BALTIMORE – Coppin State men's basketball team continues its road trip taking on Rider Friday, November 12 and No. 24 Connecticut on Saturday, November 13. Both games will be live streamed.
Event Information
Opponent: Rider (0-1)
Date/Time: Friday, November 12 | 7pm
Location: Lawrenceville, N.J. (Alumni Gym)
Media: Watch |Listen |Live Stats
Event Information
Opponent: #24 Connecticut(1-0)
Date/Time: Saturday, November 13 |Noon
Location: Stoors, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion)
Media: FS2|Watch |Live Stats
Opening Tip
The Eagles and Broncs have met three times with Rider leading the all-time series 3-0. The first game dates back to 2002 where Rider won 62-59. They last played on November 5, 2019 and the Eagles lost 91-84.
CSU and No. 24 Connecticut have played each other seven time with the Huskies winning all contests. The first game between the two teams was played during the 1997-98 season and UConn came out on top 72-50. The two squads last played each other on December 12, 2017 with Connecticut winning 72-59.
Last Time Out
The Eagles dropped its second straight game in consecutive days falling to DePaul Wednesday night, 97-72 inside Wintrust Arena.
Jesse Zarzuela led all Coppin players with a team-high 25 points and three rebounds.
Mike Hood dropped 18 points with two rebounds while
Nendah Tarke tallied 11 points, had three assists and led in rebounds with five.
Justin Steers also recorded eight points and one block.
Preseason Poll
Redshirt freshman
Nendah Tarke and sophomore
Kyle Cardaci were named to the Preseason
All-MEAC Teams. Tarke received first Team accolades while Cardaci earned seconnd Team honors. The Eagles were picked to finish fourth in the Preeseason Poll.
Coppin Contributors
Tarke earned third Team All-MEAC honors and was the 2020-21 MEAC Rookie of the Year last season. Over the final six games, Tarke averaged 16.5 points along with 5.8 rebounds and 2.5 steals.
Cardaci was the top 3-point shooter in the MEAC a year ago, making 54 3-pointers while averaging 9.3 points. He made 40.3% from deep and increased that percentage to 44.9% in MEAC play.
Eagle Returners
Returning from last season are
Nendah Tarke, the 2020-21 MEAC Rookie of the Year and a third Team All-Conference selection, as well as the league's top three-point shooter in
Kyle Cardaci.
Isaiah Gross is also back after appearing in 14 games last season following an injury plagued 2019-20 season.
Reggie James missed all of last season with an injury but played in 25 games for CSU during the 2019-20 season.
Justin Steers last played in a game during the 2018-19 season where he averaged 6.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and had 25 blocks.
New to the Nest
Nine new faces join the Coppin State program with four NCAA Division I transfers (
Sita Conteh,
Tyree Corbett,
Mike Hood &
Nathaniel Stokes), four JUCO transfers (
Remy Lemovou,
Alex Rojas,
Daniel Titus &
Jesse Zarzuela) and true freshman
Greg Spurlock.
Scouting Rider
Dwight Murray, Jr. scored 17 points, but a late 12-0 Duquesne run sent the Dukes past the Rider University men's basketball team, 73-61, on Tuesday night's season opener at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.
Dwight Murray, Jr. and Dimencio Vaughn were named to the Preseason All-MAAC First and Second Teams, respectively.
Murray led the Broncs in points (15.8), rebounds (6.0), assists (4.1) and steals (1.0) per game last season, while shooting 85.9 percent from the free-throw line and 41.7 percent from long range. He earned All-MAAC Second Team honors last year.
Vaughn returns to Rider following last season at Ole Miss. He scored 1,239 points, grabbed 565 rebounds and made 165 steals in his first four years in the Cranberry and White and projects to be the Broncs' all-time steals leader with another full season played in 2021-22. Vaughn was a two-time All-MAAC First Team selection – the only Bronc to achieve the feat in Kevin Baggett's tenure with the Broncs and one of just two First Teamers since 2012-13 (Matt Lopez).
The Broncs were picked fifth in the MAAC Preseason Coaches' Poll a year after finishing 11th of 11 teams in 2020-21.
Scouting No. 24 Connecticut
The UConn men's basketball defeated Central Connecticut 94-48 Tuesday night inside Gampel Pavilion.
The Huskies used a balanced attack that saw five players score in double figures and three more with eight or nine points as they posted their largest margin of victory since a 103-47 win over Tennessee-Chattanooga in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament.
The Huskies entered the 2021-22 season with a preseason ranking for the first time since 2016. They finished last season 11-6 in the BIG EAST Conference. They returned nine players from last season and welcome in four newcomers.
Grad student R.J. Cole returns and was last season's assist leader (4.3), three-pont field goal percentage leader (.386), and second-leading scorer (12.2). Last year's leading rebounder, Tyrese Martin is also back for the Huskies, as well as the BIG EAST co-Defensive Player of the Year Adama Sanogo.
Up Next
The Eagles will travel to Greensboro, North Carolina to face UNCG on Monday, November 15. Game time is scheduled for 7 pm inside the Greensboro Coliseum.
