BALTIMORE - Jaia Alexander notched another double-double with 25 points and ten rebounds to lead the Coppin State women's basketball team to an 80-55 Homecoming victory over South Carolina State on Saturday afternoon at PEC Arena. The Eagles now stand at 12-9 overall and 6-2 in the MEAC.
A Charm City native, Alexander led four Eagles in double digits to mark her league-high fifth double-double of the season. Alexander shot 11-of-17 from the floor and was a perfect 5-of-5 from the stripe.
Mossi Staples was the second leading scorer of the game with 15 points, three steals, and three assists. Jalynda Salley had 13 points, seven rebounds and two blocks, notching her 98th career block to place her third all-time in CSU history. Aliyah Lawson went for 11 points and hit three 3-pointers. Colleen Bucknor reached double digits in rebounds with ten. Hope Evans was another key performer for Coppin with six points, three assists, and two steals.
After routing South Carolina State by 29 points last Saturday, the Bulldogs attempted to keep the game close with Coppin in a back and forth first half. Salley got going early in the first quarter with six points. Alexander and Salley became unstoppable in the paint, as the duo tallied 11 of the Eagles' 14 points in the second quarter. Evans also hit a half court buzzer beater to give Coppin a three-point lead going into the second half.
The Eagles went on a 5-0 run to start the second half, before going on another 9-0 run to carry out a double-digit lead. Salley sparked the run with a bucket, followed by a momentum shifting and-1 by Evans, topped off with back-to-back buckets by Alexander. Lawson went on a 5-0 run of her own to bring Coppin to their highest lead of the quarter (58-41).
The down-low duo of Alexander and Salley scored six straight points at the start of the fourth, while South Carolina was left scoreless for four straight minutes. Courtney Gardner's lay-up brought Coppin to a 25-point advantage, as the Navy & Gold secured yet another 20+ point victory against South Carolina State in a week.
Coppin returns to action on Monday, February 14 when its hosts N.C. Central in a 4 pm tipoff at PEC Arena.
