DURHAM, N.C. – Coppin State's men's basketball team had a chance to win as time expired but came up just short in a 69-68 loss at North Carolina Central on Saturday night at McDougald-McLendon Arena. The Eagles fall to 4-3 in the MEAC while N.C. Central improves to 4-1 in league play.
The lead changed seven times in the final five minutes with Central taking the final lead with a contested layup by Justin Wright with just 22 seconds remaining.
Nendah Tarke had an open look at the other end, but his jumper fell just short and went out of bounds with 1.4 to go.
Following a timeout, N.C. Central ran out the clock with a pair of inbounds passes that took the final ticks off the board.
Four CSU players finished in double figures, led by a double-double 17 points and 12 rebounds by
Tyree Corbett, who also added a pair of blocks and a steal on defense.
Nendah Tarke added 12 points, eight rebounds and three steals while
Kyle Cardaci and
Justin Steers pitched in 12 points apiece. Steers also dished out a game-high six assists.
Alex Rojas and
Mike Hood chipped in with eight points and six points, respectively.
N.C. Central outshot Coppin, 46.7% to 42.9%, but Coppin held the advantage from deep, the free throw line and even on the glass. CSU made eight 3-pointers compared to just three for the hosts and hit 18-of-22 free throws to just 10-of-12 for Central. The Navy & Gold outrebounded N.C. Central, 35-28.
Central held the advantage in the paint, outscoring Coppin inside, 46-24 and was able to get out in transition to a tune of 12 fastbreak points.
The hosts jumped out early to a big lead, starting the game on a 14-2 run, but Coppin regrouped to tie the scorer at 24-24 with 7:51 left in the half before going into the locker room trailing, 37-36.
Coppin took its first lead of the game in the opening seconds of the second half on a steal and breakaway dunk by Corbett. N.C. Central tied the score at 43-43 with just under 16 minutes left before CSU scored ten-straight points, four of which coming from Steers with 12:16 remaining.
The Red & Black managed to claw its way back into the game and regained the advantage at 63-62 with just under four minutes left.
CSU returns home for three-straight games, starting with South Carolina State for Homecoming on Saturday, February 12 at 4 pm. Fans can watch the game on NXT LVL or listen to the action on WNST 1570 AM.
