BALTIMORE, Md. – The women's basketball program will conclude its murderers row stretch of the season when it faces the NCAA Runner-Up Mississippi State Bulldogs in Starkville Sunday afternoon. This will be the fourth consecutive game against undefeated opponents, with three of four being likely NCAA Tournament squads.
What You Need to Know
- Time and Date: 3:00 p.m. (November 18)
- Live Stats: http://statb.us/b/237959
- Video: http://www.espn.com/watchespn
- Audio: https://hailstate.com/showcase?Live=1495
- Television: SEC Network +
- Radio:
- Records: Coppin State 0-3 (0-0 MEAC) / #6 Mississippi State 3-0 (0-0 SEC)
- Location: Starkville, MS – Humphrey Coliseum
- Series History: First Meeting Between Schools
Coppin Contributors
- Coppin has dropped its first three contests of the 2018-19 campaign, falling on the road at #25 West Virginia and #9 Maryland, before coming up just short in a home defeat to UMBC.
- Chance Graham has been the rock for CSU, leading the Eagles in points per game (14.3), rebounds per game (12.7), and blocks (6), while notching two double-doubles in three games.
- Graham, a preseason All-MEAC First Team Selection, paces the MEAC in rebounds per game, is fifth in blocks per game (2.0), leads the conference in minutes per game (38.7), and currently sits ninth in scoring.
- Brooke Fields had her first double-digit scoring effort as a division one player on Wednesday, finishing second among Lady Eagles with 12 points against UMBC.
- Fields was a prolific shooter in her three seasons at DII Roberts Wesleyan College but has made more waves with her ball control for the Blue and Gold, averaging 3.3 assists per contest, eighth-most in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, and 0.6 assist-to-turnover ratio, which slides her onto the back of the MEAC leader board.
- Jalynda Salley has complimented Graham with her post presence, as she joins her in the top-10 in blocks per game (1.3) while grabbing six boards per game, good for the second-best among Lady Eagles players.
- Tsahai Corbie joins her teammates in making up the top contributors in the conference, averaging two steals per contest to make the top-15.
Scouting the #6 Mississippi State Bulldogs
- Mississippi State has finished painfully short of a title the past two NCAA Tournaments, dropping falling to #1 seed South Carolina in 2017, before one-upping the heartbreak last season, losing on an improbable buzzer-beater to Notre Dame and ripping the heart out of the Bulldogs for the second consecutive year.
- The Lady Bulldogs have revenge on its minds and have maintained its standing as a powerhouse program. Through three games, the team has outscored Southeast Missouri State, Virginia, and Lamar by a total of 264-150. The 38-point margin of victory is tops in the NCAA.
- MSU has been just as dominant on the stat sheet over two weeks of competition, as it sits second in the nation in blocked shots per game (10.3), top-15 in rebound margin (19.3), rebounds per game (53), and field-goal percentage defense (27.7), and top-25 in free throws made (56) and scoring offense (88 points per game).
- The two main cogs in the Lady Bulldogs machine are Teaira McCowan and Anriel Howard. These two stars in the post have been dynamic, with the superstars appearing on three award watch lists, both placing on the Wooden and Naismith lists, McCowan is also on the Lisa Leslie Award Watch List, and Howard included on the Katrina McClain list.
- McCowan has already made a compelling case, starting the season with back-to-back-to-back double-doubles, and averaging 5.33 blocks a game to lead the nation in the category, and earning the SEC Player of the Week honor in the process.
- The offensive attack ultimately runs through senior guard Jazzmun Holmes, who is averaging six assists per contest.
- The deep ball threat the Bulldogs employ is 6-1 forward Chloe Bibby, who is hitting .474 percent of her shots behind the arc, making three triples in each game so far this year.
News and Notes:
Take A Chance On Me
In just two seasons plus three games, junior forward
Chance Graham already ranks 15th on Coppin State's career rebounding list with 595. Graham is well on pace to shatter Rene' Doctor's ('95) career record of 908 rebounds. In just 61 games, Graham has averaged 9.7 rebounds per game. A Second team All-MEAC selection last year, Graham led the conference with 10.7 rebounds per game and her 309 rebounds were the second most in Coppin single-season history.
Coppin State All-Time Rebounds Leaderboard
1. Rene' Doctor (908)
2. Kiesha Brooks (865)
3. Larrisa Carter (826)
4. Yvette Larkins (757)
5. Bridgid Mitchell (728)
13. Tonya Reed (619)
14. Liesha Mitchell (604)
15. Chance Graham (595)
Having A Fields Day
New to the squad this season is senior
Brooke Fields, a former standout at Division II Roberts Wesleyan College. In three seasons with the Redhawks, Fields scored 1,226 points with a career-high 33 points in a victory over Bridgeport. Two seasons ago, Fields earned All-ECC honors with 15.6 points per game along with an 83% free throw percentage.
Staying In The DMV
Senior transfer
Kaiya Coleman was a near double-digit scorer two years ago at Division II University of the District of Columbia. She also has connections with head men's basketball coach
Juan Dixon, as she played under his tutelage in both individuals' lone season with the Firebirds, going 3-25.
Welcome Back
Coppin welcomes back sophomore
Maraiyah Smith after she had a standout freshman season a year ago. Smith averaged nearly nine points per game and ten points in conference play.
What's In A Name?
Along with Graham and Smith,
Oluwadamilola Oloyede returns to the fold for the Navy and Gold. While all the vowels in her name might make one lose their breath after one roll call, she prefers to go by "Dami" to make it easier on her peers. Oloyede had her bright spots in 2017-18, putting up 17 points while making all seven of her shots at Charlotte to go with three double-doubles.
Hawaii 2-5
Charlottesville native
Adrienne Darden has made her way back to the east coast after seeing limited playing time at University of Hawaii two seasons ago. The junior boasts a career-high of seven points versus Boise State and brings a vertical element to the club that was lacking in depth.
Freshman Takeover
To coincide with the Eagles' three transfers Darden, Fields, and Coleman, CSU welcomes a plethora of first year players into the mix with redshirt freshman
Tsahai Corbie (Brooklyn, N.Y.) as well as true freshmen
Diamond Adams (South Bend, Ind.),
E'Mya Price (Charlotte, N.C.),
Jalynda Salley (Reynoldsburg, Ohio) and
Elan Wali (Wyncote, Pa) all expected to get significant minutes on the hardwood.
