Women's Basketball

Syracuse women’s basketball opponent preview: What to know about Coppin State

After back-to-back victories at home last week, No. 20 Syracuse (6-3) looks for its third straight nonconference win when it hosts Coppin State (0-7) on Wednesday at 11 a.m. The Orange handled Michigan State and Central Connecticut State in a pair of double-digit wins last week.

Here’s what you need to know for Wednesday’s matchup.

All-time series: Syracuse leads, 4-0

Last time they met: On Dec. 9, 2015, SU improved to 6-2 with a 32-point blowout win over the Eagles. Alexis Peterson scored 15 points, Julia Chandler totaled 11, Briana Day netted eight points and Brittney Sykes scored four in the 88-56 win. Forward Isabella Slim was SU’s only player to see at least 10 minutes of action and not score. Then-senior guard Cornelia Fondren dished out seven assists.

The Coppin State report: The Eagles last made the NCAA tournament in 2008 and haven’t had a winning season in three years. Their one common opponent with SU is George Washington, a team CSU lost to 31 on Nov. 16. Syracuse nearly blew an 18-point lead against the Colonials but escaped with a 74-71 win last month. Coppin State has played one ranked team this year, then-No. 21 West Virginia. The Mountaineers won convincingly, 69-39. Against unranked Virginia, CSU lost 103-40.



The Eagles are struggling this season, scoring only 48.4 points per game and giving up 73.9. Just one player, senior guard Keena Samuels, averages more than 10 points per outing. The winless Eagles get down early — opponents have outscored the team 133 to 70 in the first quarter — and stay down. Their closest loss came on Saturday, a 69-65 loss at Towson.

Opponents shoot 42 percent against CSU, which hits only 27.4 percent of its shots from the field. Genesis Lucas (9.3 points), Vanessa Neal (7.6) and Tiara Goode (7.4) round out the Eagles’ top scorers.

How Syracuse beats Coppin State: CSU has yet to even win a game. Peterson, Sykes and the rest of the Orange will likely have their way as SU gets its seventh win with its usual formula of pressure and 3s.

Stat to know: 9.56 — Syracuse’s turnover margin, fifth-best in the country

Player to watch: Keena Samuels, guard, No. 21

The 5-foot-7 senior is Coppin State’s best player even though her 29.1 minutes per game average places only fourth on the team. She leads Coppin State’s starters in points per game (11), free throw percentage (74 percent), 3-point percentage (33.3) and field goal percentage (32.5). As a junior last year, Samuels started in 30 games, averaging 11.7 points, which led the team and placed 12th in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.





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