DOVER (January 31, 2009) ? Shooting 55.3 percent (26-of-47) from the field and 56.3 percent (9-of-16) from beyond the 3-point arc, the Coppin State Eagles (6-15, 4-4 MEAC) handed the Delaware State Hornets (5-17, 3-4 MEAC) a 72-56 loss on Saturday, Jan. 31 at Memorial Hall.
Trailing by as many as 13 points, DSU rallied to tie the score twice late in the game but, CSU's 63.6 percent shooting in the second half dropped the Hornets to 3-4 in conference play. DSU never led in the contest, as the Eagles opened the game with a 22-9 run.
“I thought we played pretty flat,” said Jackson. “Coppin came out and played with more intensity and more passion then we had for most of the ball game. That is something we definitely need to work on. Right now, what is hurting us more than anything is our guard play. We have to get our guard to be more consistent, night-in and night-out. We got to the point where we thought we could take the lead but, we turned the ball over. We had way too many unforced turnovers against a very good basketball team. ”
The Hornets finished the night shooting 48.1 percent from the floor (26-of-54). Defensively, DSU forced 16 turnovers, resulting in 18 points. The team also notched seven blocked shots (second-most this season). However, DSU committed 15 turnovers (10 in the first half), creating a deficit that the team could not overcome. Frisco Sandidge led all Hornets with 16 points and seven rebounds. The Lynchburg, Va., native registered two assists, three steals and four blocked shots versus the Eagles. Also scoring in double-digits were junior Marcus Neal (12 points) and sophomore Trevor Welcher (15 points). Neal recorded his eighth outing of 10-or-more points this season. Welcher tied his career-high in points, while setting a new career-mark in steals (4). Freshman Jared Grady, making his second-career start, led all DSU players with a career-high four assists.
Coppin State, which was 4-of-6 from 3-point land in the second half, was led by Michael Harper, who registered a game-high 21 points. Harper converted 8-of-15 shooting from the floor and drained 5-of-9 shot from beyond the arc. Mike Buckley poured in 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting (3-3 from the 3-point arc). The Hornets were able to hold the Preseason MEAC Player of the Year Tywain McKee to six points. Entering the game, McKee was averaging over 18 points-per-game.
The loss moves the Hornets' home record to 4-4 this season.
Delaware State will host the Morgan State Bears on Monday, Feb. 2. Tip off is slated for 7:30 p.m.
