Davidson pours it on against Coppin State in 88-52 victory

The Davidson Wildcats were brutally efficient in an 88-52 nonconference victory Tuesday against Coppin State.

In climbing back to the .500 mark, Davidson (5-5) shot 52.3 from the floor at Belk Arena and had an assist-turnover ratio of 26-5.

That made it nearly impossible for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference’s Eagles (5-5) to stay close with the Wildcats, who got double-figure scoring from four players, led by junior guard Carter Collins’ 19 points.

With ball-handling usually a team strength, Davidson uncharacteristically entered the game with more turnovers than assists, 105-102. But the Wildcats got their offense running smoothly early on against the Eagles, who only led once, by two points, early in the game.

“(Coach Bob McKillop) has been hammering that home, taking care of the ball,” said Collins. “It makes the offense much more effective because we’re not giving up transition baskets.”

Fifteen of Davidson’s assists came from the interior. Forward Brajkovic had nine assists, forwards Bates Jones and David Kristensen both had three.

“Coach emphasized that our bigs would be able to carve up their defense with their passing ability,” said Collins. “They made good looks, were patient and solid with the ball, and we knocked down shots.”

It was the Wildcats’ second consecutive victory after they had lost three of their last four. They’re still without senior guard KiShawn Pritchett (knee), who hasn’t played this season. And starting guard Luke Frampton is gone for the year on a personal leave of absence.

“This was representative of the kind of team we are — inside out, moving the ball, unselfish play,” McKillop said.

The Wildcats got a boost off the bench in the first half from freshman forward Hyunjung Lee, who scored 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting. The Wildcats led 43-22 at the break, making 56.3 percent of their shots (18 of 32).

The Tigers were a challenge for the Wildcats inside, due to the presence of 7-foot-1 center Brendan Medley-Bacon. Brajkovic (who’s 6-10) went right at Medley-Bacon, however, and scored six points in the first half on 3-of-6 shooting.

And one

Tuesday’s game was Davidson’s first at Belk Arena since Nov. 19, and the Wildcats don’t return home again until Jan. 11 when they play Saint Joseph’s in their third Atlantic 10 game of the season. The Wildcats’ next game is Dec. 22 at Loyola-Chicago, and they finish their nonconference schedule Dec. 30 at Vanderbilt.

ICYMI

Lee, a freshman from South Korea, continues to improve and had a double-double. He was 7-of-11 from the field for 17 points and brought down a team-high 10 rebounds.

On the road again

Coppin State is playing 13 of its first 15 games on the road, but that’s nothing new for the Eagles. They routinely play the majority of their nonconference schedule away from home, using “guarantee” money they receive from their opposition (including Davidson) to pay not only for the men’s basketball program, but their entire athletic department. Coppin finishes its nonconference schedule at Md.-Baltimore County, Miami, Mount St. Mary’s and Fordham.

Making sense of the numbers

46.4: Davidson’s 3-point percentage (13 of 28).

4: Davidson players in double figures, including Collins (Lee, 17; Kellan Grady, 14; Brajkovic, 13).

This story was originally published December 10, 2019 at 9:05 PM.