CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Coppin State ended its four-game road trip with a 70-54 loss to Miami Saturday afternoon in a non-conference contest in the BankUnited Center.
The Eagles (1-8) were led by senior
Bria Harris with 12 points. Harris put up 10 of her points in the second half alone.
Keena Samuels followed up with 11 points and four rebounds.
Amber Griffin finished with nine points while
Jordan Swails added seven points. Griffin and Swails both scored all of their points in the second half.
Tanaysa Henderson also tallied seven points ans six rebounds in the setback.
The Eagles trailed, 33-18, at halftime but limited the Hurricanes to 32.4 percent shooting in the first 20 minutes of action.
"When we went in the locker room, of course we talked about things we did wrong and what needs to be better but we just didn't want to lose this game," Samuels said. "We weren't down by much and it was a new half, almost like a whole new game. We just came out confident in each other, talking to each other and got each other hype."
The results of the locker room pep talk would lead to Coppin State holding Miami to 38.3 percent shooting overall.
"Even though we were scoring easily, they were scoring as well," Harris said. "That meant we needed to play lock up defense. We had to be really confident and tell ourselves that we could stop them."
Three players for Miami (7-2) scored in double figures. Nigia Greene led the team with 11 points. Suriya McGuire and Adrienne Motley finished with 10 points apiece.
Coppin State heads back to the Physical Education Complex to face in-state rival Maryland on Sunday at 2 p.m. and the Eagles are looking to make a statement.
"With it being a home game, we have to be hype and prepared," Samuels said. "We have to protect our house. One thing Coach Brown always stresses is that we play hard and play tough. We have to be aggressive, patient, and play smart so that we can execute and get things done."
