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Dec. 1, 2023: Towson Tigers (5-0) @ Oregon State Beavers (3-2)

Baltimore Sun

TOWSON IN THRILLER

Coming off a rousing upset win earlier this week, Towson’s basketball team travelled to Corvallis, Oregon to take on the Oregon State Beavers.  Gill Coliseum wasn’t welcoming with a hostile crowd trying to rattle the Tigers throughout what turned out to be a close game the entire way.  There were 25 lead changes, 11 ties, and at no point could either team get more than an 8 point lead. 

Even though the lead shifted repeatedly throughout the first half, the Beavers generally were in control and took a 38-33 lead to the locker room.  Beyond the crowd, the Tigers had to contend with the officials who sent the Beavers to the line 10 times while the Tigers had but 2 foul shots.

Towson quickly tied the game in the 2nd half and the two teams continued to exchange the lead.  Towson had a 12-2 run that gave them an 8 point lead with 9 minutes to go.  But the Beavers immediately recovered and recaptured the lead 3 minutes later.  As the game wound down, Oregon State held a 3 point lead with 45 seconds remaining.  The Tigers ran a play that opened Wayne Burrough who sunk a 3 from the right corner to tie the game.  Following a time out, the Beavers put up a shot with 7 seconds left that was blocked by Kevin Holmes.  The ball went into the hands of Dominick Collins who quickly passed the ball upcourt to a streaking Shaun White.  With one defender who got back down court quickly to position near the basket and another defender right on him, instead of driving to the basket, White pulled up near the foul line and put up a jumper that settled cleanly through the silks to give Towson an 83-81 road win.

Coach Aura said, “I was concerned our heads were still in the clouds after our win over Notre Dame.  We simply couldn’t shake the Beavers.  With Oregon State in control of the ball, Holmes’ block was huge!  And then Collins’ outlet pass was perfect, and White had the presence of mind to realize that driving for a layup would have been difficult to pull off, and instead pulled up to be able to get off a clear jump shot.”

White led the scoring for the Tigers with 17 points.  C Donny Flint knocked down 13 points and had 9 rebounds, and SF Wayne Burrough and PG Matt Faust each scored 10 for the Tigers.  Oregon State was led by SG Greg Waterman who pumped in 28 points and hauled down 13 rebounds.

The national polls came out and Towson with it’s 6-0 record and win over a highly ranked team still hasn’t cracked into the Top 25.  The new RPI ratings have the Tigers ranked as #7.  This coming week Towson has 2 away games that will test that rating.  The first game is against St. Mary’s (ranked #18 in the national polls) and the second will be against Arizona State.

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Dec. 5, 2023: Towson Tigers (6-0) @ #18-ranked Saint Mary’s Gaels (5-0)

3rd Assistant Coach Nate Culuko

The past 4 seasons Saint Mary’s has 2 first place and 2 second place finishes in the West Coast Conference and has averaged 25 wins per season.  They’ve been to the NCAA Tournament each year getting to the Elite 8 once and the Sweet 16 another time.  They ended last season ranked 13 in the polls.

The Gaels got past #3-ranked Kansas by an 82-79 score last week.  Thus far this season PF Scott Yarbrough is averaging 20. 6ppg and 8.2 rpg and SG Tim Brown has scored 17.2 ppg and has 5.0 apg.  And although he’s just averaging 9.0 ppg but also 8.2 rpg thus far, their best player may well be freshman phenom Bernard Burditt who is starting at SF.  Saint Mary’s runs a fast-paced flex offense and has a stingy man-to-man defense.  The Gaels are averaging 86 ppg and only have given up 55 ppg this season.  McKeon Pavilion’s capacity is only 3500 but every seat will be filled with a rabid Saint Mary’s fan intent on helping carry the Gaels to victory.

Saint Mary’s defense gave us hell in the first half.  It wasn’t that we didn’t socre, but they forced us to make repeated turnovers.  The Gaels went ahead by 14 and finished the half on top 48-39. 

In the second half we aggressively attacked the boards and shot well.  Turnovers continued to be a problem but we eroded their lead and made a game of it.  The lead see-sawed back and forth through the middle stages of the half, but the Gaels had the poise to come on at the end of the game and put us away 89-85.  We finished with an ungodly 27 turnovers compared to just 12 by the Gaels.  Saint Mary’s stole the ball 20 times.  But we dominated the boards 41-29.

C Donny White played an outstandingly, scoring 25 and hauling in 12 rebounds.  SG Dominick Collins hit for 13 and PF Kevin Holmes added 11.  PG Shaun White dished out 9 assists but also had 9 turnovers and PG Matt Faust had 6 turnovers although he scored 9 points.  SF Ross Davis scored 8 points and pulled down 4 boards in just 6 minutes of play.  For Saint Mary’s PF Scott Yarbrough scored 23 and blocked 6 shots while SG Tim Brown knocked down 16 points and had 6 steals.

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Dec. 8, 2023: Towson Tigers (6-1) @ Arizona State Sun Devils (4-2)

Jon Spann, freshman PG

This is the last of 5 straight road games for us.  This is the most I’ve ever traveled in my life.  I’ve found it difficult to sleep well in any of the hotels at which we’ve stayed.  SG Copley Dwiggins has come down with back spasms, and I’m guessing it’s due to having to endure the different beds most every night.

