

Coach Jay Butler’s North Siders have been racing on rocket fuel all season, with the CIAA tournament, Feb. 22 to 26, and eventually the NCAA Division II playoffs the desired landing spots.

Much to the delight of a spillover crowd of 2,054 fans on Feb. 5 at raucous Barco-Stevens Hall on the VUU campus, the Panthers routed rival Virginia State University 81-57 to claim the “Battle of I-95” trophy.

A suffocating, record-setting defense and a balanced offense were the keys, as usual, as the Panthers improved last week to 16-6 overall and 9-3 in the CIAA.

VSU, which lost to VUU earlier this season in Ettrick, falls to 7-12 overall and 4-7 in the CIAA in a rare down season for Coach Lonnie Blow’s Trojans.

Earlier last week, the VUU defense (a mixture of full-floor pressure and match-up, 2-3 zone) set an all-time CIAA record by holding visiting Johnson C. Smith University to just 28 points in a 85-28 Panthers’ rout on Feb. 2.

The Trojans were nearly as inept trying to crack the “VUU-D” combination. VSU managed just one field goal in the first 15 minutes and wound up shooting just 28 percent with 20 turnovers. The score was 41-20 at halftime.

On attack, it seems the Panthers take turns being the leading scorer. Against VSU, it was Tyriek Railey as top gun with 13 points, followed by Tahj Harding and Jordan Peebles with 11 each.

In something of an “Octopi Offense,” the Panthers have eight players averaging at least six points, with Robbie Osborne No. 1 at 12 points. If someone is having an off night, there’s always reinforcement to take up the slack.

VUU boasts some of the greatest players in CIAA and HBCU annals in Mike Davis, Charles Oakley, Terry Davis, A.J. English and Ben Wallace, to name a few. The team’s current edition is more of a top-to-bottom treasure chest of talent, with many capable of shining brightest on any given night.

The Panthers’ 16-6 mark is oh-so-close to being much better. Three of the team’s losses have been in overtime, including an OT setback in December against Nova Southeastern University in Florida, the nation’s No. 2-ranked Division II outfit.

VUU extended its home court winning streak to 22 games and overall record to 17-6 on Monday evening with an 80-64 win over CIAA rival Claflin University of South Carolina. Its record in the CIAA is now 10-3.

The Panthers hope to build the winning streak to 23 on Thursday, Feb. 10, against visiting Bowie State University.

The Panthers lost at Bowie State 65-61 on Jan. 19. That said, the Bulldogs are just 7-15 overall and coming off a 78-68 defeat Feb. 5 against Lincoln University.

All teams are in the home stretch of their seasons. The annual CIAA Tournament has moved to Baltimore following a 13-year run in Charlotte, N.C., where the conference is headquartered.

VUU will close its regular season on Saturday, Feb. 19, against Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C., before heading for Baltimore’s Royal Farms Arena for the tournament.

The Panthers last won the CIAA crown in 2018 in Coach Butler’s best season thus far.

But don’t count out Coach Blow’s Trojans. VSU prevailed under Coach Blow in 2016 and 2019. There was no tourna- ment last year because of the pandemic. Winston-Salem State University is essentially the defending champ, having won the CIAA crown in 2020.