Norfolk State vs Coppin State 3/12/22 College Basketball Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Coppin State Eagles and the Norfolk State Spartans meet Saturday in MEAC Tournament college basketball action from Norfolk Scope. Coppin State is 9-22 this year. The Eagles pulled off a big win over North Carolina Central in tournament activity Friday. As for Norfolk State, they’re sitting at 23-6 overall and coming off a Friday tournament win over Morgan State. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.

Coppin State has had a difficult run so far, sitting at just 1-14 in mid-December and struggling to win games the rest of the way. The Eagles have been better on a 4-2 run lately, though. Coppin State has taken out Howard (twice), Delaware State and NC Central in that stretch. 

In the Friday tournament matchup versus North Carolina Central, the Eagles were tied 29-29 going into the second half. Coppin State hit a 50-44 run from there in a 79-73 upset win. Jesse Zarzuela led the team with 27 points, five rebounds and seven assists. 

Over on the Norfolk State side, they had an 0-3 stretch back in December but otherwise the Spartans haven’t lost consecutive games all year. Norfolk State is currently on a win streak over SC State, NC Central, Howard, Delaware State and Morgan State. 

On Friday in the tourney game versus Morgan State, the Spartans came into the second half with a 28-28 tie. Norfolk State hit a 44-35 run from there for the 72-63 win. Tops in scoring were Joe Bryant and Jalen Hawkins with 19 points apiece. 

PICK: I’m probably going to stick with Norfolk State. The Spartans have been doing well on offense lately, and they’ve hit 72 or more points in each of their last four outings. This matchup should be another good opportunity for scoring, and the Spartans do very well when they finish above the 70-point mark or so. 

As for Coppin State, they’ve been a plucky team over the last half-dozen games or so. The Eagles lost both matchups with Norfolk State 84-77 and 89-59, however. It’s probably going to be an uphill battle for Coppin State to keep the cover pace, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see them hang around for most of the game.