Norfolk State Men's Basketball
BALTIMORE, Md. - Following an adrenaline-fueled victory over rival Hampton at home in the Battle of the Bay, NSU turns right around to play a road contest two days later at Coppin State on Monday night. Tip-off from the Physical Education Complex is set for 7:30 p.m.
Coppin State is tied for first with Morgan State in the league standings at 4-1. NSU, which has won three of its past four games, is now just a game behind those teams at 3-2 in the MEAC as well as 6-13 overall.
Media Coverage
The game will be broadcast live on Star 1310 AM as well as Hot 91.1 FM with Ross Gordon on the call. Live audio is available through
www.star1310.com as well as
hot91.nsu.edu:8000/128. Both feeds are available on smartphones through the Star 1310 website or through
www.TuneIn.com or the TuneIn Radio App (search for "WNSB") for Hot 91.1.
Fans can also follow along with CSU's
live stats and its
live video feed.
Series History
NSU has won eight in a row over Coppin State to extend its overall series lead to 27-11. The Eagles have not defeated NSU since the 2011-12 season. The Spartans have also won eight in a row over CSU in Baltimore, with their last loss in 2006-07.
About Coppin State
The Eagles have won four of their first five games in conference play after going just 1-14 during non-conference season. CSU, which scores just 62 points per game, has three players in double figures. Chas Brown has averaged 11.8 points over the last six games after not competing earlier in the season. Josh Treadwell (10.2 points) and Dejuan Clayton (10.1 points, 2.7 assists) also reach double figures, with Tre' Thomas (9.6) not far behind. Terry Harris (8.3 points, team-high 5.4 rebounds) was a preseason All-MEAC honoree as well. The Eagles, however, give up almost 79 points per contest, lose the rebounding battle by eight boards and barely average two blocks per game. CSU also shoots just 36.5 percent from the floor, the second-worst mark in the nation, 32 percent from 3-point range and 62 percent from the foul line, also one of the worst marks nationally. The Eagles have scored at least 75 points in all four of their MEAC victories.
Last Time Out
NSU led the entire second half, by double digits nearly all 20 minutes, and shot 10-of-16 from 3-point range to defeat Hampton 79-62 in the Battle of the Bay on Saturday night at Joseph Echols Hall.
Jonathan Wade scored 23 points on 7-of-11 shooting as NSU trailed for just one minute the entire contest.
Zaynah Robinson tallied 15 points with six rebounds, five assists, two blocks and two steals. NSU shot 49 percent overall in front of a capacity crowd and held Hampton to 38 percent shooting. A 17-of-18 second-half performance from the free throw line also helped NSU pull ahead by as much as 25 in the period.
Player Tidbits
Jonathan Wade
 • Had 10th 20-point game of season with 23 vs Hampton
 • Posted career high 5 assists against Hampton
 • Averaging 21.0 points on 24-of-34 shooting, including 5-of-8 on 3-pointers, last 3 games
 • Has scored in double figures in all 19 games
 • Ranks 3rd in the MEAC in scoring (19.1), 6th in minutes (33.9) and 3-point field goal percentage (40.0), 7th in field goal percentage (49.2), 10th in free throw percentage (72.3), 12th in defensive rebounds (4.2) and 16th in rebounding (5.4)
 • Ranks 58th in the nation in points (19.1), No. 114 in minutes (33:53) and No. 138 in field goal percentage (49.2)
 • Stands No. 784 in NCAA Division I career records in points (557)
Zaynah Robinson
 • Averaging 14.7 points, 5.5 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 1.7 steals last 6 games
 • 11-of-11 on free throws last 2 games; Had career-high 2 blocks and tied career best with six rebounds vs Hampton
 • Ranks 1st in the MEAC in assist-turnover ratio 2.8), 2nd in free throw percentage (86.0), 3rd in steals (1.3), 5th in assists (3.8), 8th in minutes (33.1), 13th in 3-point field goals per game (1.9) and 21st in scoring (11.5)
 • Ranks 32nd in the nation in assist-turnover ratio (2.83), No. 184 in minutes (33:03) and No. 195 in assists (3.8)
