University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
Coppin State
Huskies Earn 72-59 Win Over Coppin State
12/9/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Final Stats | Quotes | Photo Gallery 1 
| Photo Gallery 2
STORRS, Conn. (AP) Jalen Adams scored 15 points and Terry Larrier added 14 as UConn held off winless Coppin State 72-59 on Saturday.
Christian Vital chipped in with 13 points for the Huskies (7-3), who head into a two-week break for final exams.
Lamar Morgan scored a career-high 30 points to lead Coppin State (0-10). Morgan, a junior college transfer, came into the game averaging just 5 points, but hit eight of his 12 shots, including seven from 3-point range. Morgan's previous season high was eight points.
But UConn dominated in the paint, outscoring Coppin State 26-16, outrebounding it 50-26, including 21-5 on the offensive glass, and getting 21 second-chance points to seven for the Eagles.
🎥 @CoachKO_UConn talks about the win over Coppin State and the contributions from the bench. pic.twitter.com/alxaC04TeF
- UConn Men's Hoops (@UConnMBB) December 9, 2017
UConn led 36-31 at halftime. The Huskies turned up their pressing defense and stretched that to 40-31 early in the second half and held off the Eagles the rest of the way.
Keandre Fair opened the game with a 3-pointer and Coppin State scored the game's first eight points.
UConn didn't take its first lead until midway through the first half, 16-14 on a leaner in the lane by David Onuorah.
Consecutive baskets by Isaiah Whaley sparked the Huskies to a 12-0 run that broke a 20-20 tie.
Led by Morgan, Coppin State scored 11 of the final 15 points of the first half
THE BIG PICTURE
UConn: The game was played in the first snowstorm of the season, making it hard for fans to make the trek to campus. As a result, the school decided to give free admission to students.
Coppin State: Coppin State's buses did not arrive at Gampel until after 1 p.m. because of the snowstorm hitting the Northeast. The game was a homecoming for Coppin State's Fair and Jordan Hardwick. The 6-foot-7 Hardwick is from Wethersfield and played at Springfield Commonwealth Academy. Fair was a star at Hartford's Weaver High School.
UP NEXT
Coppin State : The Eagles head back to Baltimore to play at UMBC on Tuesday.
UConn: The Huskies have a 12-day break for exams before hitting the road for games on Dec. 21 at Arizona and Dec. 23 at Auburn.
