Angel Jones and Laila Lawrence combined for 43 points as the HBCU Coppin State’s women’s basketball team knocked off Arizona State, 74-68, in overtime on Thursday night at PEC Arena.
The Eagles’ (6-4) win was their first over a Power Conference program at home in any sport.
Jones led all players with 23 points, hitting 8-of-20 from the floor and 7-of-11 from the line while adding five rebounds and three assists. Lawrence scored 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting while pulling down nine rebounds to go with five assists, a block, and four steals.
Tyler Gray and Tiffany Hammond dropped in 12 points apiece, marking the first time this season that Coppin had four players in double figures. All of Hammond’s points came on four 3-pointers, while Gray made all six of her free throws.
The senior guards also combined for five assists and five steals. Arielle-Vadrelle Belinga also came up big with seven points and six rebounds, both season highs.
Coppin outshot the Sun Devils, 41.3% to 38.8%, and made 15-of-22 shots from the floor compared to 9-of-9 for ASU.
The Eagles forced Arizona State into 20 turnovers, which translated into 20 points. The Sun Devils got 17 points from Baltimore native Jalyn Brown and 14 from leading scorer Tyi Skinner.
Coppin State head women’s basketball coach Jermaine Woods opening statement following his teams’ 74-68 overtime victory over Arizona State @TheNextHoops @HBCUNightly @HBCUGameday @HbcuPass @livforhoops @HBCUBuzz pic.twitter.com/oDMaqpSQ8G
— Rob from Chester, Pa (@knoxrob1) December 6, 2024
Coppin State makes big first-half run
Arizona State scored the game’s opening bucket, but that was its only lead until early in the fourth quarter. Hammond answered the Sun Devil layup with a three, and Coppin got up by as many as 18-12 in the first after a three by Lawrence at the 1:36 mark.
ASU hit a three to close the quarter, cutting the deficit to 18-15, but Coppin never relinquished the advantage in the second, with the advantage oscillating between one and five points throughout.
Brown brought ASU to within 31-30 with just under a minute left in the half before a jumper by Belinga and a pair of free throws by Jones ended the period.
The Eagles extended their lead to as many as 46-37 with 5:54 left in the third following five-straight points coming from Lawrence and a three-point play by Jones. Once again, Arizona State would not go away, cutting the CSU lead to a single point just before the buzzer.
Arizona State makes comeback. Eagles fight back to force OT
The Sun Devils hit two straight field goals to open the fourth and opened their largest lead at 59-55, following a three by Brown with 3:36 left in regulation.
Back-to-back layups by Lawrence tied the score before a pair of free throws by ASU gave them back the lead with 1:10 remaining. Jones hit a floater with just under a minute to play following a pass from Lawrence, and the Sun Devils were unable to convert, sending the game into overtime.
Skinner opened the extra session with a jumper before Belinga buried a three on the ensuing possession, giving CSU a 64-63 lead with 3:55 to play.
The teams traded leads before Lawrence tied the score at 68 by hitting the second of two free throws with 1:04 remaining.
Following an ASU miss, Jones found Belinga inside for the go-ahead layup with 44 seconds left, and Gray forced a turnover at the other end and sunk a pair of free throws to put Coppin up 72-68.
Courtesy: Coppin State Athletics
