Box Score BALTIMORE, MD. (NCCUEaglePride.com) – Coppin State University’s 12 three-pointers along with senior Michael Harper’s season-high 28 points was all the host Eagles needed to take down North Carolina Central University 77-57 on Saturday afternoon inside the Physical Education Complex in Baltimore, Md.
 
In the seventh meeting between the two programs, Coppin State and NCCU battled back-and-forth through the first eight minutes that saw the visiting Eagles up 12-11 with 11:38 left in the first stanza following a layup by Ebuka Anyaorah (Suwanee, Ga.).  That was the last time NCCU held the lead as CSU reeled off three straight shots from the outside to take a 20-13 lead, forcing head coach LeVelle Moton to call a timeout.
 
In the first 20 minutes, Coppin State torched the nets from three-point land going 8-for-16 (50.0 percent) which accounted for all but ten of their first half points and allowed the host Eagles to carry a six-point lead into the locker room at 34-28.
 
Despite the deficit, NCCU outscored CSU 20-4 in the paint and forced 11 first half turnovers, but was a paltry 1-of-10 from three-point range. 
 
Senior forward Dominique Sutton (Durham, N.C.) went 5-for-8 from the field scoring 12 points in the first frame, including a couple of ferocious dunks to keep CSU within arms’ reach.
 
The final 20 minutes saw sophomore point guard Emanuel Chapman (Raleigh, N.C.) score the first five points helping cut the deficit to three at 36-33, but CSU’s hot shooting continued which stretched the margin out to 10 at 48-38 with 13:54 left in the contest.  Harper scored seven of his 18 second half points in the first six minutes of the frame to help Coppin State take a commanding lead.
 
With 12:59 left, a Sutton three-point play saw NCCU drop the margin back to eight at 51-43, but Coppin State swung back and used a 8-3 spurt to grow the lead out to 15 at 59-44 with 10:19 left. 
 
As Moton’s Eagles always do, they made one last rally by going on a quick 6-0 spurt to cut a 14-point deficit to eight after a Nick Chasten (Raleigh, N.C.) layup, which forced legendary head coach Ron “Fang” Mitchell to call a timeout, thwarting NCCU’s momentum.
 
After CSU made its adjustments, the host Eagles went on a 10-0 run themselves to put NCCU away for good, cruising to the 77-57 victory.
 
Along with Harper’s season-high 28 points, Michael Murray and Tony Gallo each added 10 points to aid in the host Eagle effort.  Coppin State (9-10, 4-2 MEAC) outrebounded NCCU 44-31 and finished the night 12-for-27 (44.4 percent) from three-point range.
 
Sutton finished with a team-high 24 points on 10-of-18 shooting along with seven rebounds, a season-high two steals and two blocked shots.  Junior Ray Willis (Atlanta, Ga.) ended the night with 10 points on 3-of-12 shooting for the maroon and gray.
 
NCCU (9-9, 3-2 MEAC) shot a season-low 2-for-19 (10.5 percent) from three-point land, but conversely outscored CSU 36-13 in the paint. 
 
The Eagles of NCCU have a quick turnaround as they will remain in the Charm City to take on Morgan State University on Monday night, Jan. 23 at 7:30 p.m. from Hill Field House.  These two programs have met 84 previous times with NCCU leading the series 44-39.
 
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