NORFOLK, Va. – Seventh-seeded Coppin State's men's basketball's run in the MEAC Tournament came to an end in the Championship Game in a 72-57 loss against Norfolk State on Saturday afternoon at Scope Arena. The Eagles, who made their first appearance in the Championship Game since 2008, conclude their season with a 9-23 overall record while the Spartans improve to 24-6 and gain the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Nendah Tarke led Coppin with 16 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals while
Justin Steers and
Jesse Zarzuela also finished in double figures, recording 12 points and 11 points, respectively. Steers had a team-high seven rebounds while Zarzuela dished out six assists to go with five steals.
Kyle Cardaci hit three 3-pointers for nine points while
Mike Hood added six points and
Alex Rojas chipped in with three points.
Coppin shot much better in the second half, making 46.7% from the field while making 8-of-13 from the line, but Norfolk was even better in the second half, hitting 62.5% from the floor to go with six 3-pointers and 12-of-13 from the line.
Following the Tournament, Tarke and Zarzuela were named to the MEAC All-Tournament Team.
Both teams struggled from the floor in the first half as neither team was able to take control of the game. With just over a minute remaining in the period,
Joe Bryant hit a three for the Spartans to give NSU a 21-18 lead. Steers answered with a bucket with just under a minute left but Bryant hit another three just before the half to make it a 24-20 ballgame going into the break.
Norfolk opened the second half with a 13-2 run to extend its lead to 37-22 at the 17:14 mark but Coppin fought back, closing the gap to single digits with a 7-0 spurt to make it a 47-39 score with 11:38 remaining.
The Spartans came right back with a 12-2 run, pushing the lead back to 18 points before Coppin made one last push to cut the deficit to 61-51with 4:12 remaining after a jumper in the paint by Tarke. CSU made a stop at the other end, but as two Eagles went up for the rebound, the ball ricocheted to NSU's
Kris Bankston who slammed it home just before the media timeout.
Steers hit a jumper following the break to make it a 10-point game once again but it was not enough for the Eagles.
