Complete Game Notes as PDF   

NCAA Division I Men's Basketball – 2015 MEAC Tournament
Coppin State (8-22, 6-10 MEAC, 1-0 Neutral)
vs.
North Carolina Central (24-6, 16-0 MEAC, 3-0 Neutral)
Wednesday, March 11, 2015 - 6:00 p.m.
Norfolk Scope Arena (11,000) - Norfolk, Va.
TV/Video: ESPN3 & MEACsports.com  
Audio: NCCUEaglePride.com  
 
THE GAME:  NCCU enters the MEAC Tournament as the No. 1 seed and defending champion. The Eagles have a regular-season conference record of 46-2 (.958) in the past three seasons, which is the best in Division I. Wednesday's opponent, Coppin State, nearly beat NCCU on Jan. 24 in Durham, as CSU missed a three-pointer at the buzzer in a 79-77 loss.
 
SCOUTING REPORT:  COPPIN STATE
- The Eagles of Coppin State are coming off a 64-60 victory over Bethune-Cookman in the first round of the MEAC Tournament.  Although 8-22 overall, CSU has won seven of its last 13 outings.
- Coppin State is the highest scoring team in the conference with an average of 72.5 points per game, but CSU also surrenders the most points per game in the league at 82.2.
- CSU senior guard Taariq Cephas is the second-leading playmaker in the MEAC (4.9 assists/game).
 
SERIES VS. COPPIN STATE
This will be the 11th meeting between North Carolina Central and Coppin State. NCCU leads the series 7-3, and has won six of the last seven match-ups, including three in-a-row.
01/24/2015 - NCCU 79, CSU 77 (Durham, N.C.)
01/25/2014 - NCCU 87, CSU 63 (Durham, N.C.)
01/26/2013 - NCCU 84, CSU 75 (Durham, N.C.)
01/21/2012 - CSU 77, NCCU 57 (Baltimore, Md.)
02/14/2011 - NCCU 77, CSU 75 (Durham, N.C.)
01/15/2011 - NCCU 77, CSU 71 (Baltimore, Md.)
01/30/2008 - NCCU 67, CSU 65 (Baltimore, Md.)
01/16/2008 - CSU 66, NCCU 62 (Durham, N.C.)
 
EAGLES NO. 22 IN MID-MAJOR TOP 25 POLL
NCCU moved up one spot to No. 22 in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 poll (Mar. 9).
 
NCCU REPEATS MEAC REGULAR-SEASON TITLE
NCCU clinched its second straight MEAC regular-season championship and the No. 1 seed in the MEAC Tournament by defeating Bethune-Cookman on Feb. 28. NCCU is the first team to repeat as MEAC regular-season champs since Morgan State won three in-a-row from 2007-10.
 
UNBEATEN IN CONFERENCE PLAY
NCCU completed a perfect conference regular season by beating North Carolina A&T on March 5, marking the first time in school history that the Eagles finish a regular season with an undefeated conference record.  NCCU is now the fifth team in MEAC history to post an unblemished conference record: 2012-13 Norfolk State, 1993-94 Coppin State, 1992-93 Coppin State and 1987-88 North Carolina A&T - all went 16-0. A&T and Coppin State went on to win the MEAC Tournament in 1988 and 1993. However, the last two teams to post perfect regular-season MEAC records, lost their first game of the conference tournament. 
NCCU'S RPI AMONG TOP 115
According to NCAA.com (as of March 9), NCCU's RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) is 112 out of 351 teams across the nation.
 
EAGLES SOARING AMONG THE NATION'S ELITE
NCCU is ranked among some of the top schools in the nation (NCAA Division I) in a few statistical categories listed below, as of March 8:
CATEGORY                          NCCU    NCAA
Opp. Field Goal Pct.        35.7%    2nd
Opp. Three-Point FG Pct.             27.1%    2nd
Opp. Points Per Game   54.7        5th
Scoring Margin  +14.0     12th
Field Goal Percentage    48.4%    16th
 
DEFENSE! DEFENSE!
Under the leadership of sixth-year head coach LeVelle Moton, NCCU believes its identity is rooted in playing defense. As evidence, the Eagles rank among the NCAA Division I top-5 in three key defensive categories: second in field goal percentage defense (35.7%), second in three-point percentage defense (27.1%), and fifth in scoring defense (54.7 points allowed per game). At the end of NCCU's historic 2013-14 season, NCCU ranked fifth in field goal percentage defense (38.1%) and 10th in scoring defense (59.5 points allowed per game).
 
