Emmitsburg, Md. (December 27, 2019)--Mount St. Mary's made a season-high 14 three-pointers to break out of a shooting slump en route to a 79-55 win over Coppin State on Friday night at Knott Arena.  Jalen Gibbs poured in a season-high 27 points while Vado Morse chipped in a season-best 22 points to pace the Mountaineers in the win.

Gibbs and Morse combined to score 49 points in the game, giving the Mount a pair of 20-point scorers in the same game for the first time this season.  The duo went 11-of-21 (.524) from three-point range in tonight's win after going a combined 9-for-44 (.205) from three-point range over the previous four games.  Gibbs finished the contest with 27 points, six rebounds and three assists while Morse added 22 points, six rebounds and three assists for the Mountaineers.  Point guard Damian Chong Qui had a solid all-around game, tallying 10 points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals for the Mount while Malik Jefferson pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds.  Koby Thomas led Coppin State (4-10) with 17 points and six rebounds while Kamar McKnight added 16 points and seven boards in the loss.

After making just 12-of-58 (.207) from three-point range over the past three games, the Mountaineers (4-9) came out firing, going 4-for-5 from beyond the arc over the first four minutes to grab a 12-3 advantage.  Leading 19-11 midway through the opening half, Morse connected on back-to-back three-pointers while Gibbs added another triple to give the Mount its biggest lead of the half, 28-11.  Coppin State was able to get back into the game by closing the half on a 9-to-4 run to cut the Mount's advantage to 37-27 at the break.

A Thomas dunk with 11:32 left in the game pulled Coppin State within seven, 49-42, but Morse answered with a bucket in the paint and Nana Opoku hit a pair of free throws to push the lead back to double digits.  Leading 55-46, Morse and Gibbs drained consecutive three-pointers to push the advantage to 15.  The Mount led comfortably the rest of the way to improve to 3-2 at home this season.

Mount St. Mary's was 26-of-57 (.456) from the field in the game while going 14-of-30 (.467) from three-point range.  The 14 three-pointers made and the 46.7 three-point percentage are both season highs for the Mountaineers.  The Mount also held a 41-to-35 edge on the boards and a 22-0 advantage in points off turnovers in the game.  Coppin State shot 22-of-59 (.373) from the field and 6-of-26 (.231) from beyond the three-point arc.

The Mount opens Northeast Conference play on Thursday, January 2, against Wagner at 7:00 p.m. at Knott Arena.

NOTES:  The Mount's previous season-high for three-pointers made was 10 in the 75-67 overtime loss at Grand Canyon...Mount St. Mary's is 7-0 all-time against Coppin State...Gibbs averaged 25.0 points against MEAC opponents this season...He scored 23 against Howard before notching his season-high 27 points tonight against Coppin State.