Box Score ORANGEBURG, SC—Bryeasha Blair tossed in a team-high 20 points and seven rebounds, but it wasn't enough as Coppin State defeated South Carolina State 66-63 in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference play Saturday (Feb.18) at Smith-Hammond-Middleton Memorial Center.

"First off you must give credit to Coppin State they played well down the stretch and ended up with the win," said assistant coach Alexis Pace.  It was a tough loss but as a team we have to take care of the ball and limit our turnovers."

Coppin State was led by Keena Samuels with a game-high 23 points and six rebounds, while Genesis Lucas added 21 points and six rebounds. Chance Graham recorded the games only double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds in the win.

"We knew coming into the game we had to contain the guard play of Samuels and Lucas," said Pace. "They ended up having a great shooting day so moving forward we have to do a better job defending the basketball."

South Carolina State jumped out to a quick 13-7 lead off a three-pointer by Blair at the 5:26 mark in the first quarter. A jumper by Regina Garret followed by a layout by freshman forward Alexis Scott cut the lead to three, 23-26, with 7:48 remaining in the second quarter. Lucas rattled off five straight points to close out the half and five Coppin State 28-38 lead during intermission.

The second half the Lady Bulldogs opened sparking 20-6 lead with Blair scoring seven straight points to give SC State a four-point lead, 48-44, with 3:09 left in the third quarter. A late three-pointer down the stretch by Lucas tied the game 49-49 with 0:47 seconds left in the quarter. Samuels tossed in a layup along with a pair of free throws from the charity stripe to give Coppin State an 54-51 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.

Sophomore forward JaQuanna Murray put the Lady Bulldogs in position to regain the lead after tossing in a pair of free throws to pull SC State within one, 57-58 at the 6:16 mark. Coppin State stayed focus in the closing minutes to hold on to a 66-63 victory.

South Carolina State falls to 5-20 overall, 2-12 in the MEAC, while Coppin State improves to 7-18 overall, 7-6 in the league. Despite the loss, the Lady Bulldogs dominated on the boards with a game-high 49-38 and got excellent play from their bench play with 24 points.

SC State will play their last home game of the season Saturday (Feb. 25) against Florida A&M in MEAC doubleheader. Tipoff is 2 p.m. for the women, with the men following immediately afterwards.

For more information on South Carolina State Athletics visit www.scsuathletics.com or call the Office of Athletic Media Relations at (803) 536-7060.

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