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Game 14
Opponent: Coppin State Eagles (6-10, 5-2)
Date: February 2, 2021
Site: Physical Education Complex Arena, Baltimore, Md.
Game Times: 8 p.m. EST
Live Stats: here | Live Stream: here
MSU Coaches: MSU - Kevin Broadus (24-20, 2nd yr) • CSU - Juan Dixon (29-82, 4th yr)
Websites: www.MorganStateBears.com | www.coppinstatesports.com

SETTING THE STAGE
• The Morgan State Bears play Tuesday night at Coppin State as they continue the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) slate of games. Tip-off at the PEC Arena is scheduled for 8 p.m. No fans will be allowed in the Physical Education Complex Arena.
• 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 28 points with seven rebounds in an 79-76 win Saturday afternoon at Coppin State (Jan. 30) ... he is currently averaging 17 ppg (No. 2 in MEAC), 4.9 rpg and is shooting 48.2 percent (80-166; No. 8) from the field.
• Junior sharpshooter Lagio Grantsaan has connected on 16 of 41 3-pointers and is currently shooting 41.5 percent from beyond the arc (No. 7) and is averaging 9.5 ppg with 4.1 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 20 blocks (No. 2 in MEAC).
• Malik Miller  is a jack-of-all-trades for the Bears and is  averaging 13.3 ppg (No. 9), 8.2 rpg (No. 2), 2.2 spg (No. 4) and ranks No. 5 in the league shooting 54.2 percent from the field ... He was named MEAC Player of the Week on Jan. 19 and was selected MEAC Defensive Player of the Week on Dec. 22.
• Trevor Moore poured in a career-high 27 points and connected on 7-of-12 3-pointers vs. Coppin State (Jan. 17) ... He also had five boards, three assists, three steals and a blocked shot. 
• 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
• Tuesday's contest will mark the 98th matchups between the schools ... The Eagles lead the series 62-34.
• Jan. 30, 2020 -- Despite finding themselves in a 14-point hole midway in the second half, the Bears fought back with four players in double-figures, and a clutch performance from senior standout Troy Baxter to complete and hold on to a 79-76 comeback win at Coppin State. Baxter led all scorers with a season-high 28 points on 10-for 22 shooting and had seven rebounds and a block. Junior guard Sherwyn Devonish finished with 14 points and six rebounds.
• Coppin State's last win against the Bears was on January 17, 2021 -- Anthony Tarke scored 21 points with 12 rebounds to lead Coppin State to an 89-79 victory at Hill Field House ... Tarke, who led four Eagles in double-figures, was 5-for-12 from the field and recorded six assists, five steals and three blocked shots ... Junior guard Malik Miller led all scorers with a career-high 30 points (11-18 FG) and had 12 rebounds and four assists for the Bears (6-4, 2-2). Junior Trevor Moore connected on 7-of-12 3-pointers and finished with a career-high 27 points.

SCOUTING THE EAGLES (6-10, 5-2)
• 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 four 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 16.2 points and is shooting 33.9 percent from the field. Anthony Tarke, a 6-6 redshirt senior forward from Gaithersburg, Md., is averaging 15.8 points (No. 4), 8.4 rebounds (No. 1) and is shooting 45.6 percent from the field (No. 12). Koby Thomas, a 6-6 senior guard/forward, is chipping in 12.6 ppg and Kyle Cardaci is adding 10.3 ppg and is shooting 41.5 percent from the three (No. 6).
• Anthony Tarke also leads the league averaging 3.1 steals per game.
• CSU ranks No. 1 in steals (9.1), No. 3 in field goal percentage defense (.432), No. 5 in assists (12.7), and No. 6 in the league in scoring defense (71.1 ppg).

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 81.8 points (ranked T-No. 21 in nation) thru its first 13 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 35.8 percent from beyond the arc and rank No. 2 in the MEAC.
• De'Torrion Ware leads Morgan State with 2.3 3-point field goals per game and is shooting at a 38.5 percent clip (No. 11). Troy Baxter  is averaging 2.0 3-pointers per game, followed by Trevor Moore's 1.8.
• Lagio Grantsaan is chipping in 1.5 three-point field goals per game, and is shooting a 41.5 percent (No. 7).
• 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).

GETTING OFF TO A GOOD START 
• The Bears are 5-0 this season when leading at halftime.
• On the flip side, MSU has compiled a 2-3 record in games it is trailing at halftime.
• The Bears' only wins when trailing at halftime came at James Madison (Jan. 3) and at Coppin State (Jan. 30).
• MSU is 2-1 in games when tied at halftime.

THREE PLAYERS AVERAGING DOUBLE-FIGURES 
The Bears will enter the PEC Arena with three players averaging double-digits Tuesday night.
• Senior forward Troy Baxter holds the lead for the team high in points, averaging 17 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 20 blocked shots.
• Junior De'Torrion Ware is averaging 15.5 points, 5.2 rebounds and is shooting 43.0 percent from beyond the arc ... he recorded a 36-point outing vs. Delaware State (Jan. 24).
• Junior Malik Miller, who exploded for 30 points versus Coppin State (Jan. 17), is the team's third leading scorer averaging 13.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and is shooting 54.2 percent from the field.

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.