The University of Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks men’s basketball team continued their strong start in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) with a 74-70 victory over Norfolk State on Monday night. This win moves the Hawks to a 3-0 record in conference play and improves their overall season record to 7-13.
The game was closely contested, featuring 11 lead changes and 13 ties. The Hawks opened with an early lead but faced multiple runs from the Spartans throughout both halves. Zion Obanla led all scorers with 20 points, including 18 in the second half, and also collected eight rebounds. Jaden Cooper contributed 19 points and was perfect from the free throw line, making all ten attempts. Michael Teal added 14 points and five assists, while Dorion Staples finished with ten points and six rebounds.
Maryland Eastern Shore struggled at times offensively but managed key plays late in the game. With under two minutes remaining, crucial baskets by Teal and Staples helped secure the lead for UMES. Cooper made several important free throws down the stretch to seal the win.
Head coach Cleo Hill, Jr., commented on his team’s performance: “This is absolutely a huge win for us. We knew Norfolk State would come in and be ready to play a hard fought game. They are well coached and have been a top tier team in the MEAC for a long time now under Coach Rob Jones. We just wanted to come in and play as hard as we could possibly play. Tonight was really about executing and playing together.”
Hill also highlighted individual efforts: “We challenged all of our post players during halftime. We did not think we were playing up to our potential. Zion (Obanla) came out and was at the forefront of answering that challenge. He provided great scoring but was also big from an energy standpoint on the defensive end. He really helped change the game for us.”
“Michael Teal has done a great job all year of providing energy and leadership. He has developed himself into a true point guard and takes pride in studying film and scouting reports. I thought Michael made the right plays when we needed it and had maybe the biggest basket of the game late to help us come out on top.”
“Jaden (Cooper) was tremendous tonight on both ends of the floor. He was great from the line tonight and helped seal the victory. He has been a leader for us all year long and is a high IQ player.”
“I thought we had big plays from multiple guys tonight. Justin’s (Monden) tip off a missed free throw late to get an extra possession for us was crucial. Dorion Staples was effective on both ends of the floor and knocked down big free throws when we needed them. Overall, it takes a team effort to beat Norfolk State and we did that tonight.”
“This start to conference play is in alignment with the vision that the University leadership had for this program when they hired me. Our goal was to breath some new life into this program. I think the coaching staff has done a tremendous job up to this point of bringing in the right type of players and we have started to make huge strides in trying to restore the pride while honoring the rich history of UMES basketball.”
With this result, Maryland Eastern Shore snapped a six-game losing streak against Norfolk State—a team they had lost nine out of their last ten matchups against prior to Monday’s contest.
The Hawks’ current run marks their best start since becoming an exclusive NCAA Division I institution in 1981; previously, they had not begun MEAC play at 2-0 since 1996.
Next up for Maryland Eastern Shore is another MEAC matchup at home against Coppin State on Saturday.
