Gophers Bury Eagles 84-52

Minneapolis, Minn. – Chance Graham notched her fifth double-double of the season and slid into 12th place on Coppin's career rebounding leader board, but the #13 ranked Golden Gophers of Minnesota came away victorious on a blustery night in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
 
The Basics

• Final Score: Coppin State 52 #13 Minnesota 84
• Records: Coppin State 0-8 (0-0 MEAC) / #13 Minnesota 10-0 (0-0 BIG)
• Location: Minneapolis, MN – Williams Arena
• Series History: Minnesota Leads 1-0

 
How It Happened
 
First Quarter

• A long-range bomb from Chance Graham opened the scoring for the Eagles, 3-2 CSU.
• A 10-4 Gophers run swung the lead back to the home side, 12-7 UM.
• Graham's jump shot with 4:32 left cut the deficit to four (17-13), but a 12-6 rally from Minnesota put the Eagles behind the eight ball at 29-19 to end the first quarter.
• MU shot a ridiculous 12-of-17 from the court for a 70.6 percentage.

Second Quarter

• MU enjoyed a 7-0 start to the 2nd quarter to extend the advantage to 17, 36-19.
• Maraiyah Smith broke the scoring silence with a layup off the glass with Tsahai Corbie adding a triple to make the score 36-24.
• A Lady Eagles field goal drought of 5:32 and 14 of the final 16 points going to Minnesota, sent Coppin to the break trailing 50-26.
• The Golden Gophers notched an impressive 12 assists in the first half, while its star point guard, Kenisha Bell, lit up the scoreboard for 18 points.

Third Quarter

• Destiny Pitts' fourth three-pointer of the night extended the margin to 55-28, prompting a Coppin State timeout.
• Coppin State held the Gophers without a field goal for 3:48 midway through the quarter but were unable to trim the deficit. A DeLaynie Byrne three-ball to end the drought gave Minnesota a 6-5 edge over that time frame, 63-33 MU.
• CSU outscored MU 5-3 for the remainder of the third, 65-38 Minnesota.

Fourth Quarter

• Minnesota got the scoring trifecta (free throw, two-pointer, and three-pointer) to open the final ten minutes for the home side, 71-38 Minnesota.
• The Lady Eagles were able make a run of 10-7, as Kaiya Coleman and Brooke Fields contributed three points each, while Corbie and Graham notched two apiece, 78-48 Gophers.
• Minnesota finished off the game scoring six-of-ten to record its tenth victory of the season, 84-52.

Inside the Numbers

• Chance Graham surpassed LaKesha Wills for 12th on the Coppin State career rebounding list, settling on 640 after corralling 11 rebounds in the contest. She only needs three more boards to pass Jennifer Martin (642) for 11th all-time.
• Graham cobbled together 15 points along with those 11 rebounds to post her fifth double-double of the season to go along with a team-high three steals and two blocks.
• Brooke Fields produced her fourth double-figure scoring performance of 2018-19, dropping 14 points and pacing the Eagles with three assists.
• Tsahai Corbie had her best scoring output of her brief career, putting up 10 points for the first time as a member of the blue and gold.
• Kaiya Coleman has been bringing in consistent rebound production of late, placing second on the squad with five rebounds on the night.
• After going into the half with 18 points, Tanisha Bell cooled off considerably for the Golden Gophers but was still plenty effective, finishing the contest with a game-best in points (20), assists (5) and steals (4).
• Taiye Bello was a menace for Coppin all game long, tallying a double-double for Minnesota with 13 points and a team-high 11 rebounds.
• MU's deep threat lived up to her billing as Destiny Pitts sank four of her five triples, ending her night with 14 points and four boards.

 
Who's Next?

• Niagara University will welcome Coppin State to Lewiston, New York for a Saturday afternoon tilt in the Gallagher Center. Tipoff at 3 p.m.