 • Stands No. 229 in NCAA Division I career records with 205 assists and No. 907 in points (504)
 • Ranks 18th all-time at NSU in 3-point field goal attempts (210) and 19th in 3-point field goals (74) and assists (205)
Jordan Butler
 • Named MEAC Defensive Player of the Week last Monday
 • Averaging 9.0 rebounds and 2.8 blocks last 5 games and 11.5 points last 2 games; Had 2nd double-digit rebound game of season with 11 vs Hampton
 • Ranks 3rd all-time at NSU in blocks (134)
 • Stands 33rd in NCAA Division I career records with 134 total block and with a 1.65 blocks-per-game average, No. 242 in rebounds (417) and No. 1,010 in points (459)
Alex Long
 • Averaging 8.0 points on 17-of-29 shooting and 6.8 rebounds last 5 games
 • Ranks 1st in the MEAC in blocks (1.6), 10th in rebounding (5.8), 11th in defensive rebounds (4.2) and 15th in offensive rebounds (1.6)
 • Ranks 74th in the nation in blocks (1.61)
 • Ranks 18th all-time at NSU in blocks (64)
Kerwin Okoro
 • Averaging 12.5 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists last 4 games
Dan Robinson
 • Averaging 4.2 rebounds last 5 games
 • Ranks 4th in the MEAC (1.3) and No. 148 in the nation in blocks (1.28)
Kyle Williams
 • Averaging 8.5 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including 5-of-8 from 3-point range, last 2 games
 • Ranks 11th in the MEAC in 3-point field goal percentage (37.5)
Keep Shooting
NSU has made 75-of-159 (47.2 percent) from the floor over the last three games. Against Hampton, the Spartans shot 10-of-16 from 3-point range (62.5 percent), the fourth-best percentage in the program's Division I history. It also marked the fifth time this year NSU reached double digits in 3-pointers in a game.
Rejected
NSU owns a 81-45 edge in blocks over the previous 14 games. On the year, NSU ranks 22nd in the nation in blocks per game at 5.4 and 27th with 103 total blocks. The Spartans had 10 blocks against Hampton, the third time this season with 10 swats in a contest. Only twice in its Division I history has NSU had more blocks in a game
The top five seasons in NSU history in terms of total blocks have all come within the last six years, as the program has averaged 163.3 blocks per season during that time.
Mix and Match
NSU has used 12 different starting lineups this year, including nine during a 10-game span at one point. Lately, though, the Spartans have used the same starting five in each of the last four games.
Fast Breaking
NSU has averaged 9.7 fastbreak points the last six games, posting six of its eight best performances of the season in those games.
Clean the Glass
NSU is a combined +22 on the boards the last five games. On the year, NSU is a collective +0.2 in first halves but -1.6 on the glass in second periods. NSU has also yet to win a game when losing the rebounding battle this year (0-10).
Don't Turn it Over
On the year, Norfolk State is getting outscored 16.8-11.2 in points off turnovers. NSU has had more turnovers than the other team in nine of the last 10 games.
Attack the Glass
NSU is averaging 8.9 second-chance points per game this season but has been below that average in six of the last nine games.
MEAC Rankings
The Spartans rank first in the MEAC in blocks (5.4) as well as second in scoring margin (-6.4), field goal percentage defense (43.0) and defensive rebound percentage (70.8) and third in opponent rebounding (36.5), rebound margin (-1.3) and defensive rebounds (25.9).
Predictable Numbers
Over the past two years, NSU is 22-2 when shooting better than the opposition and 1-28 when the other team has a better shooting percentage.
Ahead at the Half
The Spartans are 86-17 (83.5 winning percentage) since the start of the 2011-12 season when leading or tied at the half, including just 6-4 this season (and 0-9 when trailing).
Winning the State
Since the start of the 2011-12 season, NSU has the third-most wins (109) among the 14 Division I schools in the state of Virginia. The Spartans trail Virginia (149) and VCU (147).
