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Game 9 & 10
Opponent: Coppin State Eagles (3-8, 2-0)
Date: January 16-17, 2021
Site: Hill Field House, Baltimore, Md.
Game Times: 2 p.m. EST
Live Stats: here | Live Stream: here
MSU Coaches: MSU - Kevin Broadus (20-19, 2nd yr) • CSU - Juan Dixon (27-80, 4th yr)
Websites: www.MorganStateBears.com | www.coppinstatesports.com
SETTING THE STAGE
• The Morgan State Bears play this weekend against Coppin State as they continue the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) slate of games. The two teams will first meet on Saturday at 2 p.m., before playing again on Sunday, with tip-off also scheduled for 2 p.m. No fans will be allowed in Hill Field House.
• Kevin Broadus enters his second year at the helm of the Morgan State Bears. The Bears won 15 games in his debut season, their most since 2013-14, finished sixth in the MEAC.
• Senior forward Troy Baxter scored a season-high 25 points with seven rebounds in an 83-72 win at Iona (Dec. 8) ... he is currently averaging 17.3 ppg (No. 2 in MEAC), 4.1 rpg and is shooting 48.7 percent (19-39; No. 3; No. 13 in the nation) from 3-point territory.
• Junior sharpshooter Lagio Grantsaan has connected on 12 of his last 19 3-pointers and is currently shooting 56 percent from beyond the arc (No. 1) and is averaging 10.9 ppg with 5.3 rpg.
• Last season, Troy Baxter had 58 blocked shots (ranked No. 2 in MEAC) in 31 games and averaged 5.1 rebounds per game as a junior ... He currently leads the team with eight blocks (No. 7 in MEAC).
• Malik Miller is a jack-of-all-trades for the Bears and is averaging 10.6 ppg and 7.0 rpg (T-No. 1) ... He was named MEAC Defensive Player of the Week on Dec. 22 after racking up 17 rebounds (6.5 avg.), five steals (2.5 avg.) and two blocks (1.0 avg.) in the Bears' six-point win over Delaware and tough six-point loss to West Virginia Tech.
• A couple of transfers could make an impact. Cincinnati transfer Trevor Moore figures to have an immediate impact as well as Sharone Wright Jr. (Wake Forest) and De'Torrion Ware (Jacksonville State).
• This year, the MEAC will split into Northern and Southern Divisions for basketball, and teams will play conference games exclusively within their division.
THE SERIES
• This weekend's contests will mark the 95th and 96th matchups between the schools ... The Eagles lead the series 61-33.
• Jan. 25, 2020 -- Stanley Davis scored a game-high 13 points with 10 rebounds and Sherwyn Devonish-Prince added 11 points including the game-winning basket, as Morgan State rallied from behind to defeat crosstown rival Coppin State, 50-48 in a MEAC showdown at the Physical Education Complex. Andrew Robinson scored 12 points and Brendon Medley-Bacon finished with a game-high 24 rebounds to go along with eight points and three blocks.
• Coppin State's last win against the Bears was on February 29, 2020 -- The Morgan State men's basketball team suffered a 72-65 setback against crosstown rival Coppin State at Hill Field House. The Bears went on a 7-0 run to pull within 67-65 with two minutes remaining, but after a missed three by David Syfax, the Eagles were able to seal the game at the free-throw line. Koby Thomas finished with a game- and career-high 28 points (14 in the first half) and eight rebounds to the Eagles. MSU's Malik Miller finished with a team-high 14 points and game- and career-high 18 rebounds.
SCOUTING THE EAGLES (3-8, 2-0 MEAC)
• Coppin State head coach Juan Dixon (Maryland, '02) enters his fourth season as the Eagles head coach ... he was named the seventh head coach in Coppin State University men's basketball history on April 26, 2017. This past season, Dixon guided CSU to four Division I non-conference victories (Loyola Chicago, Cornell, James Madison, East Carolina), its most since the 1993-94 season.
• CSU finished the 2019-20 season with a 11-20 overall mark and finished 5th in MEAC regular season play by posting an 7-9 record.
• The Eagles were picked to finish fourth of six Northern Division teams in the Preseason Poll which was voted on by the conference's 11 head coaches and sports information directors. DeJuan Clayton and Koby Thomas were named to 2020-21 Men's Basketball Preseason All-MEAC First Team.
• The Eagles have three players averaging in double figures, led by redshirt senior 6-2 guard DeJuan Clayton (Bowie, Md.) who is one of the top players in the league averaging 18.2 points and is shooting 34.8 percent from the field (No. 11). Anthony Tarke, a 6-6 redshirt senior forward from Gaithersburg, Md., is averaging 15.8 points (No. 4), 7.0 rebounds (T-No. 1) and is shooting 44.8 percent from the field (No. 13). Koby Thomas, a 6-6 senior guard/forward, is chipping in 12.5 ppg and redshirt sophomore Kyle Cardaci is adding 9.6 ppg and is shooting 38.8 percent from 3-point territory.
• Anthony Tarke also leads the league averaging 3.3 steals per game (ranks No. 4 in the nation).
• CSU ranks No. 1 in steals (9.4), No. 3 in field goal percentage defense (.449), No. 5 in the league in scoring defense (79.6 ppg), and No. 6 in assists (11.9).
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE EAGLES
• Anthony Tarke stuffed the stat-sheet and finished two assists shy of a triple double as the Coppin State men's basketball team held on to defeat MEAC rival Delaware State, 81-77 on Jan. 5 at PEC Arena. The Eagles took both games from the Hornets on back-to-back nights to start conference play.
• Tarke recorded 13 points with a season-high 11 rebounds along with eight assists, six steals and five blocks.
