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Game 14
Opponent: Coppin State Eagles
Date: Saturday, January 15, 2022
Site: Hill Field House, Baltimore, Md.
Game Time: 4 p.m. EST
MSU Coaches: MSU - Kevin Broadus (72-56, 3rd yr) • CSU - Juan Dixon (35-99, 5th yr) 
Websites: www.MorganStateBears.com | www.coppinstatesports.com
 
SETTING THE STAGE
Morgan State (6-7, 1-0) will play its Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference home-opener against cross-town rival Coppin State on Saturday at Hill Field House.  The Bears will enter the game coming off thrilling 88-81 victory at South Carolina State on Monday. Coppin State (2-14, 1-0) also posted a win against South Carolina State (Jan. 8) as they dropped the Bulldogs by a score of 74-65 in Orangeburg, S.C. -- snapping a a 9-game losing streak. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m. The winner will take over first place in the conference standings.

THE SERIES
• Saturday's contest will mark the 99th meeting between the schools ... The Eagles lead the series 62-36.
• The last time the two teams met on the hardwood was on March 12, 2021 when the Bears turned in the upset of the 2021 Air Force Reserve MEAC Basketball Tournament, taking out Northern Division top seed and rival Coppin State 82-61 ... De'Torrion Ware had a monster game for the second straight night, going for 29 points and 15 rebounds. He hit nine field goals and five 3-pointers, on top of going 6-for-7 from the free throw line. Malik Miller joined him in double figures with 13 points.
• 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 (2-14, 1-0)
• Coppin State head coach Juan Dixon (Maryland, '02) enters his fifth 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 2020-21 season with a 9-13 overall mark and was crowned the MEAC North Division regular season champions by posting an 8-4 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. Nendah Tarke was named to the 2021-22 Men's Basketball Preseason All-MEAC First Team, while Kyle Cardaci earned Second Team accolades.
• The Eagles have three players averaging in double figures, led by redshirt sophomore 6-3 guard Jesse Zarzuela who is one of the top players in the league averaging 15.7 points and is shooting 36.4 percent from the field. Tyree Corbett, a 6-7 redshirt junior forward from Philadelphia, Pa., is averaging 14.3 points (No. 4), 8.8 rebounds (No. 1) and is shooting 45.2 percent from the field (No. 12). Nendah Tarke (Gaithersburg, Md.) a 6-4 senior guard, is chipping in 11.6 ppg and 5.9 rpg. Redshirt sophomore guard Kyle Cardaci is adding 6.3 ppg and is shooting 29.0 percent from the three (No. 6).
• Nendah Tarke also leads the league averaging 2.8 steals per game (ranks No. 4 in the nation).
• CSU ranks No. 3 in defensive rebounds (25.9) and No. 6 in steals (7.69).

GETTING OFF TO A GOOD START 
• The Bears are 6-0 this season when leading at halftime.
• On the flip side, MSU has compiled a 1-7 record in games it is trailing at halftime.

THREE PLAYERS AVERAGING DOUBLE-FIGURES 
The Bears will enter Saturday's game against Coppin State with three players averaging double-digits.
• Junior guard Keith McGee holds the lead for the team high in points, averaging 11.3 points, to go along with 2.3 steals and 1.6 rebounds.
• Senior guard Malik Miller is the team's third leading scorer averaging 10.8 points, 8.3 rebounds and is shooting 54.5 percent from the field.
• Junior De'Torrion Ware is averaging 10.0 points, 3.7 rebounds and is shooting 33.9 percent from beyond the arc ... he recorded a season-high 27-point outing vs. St. Mary's College of Maryland (Nov. 9).

OFFENSIVE OUTPUT
• The Bears are currently averaging 77.4 points (No. 2 in MEAC) thru 13 games.
• Morgan exploded for 118 points in its 2021-22 season opener versus St. Mary's College of Maryland and followed it up with a 126-71 win against Penn State Allegheny. The Bears beat Goucher 100-41.
• The Bears are shooting 44.9 percent from the field (ranked No. 3) and 31.7 percent from beyond the arc (No. 5).

TURNOVER MARGIN
Through games played on Tuesday, Jan. 11, Morgan ranked No. 7 in the nation in turnover margin (7.2 ratio, with 194 turnovers and 272 opponent turnovers).
• Sherwyn Devonish has registered 45 assists and 17 turnovers and currently ranks No. 31 in the nation in assist-turnover ratio. 

BEAR D 
Morgan has started off the 2021-22 campaign by allowing opponents to 72.9 points per game (rank No. 6 in MEAC) and 43.1 percent shooting from the field (No. 6).
• MSU's opponents have shot at a 38.1 percent clip on average from beyond the arc ... this ranks last in the conference.
• The 20.9 turnovers per game Morgan's defense forces ranks No. 2 in the country ... MSU's 134 total steals ranks T-No. 26 in the nation.

THE CHARITY STRIPE
The Bears' returning team includes six players who shot 70 percent or better from the free throw line last season.
• Morgan has converted 66.0 percent (169-256; ranks No. 6 in MEAC) from the stripe thru 13 games.
• Sherwyn Devonish is currently shooting 72.2 percent (26-36) from the stripe to lead the Bears.
• Last season, Morgan shot 73.9 percent (369-499; ranked No. 1 in MEAC) from the stripe, led by De'Torrion Ware who shot 83.2 percent (84-101; ranked No. 5) and Malik Miller 71.6 percent (58-81; ranked No. 10).
 

STREAKING
Morgan has made at least one 3-pointer played in its last 164 games ... That 3-point streak began after the Bears went 0-for-11 against North Carolina Central on Feb. 20, 2016 (Hill Field House).
• Morgan has made at least three 3-pointers in 118 of 128 games since the start of the 2017-18 season.
• The Bears made a school single-game record 15 three-pointers (on 32 attempts) at South Carolina State on Jan. 10, 2022…Morgan won that road game, 88-81 in overtime.

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 MORGAN STATE ATHLETICS 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
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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, 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.