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Game 22
Opponent: Norfolk State Spartans
Date: Monday, February 21, 2022
Site: Hill Field House, Baltimore, Md.
Game Time: 7:30 p.m. EST
Live Stream: Here
MSU Coaches: MSU - Kevin Broadus (74-61, 3rd yr) • NSU - Robert Jones (162-124, 9th yr) 
Websites: www.MorganStateBears.com | www.nsuspartans.com
 
SETTING THE STAGE
Morgan State (8-13, 3-6) will look to break back into the win column when they take on the Norfolk State Spartans on Monday night at Hill Field House.  The Bears will enter the game coming off a 68-66 loss to the Howard Bison at the first-ever NBA HBCU Classic on Saturday, part of NBA All-Star Weekend in Cleveland, Ohio. Norfolk State (18-5, 9-1) drummed Coppin State 89-59 on Saturday at PEC Arena in Baltimore and extended to a 3-game winning streak. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. 

THE SERIES
• Monday's contest will mark the 61st meeting between the schools ... The Spartans lead the series 42-18.
• The last time the two teams met on the hardwood was on January 24, 2022 --   The guard trio of Christian Ings, Jalen Hawkins and Joe Bryant Jr.scored 18 points apiece and Norfolk State outscored Morgan State by 18 after halftime to cruise to its fifth straight win, 82-62, at Echols Hall. The Spartans (14-4, 5-0 MEAC) shot 52 percent after halftime and held the Bears (6-10, 1-3) to 28 percent in the stanza. Lagio Grantsaan paced MSU with 14 points.
• Morgan's last win against Norfolk State was on January 9, 2021 -- Troy Baxter helped Morgan State's basketball team make a statement Saturday on the road for their MEAC opener. Baxter scored a game-high 24 points and got the Bears going early as he had 11 of the team's first 13 points. The 6-foot-9 sharpshooter scored off the dribble, behind the arc and had a couple of sensational dunks to give the Bears an excellent start. It was MSU's first win over the Spartans since Jan. 4, 2017 when they held on to beat Norfolk State 58-56 at Hill Field House.

SCOUTING THE SPARTANS (18-5, 9-1)
• Head coach Robert Jones enters his 9th season as the Spartans head coach and his 15th year overall with the Spartans ... He led the program to its second-ever MEAC title in 2021 and an NCAA Tournament First Four win over Appalachian State ... The 2019 MEAC Coach of the Year, Jones signed a five-year contract extension following the NCAA Tournament appearance, keeping him at the helm of the program through 2027-28. He has led NSU to a .742 win percentage in MEAC play – fifth in the nation among coaches with at least 100 games coached – and made six postseason appearances in seven years of postseason play.
• Coming off its second-ever MEAC Tournament championship and NCAA Division I postseason berth, the Norfolk State was tabbed the MEAC preseason favorite in the preseason poll of league head coaches and sports information directors.
• NSU landed two players on the preseason All-MEAC teams. Senior guard Joe Bryant Jr. was selected to the preseason first team and senior guard Jalen Hawkins was named to the second team.
• NSU is led by 6-1 guard Joe Bryant Jr. (Norfolk, Va.) and 6-9 redshirt senior Kris Bankston and 6-2 guard Jalen Hawkins. Bryant, who was a third-team All-MEAC selection following last season and earned MEAC Tournament Most Outstanding Player honors while helping lead the Spartans to the MEAC title, is currently leading the MEAC in scoring 18.8 points and free throw shooting (.937) and is adding 5.3 rebounds. Bankston, a Little Rock,  Ark. product (J.A. Fair HS), is averaging 10.6 points, 6.9 rebounds and is shooting 73% from the field and Hawkins (Bronx, N.Y.) is shooting 40 percent from 3-point territory and is averaging 13.1 points and 3.9 boards.
• Christian Ings, a junior transfer guard from Rider guard (Philadelphia, Pa.) is averaging 9.8 points, 2.5 assists and is shooting 43.5 percent from the field.
• Norfolk State leads the MEAC in scoring defense (64.1), field goal percentage defense (.374), 3-point field goal percentage defense (.292)  and defensive rebounds (29.4).

A WIN WOULD...
• Be MSU's first win since defeating South Carolina State (76-66 ot) on 2/14/22.
•  Be MSU's first win vs. Norfolk State since 1/9/21.
•  Improve MSU's home record to 7-3 this season.
•  Improve MSU's MEAC record to 4-6.

LOOKING AHEAD 
Morgan State and Delaware State will clash for the second time this season on Saturday, Feb. 26 at 4:30 p.m. inside Memorial Hall in Dover, Delaware. 
• Morgan will turnaround and host the Hawks of Maryland Eastern Shore for 'Senior Night' on Feb. 28 at 8 p.m. 

OFFENSIVE OUTPUT
• The Bears are currently averaging 75.5 points (No. 3 in MEAC) thru 21 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 42.8 percent from the field (ranked No. 4) and 30.4 percent from beyond the arc (No. 6).

TURNOVER MARGIN
Through games played on Sunday, Feb. 20, Morgan ranked No. 15 in the nation in turnover margin (4.1 ratio, with 334 turnovers and 420 opponent turnovers).

BEAR D 
Morgan has started off the 2021-22 campaign by allowing opponents to 74.1 points per game (rank No. 7 in MEAC) and 44.2 percent shooting from the field (No. 8).
• MSU's opponents have shot at a 36.2 percent clip on average from beyond the arc ... this ranks No. 7 in the conference.
• The 20.0 turnovers per game Morgan's defense forces ranks No. 2 in the country ... MSU's 8.7 steals per game ranks T-No. 25 in the nation.

STREAKING
Morgan has made at least one 3-pointer played in its last 172 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 120 of 131 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.