• Coppin outshot Delaware State, 45.9% to 37.3 for the game but the Hornets kept it close with 13 3-pointers. Coppin had arguably its best rebounding game of the season despite falling in the category, 48-44. The Eagles also made just 17-of-30 free throws.
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE BEARS
• A late second half Norfolk State defense led to a shooting cold spell from the Morgan State men's basketball team, and the Spartans held on to defeat the Bears 89-85 to grab a split of the back-to-back season series Sunday in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference action.
• MSU junior guard De'Torrion Ware, instead, was the player of the day for the Bears. The junior transfer was inserted into the starting lineup for the first time this season and scored 17 of his career-high 30 points in the first half and finished the day 7-for-10 from beyond the arc. He also led the Bears on the glass with a game-high 10 rebounds to go along with two steals and two assists.
• Junior guard Trevor Moore finished with a season-high 17 points with four assists and Baxter added 15 points (6-10 FG).
RETURNING PRODUCTION NUMBERS
Morgan State returns 65.7 percent of its scoring, 59.6 percent of its rebounding and 68.5 percent of its minutes played totals from last year's team. The team leaders in field goal percentage (Jamar Brown - .448), three-point percentage (Isaiah Burke, .390), free throw percentage (Lagio Grantsaan, .815), rebounding (Malik Miller - 5.4 rpg), assists (Sherwyn Devonish, 2.2), steals (Malik Miller, 1.0), blocked shots (Troy Baxter, 1.9). and minutes played (Sherwyn Devonish, 31.7). Six (5) players who started in at least five (5) games a year ago also return - Devonish (31), Baxter (26), Burke (23 ), Brown (17), Miller (11) and Okafor (8).
OFFENSIVE OUTPUT
• Morgan State is currently leading the MEAC in scoring by averaging 76.9 points thru its first 8 games of the 2020-21 season.
• They scored a season-high 102 in a home win vs. Lincoln-Pa. (Dec. 1, 2020).
• Thru 31 games of the 2019-20 season, the Bears averaged 70.4 ppg (ranked No. 6 in MEAC) and shot 42.4 percent from the field (ranks No. 5) and 28.1 percent from beyond the arc (No. 10).
• They scored a season-high 112 in a triple overtime thriller vs. Evansville (Nov. 24, 2019).
LET IT FLY
• The Bears are shooting 39.8 percent from beyond the arc and rank No. 2 in the MEAC.
• Troy Baxter leads Morgan State with 2.4 3-point field goals per game and is shooting at a 48.7 percent clip, which is ranked No. 3 in the MEAC.
• Lagio Grantsaan is chipping in 1.8 three-point field goals per game, and is shooting a 56 percent (T-No. 1 in the MEAC).
• The Bears connected on a season-high 14 3-pointers vs. Lincoln-Pa. (Dec. 1).
• Morgan State shot a league-best 57.9 percent (11-19) in a road win at Iona (Dec. 8).
FOUR PLAYERS AVERAGING DOUBLE-FIGURES ENTERING THE WEEKEND
The Bears will enter Hill Field House with four players averaging double-digits looking to pull off wins against cross-town rival Coppin State this weekend.
• Senior forward Troy Baxter holds the lead for the team high in points, averaging 17.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.0 block per game.
• Junior De'Torrian Ware, who exploded for 30 points at Norfolk State last Sunday, is the team's second leading scorer averaging 11.8 points, 4.6 rebounds and is shooting 39 percent from 3-point territory.
• Senior Lagio Grantsaan and junior Malik Miller average 10.9 and 10.6 points, respectively.
PREDICTED TO FINISH SECOND IN THE MEAC
The Morgan State men's basketball team has been tabbed to finish second in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Preseason Men's Basketball Northern Division Poll.
• Morgan State was picked to finish second, followed by the Howard Bison, who made a splash in the offseason with the addition of preseason First Team honoree Makur Maker. Coppin State was picked to finish third, while Delaware State and Maryland Eastern Shore rounded out the division.
• The Bears return four starters from last year's team, bringing back guards Sherwyn Devonish-Prince, Jr. and Isaiah Burke, along with forwards Baxter and Jamar Brown. Also back is guard Malik Miller and forward Lagio Grantsaan.
• MSU was selected to finish eighth in 2019-20, earning 101 points in the poll of the league's head coaches and sports information directors who could not vote for their own team or team members. North Carolina Central (203 points), who captured its third straight MEAC Tournament championship last season, edged out Bethune-Cookman (198 points) for first place honors, followed by defending regular-season champion Norfolk State.
• The 2021 MEAC Basketball Tournament tips off March 8-13 at the Norfolk Scope Arena in Norfolk, Virginia. For more information about the MEAC and its sponsored sports, log on to www.MEACSports.com.
HOW TO WATCH GAMES: All men's and women's basketball home games will be video streamed for free through the MorganStateBears.com website. The latest broadcast and video stream information will always be listed on men's and women's basketball schedule pages at MorganStateBears.com.
MEN'S & WOMEN'S BASKETBALL RADIO: All home games and select away games for MSU men's and women's basketball will once again be available through Heritage Sports Radio Network (HSRN.com). Lamont Germany will handle play-by-play responsibilities and will also host pre-game and post-game shows. Including exclusive interviews with members of the teams and women's coach Ed Davis and men's coach Kevin Broadus. Fans can download the HSRN app for free and listen to the MSU broadcasts from anywhere. Simply search for HSRN when using the iHeartRadio app.
FOLLOW US IN CYBERSPACE
There are many ways to keep up with MSU athletics online and on the go:
• Visit www.morganstatebears.com, the official web site of Bears athletics, for news, schedules, stats, bios and more.
• Follow us on social media:
Facebook: /MorganStateBears
Twitter: @MorganStBears
Instagram: /MorganStateBears
ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified doctoral research institution offering more than 126 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.
