DALLAS, Texas – Coppin State's women's basketball team gave ACC member, SMU, all it could handle in a 57-49 loss on Wednesday night at Moody Coliseum. The Eagles fell to 2-9 on the season while the Mustangs improved to 5-6 overall.
Khila Morris and
Erin Henry both scored in double figures, totaling 15 and 13 points, respectively, to lead the Navy & Gold. Morris hit 5-of-12 from the floor with a pair of threes to go with four rebounds, three assists and two steals. Henry's 13 points were a career-high as the junior guard made 5-of-11 shots with two rebounds, two assists and three steals.
Shanaii Gamble and
Patricia Sosa Lora added six points each, followed by
Paris McBride with four points, seven assists, two blocks and two steals.
Both teams made 19 field goals with four 3-pointers as SMU narrowly outshot Coppin, 38.0% to 36.5%. The eight-point margin came as the Mustangs made 15-of-21 free throws compared to 7-of-12 for CSU.
SMU outscored Coppin, 20-8 in the first quarter and closed the period on a 9-0 run. The Eagles cut the deficit to 31-22 at the half and trailed by the same margin with 8:10 left in the third.
Henry got a CSU rally started with a free throw, followed by a transition layup before a pair of jumpers by Sosa Lora and another by Morris with just under five minutes to go, tying the score at 33 at the media timeout. Morris answered five-straight SMU points with a three, keeping it a one-possession game before the hosts closed the period with five-straight points to go up by seven.
SMU extended its advantage to 48-36 with five-straight points to open the fourth and Coppin got to no closer than 48-41 and 51-44 following back-to-back threes from Morris and Henry.
Coppin returns to action on Saturday, December 13 when it travels to William & Mary for a 1 pm tipoff. The clash with the Tribe airs on both MASN and FloSports.
