How Angel Jones and Coppin State beat Arizona State in an overtime instant classic

Various tattoos of bible verses on her right arm and an inked tribute to her dad, who passed when Jones was 6 years old, keep her focused. Though the memories are vague, moments that stand out with her father include his little pet dog and trips to the corner store to buy bags of chips. Quality time with her family keeps her grounded.

These reminders fuel the Coppin State 5’4 junior guard’s determination to play with purpose and intensity every time she steps onto the court.

“Family over everything for sure,” Jones told The Next following the Eagles’ 74-68 overtime win over Arizona State on Dec. 5. “I love God and am very appreciative for him. Jesus Christ is king. He’s brought me here this far and will keep pushing me forward. I have to keep trusting Him and his plan, and everything will fall in line.”

Things have been going Jones’ way during the early part of the 2024-25 season.

With boundless energy, the dynamo has been electrifying the court this season, making opponents work hard to keep up. She’s having fun, which shows in her slight smiles while playing defense or making another basket.

Even after playing 41 minutes and helping Coppin State women’s basketball beat a Power Four opponent at home for the first time for one of its most significant victories in program history, Jones wasn’t finished. Her team-leading 23-point and five-rebound effort against Arizona State would have been enough to tire anybody.

Yet, Jones playfully chased her nephew around Coppin State’s spacious Physical Education Complex concourse after helping the Eagles beat a Power Four opponent for the second consecutive season. The Eagles won at Pittsburgh last season.

Jones notched her fourth 20-plus-point game of the season — her third in the last four games and second in a row — as Coppin State won its fourth game in five tries to raise its record to 6-4 overall.

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While Jones may not resemble a skyscraper, she has loomed large over opponents this season, much like Baltimore’s iconic white smokestack emblazoned with the city’s name — a well-known landscape part of the Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE) Company’s former power plant building that’s featured in Coppin State’s starting lineup hype video.

A simple formula of confidence and hard work has enabled Jones to raise her game to another level. It’s made a massive difference for Coppin State. Now in her second year with the program, the Siena transfer spent this past summer in the gym, enhancing her game because she already knew more would be expected of her this season.

“I was working on my floater game,” Jones told The Next following the Eagles’ win over Arizona State. “Also, I’ve been dribbling and coming off of ball screens, rejecting ball screens, getting my shot off, which is 3s or whatever. I haven’t really shot too many 3s this year, but you know it’s coming. I feel like it’s all around: 3s, layups, dribbling, stuff like that.”

Jones always knew she belonged and would achieve her goal of playing an impactful role for a Division I program. It was her only focus when she started playing the sport. She earned MEAC Player of the Week recognition last week after scoring a career-high 25 points in a road victory over North Florida.

“I grew up hooping, and then I knew this is where I wanted to be,” Jones said. “It wasn’t easy, especially after my first year. It got a bit better my second year, and now I feel like I’m taking everything in and cherishing everything.”

With the development of Jones to go along with 6’2 senior forward Laila Lawrence, Coppin State has a formidable duo. They have combined to average 34.8 points per game, 54.7 percent of Coppin State’s point total. Lawrence leads the MEAC in scoring (18.4 points per game), and Jones is fourth (16.4), making Coppin State the only program as of Dec. 6 with two players among the top five in conference scoring.

It’s made life easy for third-year Coppin State head coach Jermaine Woods.

“Now, we don’t have to just play inside with Laila,” Woods said. “We got somebody that could create a shot and get a shot any time she wants. She could do that last year but wasn’t confident because she was a sophomore, so she had to grow into herself a little bit. And she’s done that this year. … We can go inside. We can go outside. We clear the side out and let them play in ball screen work, and I let them make their own decisions. So, I think I’ve done a good job of just backing off and letting them play and figure it out. And they respect that, and they like that.”

According to CBB Analytics, 34.3% of Lawrence’s shot attempts have been at the rim, and she has made 59.6%. Lawrence showcased her versatility against the Sun Devils by making two 3-pointers, a couple of mid-range baskets and unleashing a sweet spin move along the baseline for a basket.

