BALTIMORE – Coppin State University revealed its 2019-20 men's basketball schedule which features a pair of non-conference home games and seven teams that made the postseason in 2019.
For the first time since the 2011-12 season, the Eagles will open the season at home as they clash against Rider University on Tuesday, November 5 for a 7 pm tipoff. It is also the first time since the 2000-01 season that CSU hosts a Division I opponent to start its schedule.
Following the opener, Coppin goes on the road for five games with three coming against squads which made postseason runs last season. The Eagles start the stretch at Virginia Tech, who made the Sweet Sixteen, on November 8, followed by Midwest trips to Loyola-Chicago (Nov. 12), Northern Illinois (Nov. 15) and Northern Kentucky (Nov. 17), as well as a cross-country flight to Pacific on November 19.
The Eagles return home to host Cornell on Saturday, November 23, a Youth Game which is being presented by Jerusalem Temple No. 4 Prince Hall Shriners. This is the second-ever meeting between the two schools, with the first coming on December 23, 1989 where the Eagles came away victorious at the Chaminade Christmas Classic in Honolulu.
To close out the non-conference portion of its schedule, Coppin will go on the road for eight-straight games with visits to James Madison (Nov. 26), Montana (Nov. 29), East Carolina (Dec. 3), Davidson (Dec. 10), UMBC (Dec. 15), Miami (Fla.) on December 21, Mount St. Mary's (Dec. 27) and Fordham (Dec. 30).
MEAC play features home-and-home matchups against Delaware State, Howard, Maryland Eastern Shore, Morgan State, Norfolk State and South Carolina State. The Eagles will host North Carolina A&T and North Carolina Central while making trips to Bethune-Cookman and Florida A&M.
The conference schedule opens with South Carolina State and Norfolk State coming to Baltimore on January 4 and January 6, respectively. A three-game homestand starts on January 18 against North Carolina A&T and ending with Howard on January 27. Sandwiched between is Coppin's 90
th all-time meeting against Morgan State on Saturday, January 25.
CSU will be on the road for the majority of February with home games against North Carolina Central (Feb. 8) and Maryland Eastern Shore (Feb. 10). Homecoming and Senior Night is set for February 22 against Delaware State.
The 2020 MEAC Tournament is set for March 9-14. 2020 at the Norfolk Scope Arena.
Redshirt junior
Dejuan Clayton, who received Second Team All-MEAC accolades last season, is the lone returning starter for the Eagles who went 8-25 overall and 7-9 in conference play a year ago. Coppin defeated Morgan State all three times last year, including again in the First Round of the MEAC Tournament, before falling in overtime to North Carolina A&T in the Quarterfinals.
