Morgan State University Athletics

Box Score

Highlights

BALTIMORE, Md. -- The Morgan State Bears were able to overcome a rough first half with some intense defense to defeat cross-town rival Coppin State Eagles 78-69 In front of a sold out crowd at Hill Field House.
 
Justin Black led Morgan State (11-13, 9-3 MEAC) with 22 points and 10 assists and was one of five Bears to score in double figures on the night. Michael Murray led Coppin with 21 points and 11 rebounds in the effort.
 
It was a back and forth affair for most of the first half for both teams. With 4:02 remaining and Morgan State ahead 28-27, Coppin State outscored the Bears 8-1 on the strength of consecutive three-pointers by Sterling Smith and Taariq Cephas. A lay-up from Dallas Gary put the Eagles ahead 35-29 with seven seconds remaining.
 
But MSU got a  big three-point shot from Blake Bozeman with a second left to draw within 35-32, which was the halftime score.
 
Morgan State head coach Todd Bozeman wasn't happy with the Bears' first half effort. "Obviously, I didn't think we played hard enough in the first half. I thought (Coppin) gave a better effort than we did in the first half. 11 offensive rebounds (for Coppin) was unacceptable on our part."
 
Coppin (9-17, 6-7 MEAC) came out of halftime with some spring in their step, scoring seven of the first 10 points of the second half led by Murray. Murray scored five of those points in that stretch, including two free throws to help give Coppin State a 42-35 advantage with 17:44 left.
 
However, Morgan State woke up after that, especially on defense. The Bears outscored CSU 12-2 after the Eagles' run. The run started when Black fed Ian Chiles for an alley oop slam and Chiles was fouled in the effort. Chiles completed the three-point play with a free throw. Then Black hit three consecutive shots starting with a slam off the Shaquille Duncan steal from Smith. Morgan State took the lead for good when Black connected on a triple with 14:55 left. That gave the Bears a 47-44 advantage.
 
"Coach put an emphasis on defense during the halftime," Chiles said about the second half turnaround. "It was tough. Coppin came out and hit a lot of shots in the first half. In the second half we had to buckle down and stop some guys."
 
Morgan led by as much as 12 points late in the second half before Coppin rallied to within 73-69 on a three-point shot from Cephas with 1:42 left. But Coppin never scored again after that.
 
"Those guys did a better job defensively," said Bozeman. "Blake stepped up and guarded Cephas in the second half. J.B.'s ability to score the ball is outstanding, top-notch. Ian got some shots for us. I thought that Shaq played great defense for us."
 
Next up for the Bears is a trip to Dover to take on Delaware State on Monday night at 7:30 pm.