GREENVILLE, N.C.- Coppin State Women's basketball lost to Eastern Carolina on Tuesday night, with a final score of 75-44 at the Williams Arena.
The Eagles are now 2-3 for the season and ECU now leads the all-time series 4-1.
Mossi Staples was prominent for the Eagles, as she led the team in points, assists, and steals, with a season-high of 12 points, three assists and two steals. Staples was 3-of-5 from beyond the arc, and 4-for-7 from the field.
Aliyah Lawson and
Colleen Bucknor recorded seven points apiece as Coppin's second leading scorers. Buckner also led the team in rebounds with six for the night.
Jewel Watkins added in six points and two rebounds off the bench, and
Hope Evans tallied five points with two assists. As a team, 30 of Coppin's points were generated from their bench, which out-numbered Eastern Carolina's total bench points. The Eagles also out-shot the Pirates from beyond the arch, with five made three-point field goals, while the Pirates went 0-5 from the three. The Eagles defensive tenacity was carried out through all four quarters, as they forced 19 turnovers for ECU.
Aliyah Lawson scored the first five points for Coppin in the first quarter, with a reverse layup and a deep three.
Colleen Bucknor and
Mossi Staples scored the next 10 points for the Eagles, including back-to-back jumpers, with a layup by Bucknor, along with a three pointer and a free-throw from Staples.
Hope Evans added a spark on the offensive end in the second quarter with five points, including a nice euro step lay-in off the break, a jumper, and a free-throw. Coppin scored 17 bench points in the first half.
The Eagles started off the third quarter off with a vengeance. In the first defensive possession, the Eagles forced a shot clock violation, which led to a big three by
Nailah Delenois in the following possession. Delenois and
Jaia Alexander hosted a block party with back-to-back blocks, which gave the Eagles a turkey (three stops in a row), as the Pirates were scoreless in the first two minutes of the third. Alexander and Staples played well off of each other in the middle of the third quarter in back-to-back possessions, with an assist by Alexander for a three from Staples, followed by an assist from Staples for a jumper by Alexander. In Coppin's attempt to fight back, ECU went on a 6-0 run leading into the fourth quarter. In the fourth quarter, Watkins and Staples had a combined nine points, however their momentum offensively was not enough to close the Pirates scoring lead, as they finished the game with a final score of 75-44.
The Eagles will be back in action versus St. Francis (PA) at home in the PEC Arena. Tipoff will begin on Sunday at 1pm.
