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Non-Conference Play Concludes At Old Dominion On Saturday

| By: Brian Baublitz Jr.
Game Notes (Old Dominion)
 
BALTIMORE, Md. – Coppin State women's basketball will finish up its grueling 12-game non-conference slate on Saturday when it travels to Norfolk to face the Monarchs. CSU will be happy to see MEAC competition start up, as the non-conference portion consisted of four ranked opponents and 11 contests away from the friendly confines of the PEC Arena.
 
What You Need to Know Coppin Contributors
  • The Lady Eagles first 12 opponents of 2018-19 (including Old Dominion) have had a combined record of 99-36 (.733) including ranked foes #25 West Virginia, #13 Minnesota, #9 Maryland, and #6 Mississippi State as well as a still undefeated Ohio University squad.
  • Coppin State as a unit is adept at making threes along with getting to the free-throw line. CSU ranks inside the top-three in the MEAC in free throws made (155), attempts (229) and percentage (66.7%) while placing in the top-five in three-pointers made per contest (5.0).
  • Forward Chance Graham has been racking up the weekly conference awards as she has won three Defensive Player of the Week accolades and a Co-Player of the Week honor through the first seven weeks of the campaign.
  • Graham is the primary Eagle player that keeps opposing defenses up at night, as she is ranked inside the top-20 nationally for defensive rebounds per game (9), double-doubles (7), free throw attempts (98), free throws made (67), rebounds per game (11.7), total rebounds (129) and minutes played per game (37).
  • Roberts Wesleyan transfer Brooke Fields has done a fantastic job acclimating to the division one level, becoming the team's floor general in the process. Fields is among the conference's top performers in points per game (13.1), assists per game (3.0), free throw percentage (68.6%), three-pointers made per game (1.5) and assist-to-turnover ratio (0.8).
  • Jalynda Salley has been a consistent post presence as a freshman for the navy and gold, averaging 5.2 rebounds per contest, second-best on the club.
Scouting the Old Dominion Monarchs
  • ODU has won three of its last four matchups and eight of 11, with the Monarchs' only losses coming to Virginia, Saint Mary's (CA) and #13 NC State. Despite starting 8-3, the team has only outscored the opposition by an average of 2.3 points per matchup, as six of the results were within a 10-point margin.
  • Old Dominion excels at free throws, rebounds and limiting mistakes. The Monarchs place inside the top-30 in the NCAA for free throws made (174), rebounds per game (43.64) and fewest turnovers per game (13.6).
  • The Monarchs are led on the defensive end by freshman guard Ajah Wayne. The two-time Conference USA Freshman of the Week leads the team in both steals (2.10) and rebounds per game (9.8) while placing in the top third of the conference in the rebounding category.
  • Taylor Edwards executes ODU's game plan as well as her coach, residing in the top half of the league in assists (50) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.92).
  • Old Dominion boasts a trio of double-figure scorers in Wayne (12.9), Edwards (12.6) and Victoria Morris (12.6) with Aziah Hudson (7.9) and Maggie Robinson serving as complimentary pieces.

News and Notes:
Take A Chance On Me
In just two seasons and 11 games, junior forward Chance Graham already ranks 9th on Coppin State's career rebounding list with 686.  Graham is well on pace to shatter Rene' Doctor's ('95) career record of 908 rebounds.  In just 69 games, Graham has averaged 9.9 rebounds per game. 
 
Coppin State All-Time Rebounds Leaderboard
1. Rene' Doctor (908)
5. Bridgid Mitchell (728)
6. Leisel Harry (723)
7. Whitney Cunningham (702)
8. Lisa Briggs (695)
9. Chance Graham (686)
 
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.
 
Every Tuesday on WNST 1570 AM
Every Tuesday morning during the season, head coach DeWayne Burroughs and selected coaches and players will be interviewed by Nestor Aparicio on WNST 1570 AM. WNST will air all Coppin home women's basketball games this season as well as selected road games. Games will also be aired on Fox Sports Williamsport.
 
Preseason Predictions
Coppin State was picked to finish 9th of 12 teams in the 2018-19 MEAC Preseason Poll. Chance Graham, who received 2nd Team All-MEAC honors last season, headlined the Preseason First Team. Defending Tournament Champions, North Carolina A&T was picked to win the MEAC, followed by the co-Regular Season Champion Bethune-Cookman Wildcats, with Norfolk State, Howard and Maryland Eastern Shore (1 first-place vote) rounded out the top-five. Angel Golden of Bethune-Cookman was named the Preseason MEAC Player of the Year.
 
First Recruit Signed For 2019-2020 Recruiting Class
Coppin State University's women's basketball head coach DeWayne Burroughs has announced that Marley Grenway, a 5-foot-10 guard from Jessup, Maryland, has signed a National Letter of Intent to play for the Eagles in the 2019-2020 season. This is the first signee for CSU's recruiting class for next season.
 
Starring at Oakland Mills High School in Columbia, Maryland, Grenway led the Scorpions to a 2A Regional Championship and State Semifinal as a junior. Grenway averaged 15.6 points, 3.3 rebounds and nearly two steals per game as she was named Third Team All-State for 1A and 2A schools as well as Honorable Mention All-Met by the Washington Post.
 
Known for her shooting prowess, Grenway made 64 3-pointers last season at Oakland Mills and played her AAU ball for Team Takeover as well as Team Intensity.
 
Defending Her Turf
Chance Graham has won two MEAC Defensive Player of the Week Awards in 2018-19 and four in her career. Graham had earned the honor on November 20 and December 4 of this year, while winning Defensive POTW for the weeks of January 9 and February 6 last season.
 
Eagle Excellence
Graham's presence is littered all over the national leader boards, as she places inside the top-25 in seven different categories and appears on 16 different rankings in total. She currently sits 9th on the Coppin State career rebounding list with 686 and is projected to obliterate the current record of 908 held by Rene' Doctor. The junior paces the Eagles in points (191), rebounds (129), steals (28), and blocks (14), while sitting atop the MEAC in defensive rebounds per game (9), double-doubles (7), free throw attempts (98), minutes played per game (37.1) and rebounds per game (11.7).
 
Double-Double Vision
Chance Graham continues to produce double-doubles game-in and game-out. She accumulated her first four during her freshman campaign, before exploding for 12 such performances last season. So far in 2018-19, she has provided the Lady Eagles with seven double-doubles in the team's first 11 contests, averaging 17.4 points and 11.7 rebounds per game. Over her career, Graham has totaled 23 double-doubles in 69 games, good for 33% of her appearances.
 
Soaring Up The Scoring Charts
Graham has continued to creep up the Coppin State all-time scoring list, as she currently sits at 774 points scored in her career. She's averaged 11.2 points per game in her career.
 
Coppin State All-Time Rebounds Leaderboard
1. Rashida Suber (1,865)
15. LaShawn Scott (968)
16. Natasha Parks (928)
17. Janelle Lane (927)
18. Karen Russell (912)
19. Rene' Doctor (895)
20. Leisel Harry (890)
NR. Chance Graham (774)
 
Family Business
Freshman guard Elan Wali has basketball blood in her veins. Her grandfather, Wali Jones played in the NBA for 12 seasons (1964-1976) and was named to the NBA All-Rookie Team for the local Baltimore Bullets franchise. Her uncle, Askia Jones, played basketball for Kansas State and played in the NBA for 11 games for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Jones left Kansas State third on the Wildcats all-time scoring list.
 
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