Meanwhile, Jones has attempted 36.8% of her shots from the mid-range area while making 41% of them. Even though Jones has attempted 16.9% of her shots at the rim this season, she has shot 60.9% on them. Jones’s play isn’t technically a surprise, especially considering she earned Second Team All-MEAC recognition after averaging 10.5 points per game last season.

“(Angel) is steady,” Arizona State head coach Natasha Adair told reporters about the Coppin State pair in the postgame press conference. “You know she’s a three-level scorer, but she understands how to run her team. She knows when to take the shot and knows when to distribute it. You can tell that chemistry has formed. And Lawrence, she’s a perimeter post. She can face up, she can guard. She uses her strength. She knows how to use her body. She can shoot the 3. She’s just that three-level scorer. So, we knew we had an assignment on her.”

Jones’ usage rate has positively increased from 17.3% her first year at Siena to 28.8% this season, according to Her Hoop Stats. More impressive for Jones, who has scored 68.6% percent of her points on two-pointers, is her 21% assist rate and career-low 14.9% turnover rate. With an effective field goal percentage of 49.3%, Lawrence, on the other hand, is benefitting because 59.5% of her points have been 2-pointers, and 21.4% of her points have come on 3-pointers according to Her Hoops Stats.

Even though they are the engines powering the Coppin State machine and combined for 43 points, the Eagles had several players enjoy shining moments in the win over Arizona State. The Eagles had four players finish in double figures, with 5’6 redshirt senior guard Tyler Gray and 5’9 redshirt senior guard Tiffany Hammond finishing with 12 points each.

While they didn’t score, Cire Worley, Niyah Gaston, Khya Jenkins and Mickelle Lowry combined for 31 impactful minutes, allowing Woods to offer rest to his frontline performers during strategic game moments.

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Hammond had a pair of huge 3-pointers in the fourth quarter. Gray made the game’s biggest defensive play when she intercepted a pass in overtime with Coppin State clinging to a two-point lead.

Yet, the biggest contribution was made by 6’3 senior forward and Coastal Carolina transfer Arielle-Vadrelle Belinga, who scored five of her seven points in overtime. Her basket off a Jones assist with 44 seconds remaining gave the Eagles the lead for good, 70-68.

It was Belinga’s second start of the season and first since the opening game against Frostburg State. She played a season-high 35 minutes, surpassing the 27 she played at South Carolina. Most of the time, the matchups have dictated her playing time. South Carolina and Arizona State have a lot of height, and Belinga’s size was an asset in those games.

Woods wasn’t shocked by Belinga’s overtime scoring spree.

“She can shoot, and she’s good,” Woods said of Belinga. “She hasn’t played in three years, so her timing was off. Today, she was good. What you saw from her today is something we see from her every single day, and we challenged her to be just that person and go and play free. Just don’t be late for help or to the rebound. She freed Laila up a lot today. In practice, she’s sometimes our best shooter. She’ll be heard from down the stretch. Sometimes, she doesn’t play because we’re playing four-guard teams. Against a team like Arizona State, she was perfect.”

During his postgame press conference, Woods referred to Belinga as “Big Dawg,” sparking laughter from the packed room. He then pointed to Lawrence, seated to his right, and added with a grin, “This is Big Smooth,” prompting even more delighted chuckles from the crowd.

With Jones excelling in her role and Belinga’s continued emergence, Lawrence will continue to be a headache for opponents because she has more real estate in which to operate. Teams can’t make double-teaming her an effective strategy because she can pass, and her teammates are more than capable contributors who can make open shots and attack the basket.

In addition to scoring 20 points in 43 grueling minutes against the Sun Devils, Lawrence finished with nine rebounds, five assists, four steals and one blocked shot. She entered the Arizona State game with six double-doubles this season, ranking second to LSU’s Aneesah Morrow.

Jones is having a blast playing with Lawrence.

“It’s fun,” Jones said. “She’s a great player. If I’m tired, I give her the ball and watch her play. It’s beautiful because she can score, hit and do everything. It’s just a plus for her being on our team. And I feel like she has a high basketball IQ, and we play great together. It’s a blessing for sure.”