Men’s Hoops Gives Notre Dame a Scare in Non-Conference Finale

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Coppin State's men's basketball team gave Notre Dame a scare in its non-conference finale but fell just short, 63-56 on Saturday afternoon at Purcell Pavilion.

The Basics

• Final Score: Coppin State 56, Houston 63
• Records: Coppin State 0-15 / Notre Dame (10-3)
• Location: South Bend, Ind. (Purcell Pavilion)
• Series History: Notre Dame Leads, 2-0

How It Happened
First Half 

• The Eagles started off strong offensively with a three by Lamar Morgan to open the game and a pair of triples by Dejuan Clayton to keep the score tied at 9 with 14:19 remaining.
• A 9-2 Notre Dame run gave the Fighting Irish and 18-11 lead with 11:10 left before Chad Andrews-Fulton stopped the bleeding with a jumper at the 10:37 mark.
• Notre Dame extended its lead to as many as 25-13 with 7:41 to go but CSU closed the half on a 14-4 run to go into the half trailing just 29-27 as Kent Auslander made a layup with three ticks on the clock.
• Cedric Council had four points during the run as five different Eagles scored in the closing minutes of the half.

 Second Half 

• Cedric Council opened the period with a free throw and after a layup by Notre Dame's Juwan Durham, Morgan buried a three to tie the score at 31 with 18:28 to go.
• Dejuan Clayton then hit a three with 17:09 left to give CSU its first lead at 34-31 since the 19:19 mark of the first half.
• Both teams went scoreless for nearly two minutes before Notre Dame hit a three with 15:15 on the clock, tying the score at 34.
• Coppin then went on a 13-4 run over the next five-plus minutes to extend its lead to as many as 47-38 with 9:53 to go.  Council recorded seven more points during the run, including a three pointer to cap the run.
• Notre Dame quickly cut the deficit to three before Morgan briefly stopped the run but the Irish then scored 12 straight to retake and extend its advantage to 56-49 with 5:34 to go.
• A jumper by Clayton was then answered by a Notre Dame three at the 4:47 mark but neither team scored again for over two minutes until Kent Auslander sunk three free throws with 2:37 to go, cutting Notre Dame's lead to 59-54.
• Taqwain Drummond hit a jumper with 2:04 left to make it a one-possession game but Notre Dame made four free throws on four attempts to prevent the upset.

Inside the Numbers 

• Dejuan Clayton led all players with 15 points on 6-of-12 shooting with three 3-pointers along with four rebounds and three assists.
• Cedric Council notched his second career double-double and first of the season with 12 points and a career-high 17 rebounds.  His 17 rebounds were the most by a CSU player since 2011 when Antonio Williams pulled down 18 against North Carolina A&T.
• Lamar Morgan chipped in with eight points while Justin Steers tallied four points, five rebounds and three blocks in just 12 minutes.  Brendan Medley-Bacon was a force on the boards, pulling down six in just seven minutes.
• Coppin State outshot Notre Dame, 36.1% to 33.9% and outrebounded the Irish, 48-37.  The 33.9% shooting was a season-low by a Coppin State opponent.
• Notre Dame forced 14 CSU turnovers which turned into 17 points and the Irish made 14-of-19 from the line compared to just 6-of-9 for the Eagles.
• TJ Gibbs recorded 15 points to lead Notre Dame while John Mooney and Dane Goodwin added 14 and 13 points, respectively. Juwan Durham grabbed ten rebounds and blocked six shots.

Who's Next?

• Coppin State opens the MEAC portion of its schedule when the Eagles host Savannah State at 4 pm on Saturday, January 5.