RALEIGH, N.C. – Coppin State's men's basketball team cut a large first half deficit to within ten, but the Eagles fell at North Carolina State, 94-72 on Tuesday night at Reynolds Coliseum. With the loss, Coppin falls to 4-7 on the season while the Wolfpack improve to 8-2.
Inside the Numbers
- Three Eagles finished in double figures, led by Sam Sessoms who recorded 24 points on 8-of-17 shooting along with three 3-pointers and 5-of-7 from the stripe. The senior from Philadelphia also dished out a game-high nine assists along with three rebounds.
- Justin Steers went 5-of-8 from the floor and made 5-of-7 from the line to record 15 points while Nendah Tarke notched a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds to go with a pair of steals.
- Kam'Ron Blue added seven points with six rebounds, followed by Isaiah Gross with five while Mike Hood and Christian Sutton both buried a three.
- NC State made 52.2% of its field goals and 13 3-pointers to just 37.9% for the Eagles, but Coppin's second-half comeback was centered on holding the Wolfpack to just 3-of-10 from deep after they made 10-of-19 threes in the first half.
- Terquavion Smith and Jarkel Joiner combined for 62 points for NC State.
How it Happened
- NC State got out of the gates quickly, burying ten 3-pointers in the first ten minutes of the game to build a 38-15 lead. After a layup at the 8:58 mark, the Wolfpack saw its biggest lead at 40-15.
- Coppin slowly cut the deficit and trailed 49-32 at the half as Sessoms scored seven points in the final 1:47 of the period, including a three in the closing seconds.
- Midway through the second half, Coppin went on a 15-6 run, jumpstarted by a three from Sutton and capped off by back-to-back threes from Sessoms to get the Eagles to within 72-62 with 7:59 remaining.
- The deficit remained in reach for the next three minutes, but the Wolfpack closed the game on a 15-3 run over the final four-plus minutes.
Up Next: Coppin will remain in the Tar Heel State when it takes on East Carolina on Sunday, December 11 in a 2 pm tipoff on ESPN+.
