Box Score
BALTIMORE, Md. – Brandon Wheeless (Stone Mountain, Ga.) scored a career-high 16 points to pace three Spartans in double figures as Norfolk State earned a hard-fought 67-57 win over Coppin State on Monday night at the Physical Education Complex.
Wheeless, starting for injured second-leading scorer Rob Hampton (Queens, N.Y.), hit 7-of-15 from the floor and grabbed six rebounds in a career-high 37 minutes of action for NSU (10-18, 8-7 MEAC). Kyle O'Quinn (Jamaica, N.Y.) added his ninth double-double of the season with 14 points and a career-high 19 rebounds, and Michael Deloach (Rocky Mount, N.C.) also scored 14 points.
The Spartans never trailed. There was one tie in the game, at 2-all, before Deloach hit a 3-pointer to give NSU a 5-2 lead. Coming off a draining double-overtime loss at Morgan State two days prior, NSU could not shake the Eagles (8-20, 3-12). But the Spartans got 12 first-half points from their bench, five apiece from Marcos Tamares (Queens, N.Y.) and Reggie Revels (Cincinnati, Ohio), to take a 34-30 lead into the half.
Michael Harper hit a 3-pointer just over a minute into the second half to draw CSU within one, at 34-33. The Eagles again pulled within one, 43-42, after a Kareem Brown layup with 12:32 remaining. But O'Quinn and Wheeless combined to score the next seven points to push the lead to 50-42 with 6:32 left to play.
CSU made one last push after Harper drained another trey to cut NSU's lead to 59-55 with 2:49 remaining. The Spartans again had the answer as Deloach hit 4-of-4 from the free throw line and O'Quinn made 1-of-2 in the next 30 seconds to stretch the lead back to nine. The Eagles made just one field goal in the final two and a half minutes.
The Spartans held CSU to 38 percent shooting (22-of-58) to complete the season sweep of the Eagles. Harper scored 14 points to lead three Eagles in double figures. He was joined by Branden Doughty with 12 points and Quinston Reggins with 11.
O'Quinn hit 6-of-9 from the floor and had seven offensive boards and 12 defensive. He added two assists, two steals and two blocks. Aleek Pauline (Jamaica, N.Y.) added seven points, five rebounds and five assists. Deloach contributed four assists.
The Spartans close their regular season on Thursday night in an 8 p.m. game at North Carolina A&T. A win will secure a first-round MEAC Tournament bye for NSU, but a loss would require NSU to sweat out tie-breaker scenarios after Thursday's other games to determine tourney seedings.