JORDAN PARKS NAMED TO LOU HENSON AWARD WATCH LIST
NCCU senior forward Jordan Parks (Queens, N.Y.) has been named to the Lou Henson Award Mid-Season Watch List, announced Jan. 21.  The Lou Henson Award is presented annually to the Division I Mid-Major Player of the Year.
 
JORDAN PARKS ON THE MARK
After leading the nation in field goal shooting last season at 65.9 percent, NCCU senior forward Jordan Parks ranks third in the NCAA Division I at 64.2 percent, which leads the MEAC. Second on the national list is someone who also plays in Durham - Jahlil Okafor of Duke at 66.8 percent.
 
NIMROD THE PLAYMAKER
NCCU senior point guard Nimrod Hilliard, a transfer from Lamar University, continues to lead the MEAC and ranks 10th in the nation with an average of 6.4 assists per game.
 
McDONALD AN ARCH EXPERT
Ronald McDonald knows golden arches. Anthony McDonald knows three-point arches. The NCCU senior sharp-shooter tops the conference and ranks eighth in the country with 3.2 made three-pointers per game. He has a MEAC-high 96 baskets from behind the arc, which sits 11th in Division I.
 
NCCU VS. MEAC
Now that NCCU is back and established in the  conference that it helped start back in 1970, the Eagles are 316-264 against MEAC opponents all-time. The Eagles have beaten 34 straight MEAC teams, and have a 50-3 record against league foes since the start of 2012-13 season (includes regular season and tournament).
Bethune-Cookman         8-4
Coppin State                      7-3
Delaware State                 19-13
Florida A&M                       11-2
Hampton                             46-31
Howard                                40-26
Maryland Eastern Shore               20-16
Morgan State                    48-40
Norfolk State                     11-27
North Carolina A&T         71-75
Savannah State                 10-8
South Carolina State       27-19
 
MOTON SITS AMONG NCCU TOP 5 IN WINS
Head coach LeVelle Moton recorded his 100th victory against S.C. State on Jan. 10, 2015, becoming the fifth coach in NCCU men's basketball history to reach the 100-win milestone. Here is a list of the coaches with the most wins in program history:
Most Victories   W            L              Pct.        Years
1. Floyd Brown  251         194         .564        1952-70
2. John McLendon           239         68           .779        1940-52
3. Gregory Jackson          164         78           .678        1991-00
4. Michael Bernard          115         56           .673        1985-91
5. LeVelle Moton             113         73           .608        2009-
 
20-WIN SEASONS
NCCU's victory over Florida A&M on Feb. 16 provided the Eagles with a third consecutive 20-win season, something that has not happened for the Eagles since 1990 under the direction of head coach Michael Bernard. John B. McLendon was the only other coach to lead the Eagles to three straight 20-win seasons from 1948-51. Here's a look at all 18 of NCCU's 20-win seasons.
Year       Coach    W            L              Pct
1939-40 William Burghardt            22           4              .846
1946-47 John McLendon                20           5              .800
1948-49 John McLendon                25           5              .833
1949-50 John McLendon                24           5              .828
1950-51 John McLendon                28           7              .800
1953-54 Floyd Brown       24           7              .774
1954-55 Floyd Brown       20           7              .741
1956-57#              Floyd Brown       23           6              .793
1987-88%             Michael Bernard               26           3              .896
1988-89$              Michael Bernard               28           4              .875
1989-90%             Michael Bernard               23           5              .821
1992-93&             Gregory Jackson               26           4              .867
1993-94 Gregory Jackson               20           5              .800
1995-96%             Gregory Jackson               20           7              .741
1996-97%             Gregory Jackson               20           6              .769
2012-13 LeVelle Moton  22           9              .709
2013-14@            LeVelle Moton  28           6              .823
2014-15 LeVelle Moton  24           6              .800
20-win seasons = 18
#-Advanced to Second Round of NCAA Playoffs
%-Advanced to NCAA Regional Championships
&-Advanced to NCAA Quarterfinals / "Elite Eight"
$-Won the NCAA Division II National Championship
@-Won MEAC Regular Season & Tournament