Larry Tucker

DOVER, Del. - Everywhere the Coppin State basketball team has traveled on its current 10-game odyssey, it has rained. Yesterday, the skies were clear at Delaware State, but it poured. For the first time since Feb. 5, 1992, the Hornets defeated Coppin, building a 15-point first-half advantage and proceeding to a 57-46 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference victory before 1,564. The result was symbolic of the troubles besetting the Eagles, who are missing their senior leadership, with point guard Rasheem Sims out for at least another month because of a broken foot, and lacking bench strength after the dismissal from the team of Donnell Thomas and LeMar Ruffin for violating team rules.

The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference's giant-killer came to the Coppin Center last night and showed why it has become the league's eminent team. With guard Tommy Adams pouring in a career-high 32 points, Hampton never trailed Coppin and concluded its two-game Baltimore swing with an 81-69 victory over the Eagles before a crowd of 717. Hampton (6-1, 2-0 MEAC) surprised Iowa State in the first round of the NCAA tournament as the league champion last March and opened this season by beating North Carolina in Chapel Hill, N.C., 77-69.

In a game that matched two of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference's premier guards, a pair of lesser-known players emerged to spark Norfolk State to a 63-59 win over Coppin State at the Coppin Center yesterday. Freshman guard Chakowby Hicks scored on an offensive rebound with 55 seconds left to give the Spartans the lead for good, and Norfolk held on for the win as reserve forward Jamal Mills blocked a potential game-tying shot by Coppin's Larry Tucker (Dunbar) with seven seconds left.

Talk about ending winning streaks. A surprising Howard University team came to the Coppin Center on a three-game high last night and went back to Washington wondering what hit it. Coppin rationed the Bison to 9 percent first-half shooting and warmed up for Friday night's game against crosstown rival Morgan State by frolicking to a 78-54 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference victory before 689 amused spectators. If there was any remaining doubt about the outcome after the Eagles blew away to a 44-15 halftime lead, they poured in the first 11 points of the second half and clinched their 25th triumph in 29 lifetime meetings with Howard (10-16, 8-9)

Coppin State comes out sluggish, and Morgan State takes an early lead. But Coppin takes the lead when it counts. That's the way it has been for 10 of the past 12 men's basketball games between Baltimore's two historically black colleges, so it shouldn't have been much of a surprise when the Eagles won again last night, 81-70, in the Harbor City Classic at Baltimore Arena. Coppin point guard Rasheem Sims provided the scoring last night, with 20 of his game-high 24 points coming in the second half.

In Phillip Pendergrass' perfect world, he wouldn't be sitting in an office at Hill Field House, speculating on the prospects of another "we'll see" season for the Morgan State football team. The defensive tackle, who stands 6 feet 4 and weighs 280 pounds, would have played the full 1999 season and graduated in May, and would have spent the summer most anywhere but his hometown of Wilmington, Del. "I'm more of an independent person here," said Pendergrass, in that office at Hill Field House, predicting great things for a Morgan State football program hoping for its first winning season in more than two decades.

When Douglass forward Joe Ison went down with a concussion in the season-opener, it set the tone for an up-and-down regular season for the Ducks.Their latest bright spot couldn't have come at a better time.The Ducks pulled off a stunning upset, knocking off No. 1 Dunbar, 78-74, to win the city championship last night at Poly.Senior guard Chuckie Harris scored a game-high 34 points to lead Douglass (14-9), and Ison, a 6-foot-4 senior, finished with 14. Jamal Brown led Dunbar (20-3) with 19 points and senior Arnold Bowie contributed 17."

In the preseason, Dunbar coach Lynn Badham wasn't quite sure his Poets deserved the area's No. 1 ranking, and Saturday's shaky season-opening victory over Anacostia of Washington did little to soothe his nerves."

Public schoolsCarver Bears1996-97 record: 4-16Coach: Durce JacksonTop players: Miguel Wilson, 5-11, Jr., G Tavon McCoy, 5-10, Soph., G; Dwayne Banks, 5-10, Jr., G; Mike Napper, 6-4, Jr., C; Chris Johnson, 6-2, Jr., FOutlook: The Bears have one of the city's best guards in Wilson, the team's leading scorer last season. Jackson says his team will be guard-oriented because it lacks height. With only three seniors, Carver will be inexperienced but will play tough defense. The Bears should exceed last season's win total but will be hard-pressed to play around .500.

All-Metro Player of the Year Mark Karcher was held scoreless, while Mount St. Joseph senior guard Cory McNeill scored seemingly at will. The Gaels' game plan was working against No. 3 St. Frances.But that was just the first period. By game's end, Karcher had 28 points -- 18 in the second half -- four steals and six assists. His teammate Shawn Hampton had 26 points, including 8-for-9 shooting from the line, to go with eight each in rebounds and blocked shots.And the No. 6 Gaels?They wound up on the losing end of an 82-54 rout that dropped them to 13-4 overall and 1-2 in the Catholic League.