TOWSON, Md. – Coppin State senior center
Omaah Tayong enjoyed a festive fourth quarter performance with all the trimmings.
Instead of devouring sweet potatoes, macaroni & cheese, turkey, stuffing, string beans and more, the 6 foot, 3 inch Tayong feasted on the Towson women's basketball team by scoring 14 of her career-high 16 points in the final 10 minutes to help Coppin State storm back from an eight-point fourth quarter deficit to win, 81-69, in a non-conference contest at SECU Arena Sunday afternoon.
It was more like a Usain Bolt-like sprint to the finish for the Lady Eagles, who outscored the stunned Tigers, 33-15, in the decisive 10 minutes to earn their first victory of the 2015-16 season. Coppin State played with purpose, poise and passion in earning a road win to remember. Coppin State snapped a three-game losing streak to Towson, posting its first win in the series since a 75-68 victory on Nov. 12, 2010.
"I had a bad first half and I just wanted to turn around and contribute something," Tayong said. "We just wanted our first win of the season and this was the main feast I wanted. I saw some openings for me and I just took advantage of them. Our bench did a great job of holding it down for us when we were in early foul trouble."
Tayong was awesome in the fourth quarter as she made 6-of-8 shots from the field. Her basket with 4 minutes, 33 seconds remaining gave Coppin State the lead for good, 62-60. It was the centerpiece of a game-altering 19-1 run over a beautiful five-minute stretch.
Trailing 60-54 with 7:39 remaining, Coppin State's run started innocently with an old-fashioned three-point from
Janelle Lane with 7:04 remaining. By the time Tayong ended the burst with a spectacular layup with 1:51 left Coppin State's bulge was 73-61 and Towson was in need of roadside assistance.
Overall as a team, Coppin State shot 63.2 percent (12-for-19) in the fourth quarter. The other telling statistic was the Lady Eagles had 10 assists on their 12 baskets. After throwing the ball away 34 times in its double overtime loss on Thursday to UMBC, Coppin State treated the rock better and only committed 11 turnovers.
While the offense was nice, the defense was phenomenal in the fourth quarter as it literally "turned up." Coppin State held Towson to 33.3 percent shooting, turned eight Towson turnovers into 10 points and pounded the smaller Tigers in the paint 16-6.
Senior guard
Amber Griffin scored a career-high 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting in 33 minutes. Lane scored 14 points. Junior guard
Keena Samuels contributed 14 points, the third time this season she reached double figures in scoring.
Senior
Jordan Swails resembled a swiss-army knife in scoring eight points, grabbing a team-high seven rebounds and handing out a team-best six assists. She scored six straight points at the end of the third quarter and beginning of the fourth quarter to steady the Coppin ship so that Tayong could take charge.
"Playing Towson has always been a challenge for us," Swails said. "To be able to come in here and get a win in my senior year is a blessing. Everybody is happy that we ended strong against them. We got ourselves together and said we weren't losing today."
However, a closer forensic analysis reveals that Coppin State's bench brigade of
Vanessa Neal,
D'Ajahnae Smith,
Candice Beverly,
Alexis Taylor and
Oluwaseun Adeniji made this victory possible. They helped Coppin State when Lane, Tayong and Swails were strapped to the bench because of first-half foul trouble. Though Coppin State trailed, 33-29 at halftime, they all made key contributions to keep it in the game.
"A win like this shows we have a lot of heart," Swails said. "The first half was bad for us especially when it came to the starters. Our bench players held it down for us and kept us in the game. In the fourth quarter, we executed on every single play and defensively, we made a lot of stops. Omaah got in a rhythm and it was a beautiful sight to see."
Towson (0-3) had three players reach double figures highlighted by senior guard Dominique Johnson's 18 points.
Coppin State returns to action next Sunday when it hosts Mount St. Mary's at 3:00 p.m.