I’ve hit 52% of my shots (including 40% of my 3’s) and am scoring 8.9 ppg while playing 15.0 mpg at PG and SG.  I wanna play more and hope that I get a chance to start soon.  I think I’ve earned it.

We were ahead 10-6 when I got into the game with 15-1/2 minutes left in the half.  We were up 21-12 when I went back to the bench 5 minutes later with 2 points and 2 rebounds.  I got back into the game with 7 minutes left in the half at which point we held a 30-19 lead.  The refs called the 2nd foul on me 4 minutes later and that sent me to the bench again.  We finished the half with a 41-34 lead.  C Donyell Porter scored 13 points and SF Wayne Burrough had 10 points. 

Dominick Collins picked up his 3rd foul and I got back in with less than a minute gone in the 2nd half.  I did a good job of grabbing rebounds but wasn’t able to get off a shot.  When I was charged with my 3rd foul, I was subbed out after playing 5 minutes.  We were ahead 55-42.  The refs continued to call us for picky fouls while letting the Sun Devils get away with murder, but we continued to shoot well to maintain a solid lead.  I got back into the game with just over 8 minutes left and our lead at 71-53.  I just got 4 minutes on the court but we led 88-67.  We won the game 95-81 by hitting 56% of our shots (including 46% of our 3’s).  After making so many turnovers in our previous game, we had just 9 tonight while forcing Arizona State to turn the ball over 18 times.

Leading our scoring was C Donyell Porter with 21 points.  SF Wayne Burrough scored 20 while pulling down 9 boards, PG Shaun White dropped in 19 points, and C Donny Flint hit for 15 points and had 8 rebounds.  I played 21 minutes…only hit 1 of 4 shots though and finished with 3 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists…not a good scoring game for me but I played well otherwise.  Arizona States SF Kareem Patterson had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

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Dec. 12, 2023: Georgia Bulldogs (5-2, 1-0) @ Towson Tigers (7-1)

Tiger Blog

4 Bulldogs came into the game averaging in double figures.

Offenses sizzled early for both teams.  But led by Dominick White’s 11 points, Towson took 25-17 lead with 11:17 to go in half.  Tigers hit 67% of their shots in first half and held a 12-6 turnover advantage to take a commanding 52-31 lead at the break.  SG Dominick White poured in 22 points.

Towson went up by 30 with 12 minutes remaining.  The Tigers then coasted to a 90-58 thumping of the Bulldogs with Coach Aura playing the entire bench.  Towson hit 54% of their FG’s, 42% of their 3’s, held a 35-30 rebounding advantage and an 18-7 turnover advantage.

SG Dominick Collins finished with 24 points as well as 3 assists, 2 steals, and 4 blocks.  C Donny Flint scored 14 and C Doryell Porter added 10.

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Dec. 19, 2023: Towson Tigers (8-1) @ #18-ranked North Carolina State Wolfpack (10-1) 

1st Assistant Coach Kenyon Haynes 

The Wolfpack beat #25-ranked Gonzaga but lost to #9-ranked Villanova.  PNC Arena floor sucks…the wolf design is ugly. 

Great effort by our guys in the first half.  Lots of hustle kept us a step ahead of the Wolfpack.  We hit 54% of our shots even though we were 0 for 6 from beyond the arc.  We held NC State’s shooting to 41%, outrebounded them 19-15 and held an 8-6 turnover advantage.  We turned those turnovers into 10 fast break points and held a 20-2 advantage in points in the paint.  C Donny Flint hit for 10 points plus grabbed 5 boards but picked up 3 fouls.  SG/PG Jon Spann also scored 10 points.  North Carolina State’s SG’s (Jeff Watson and Derrick Anderson combined to score 21 of the Wolfpack’s 32 points. 

Both teams played sloppy basketball after coming on the court in the 2nd half.  7 turnovers by the two teams in 2-1/2 minutes.  It took us 3-1/2 minutes to score, but we got our offense back in gear at that point.  With 10 minutes to go we led 62-42.  We continued our strong offensive play to win convincingly 89-75.  We hit all 6 3-point shots we took in the 2nd half and ended up hitting 59% of our FG attempts.  We were +4 in rebounds and +4 in turnovers as well.  This was our 2nd win against the 3 teams we played that are in the Top 25 in the polls and all 3 of those games were away games for us.  The win improved our RPI to 4th best in the nation, but we still are unranked. 

C Donny Flint dropped in 18 points and grabbed 7 rebounds.  SG/PG Jon Spann popped in 16 points.  SG Dominick Collins scored 12, SF Mac McCaffery tossed in 11 points, and PF Kevin Holmes added 10 points. All 12 of our players who got into the games scored. 

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Dec. 26, 2023: Rutgers Scarlett Knights (5-4) @ Towson Tigers (9-1) 

Kevin Holmes, PF 

We jumped out to a 19-2 lead in the first 6 minutes of play.  With 10 minutes to go in the half, we were on top 26-3.  Our offense continued to perk and we finished the half with a huge 49-21 gap over the Scarlett Knights.  We dropped in 62% of our shots while holding Rutgers shooting to 27%.  We dominated the boards 23-12 and held a 9-4 turnover advantage.  C Donny Flint had 15 points and 5 rebounds in the half and SG Dominick Collins added 10 points. 

It took nearly 3 minutes in the 2nd half before Rutgers scored and nearly 4 minutes before we hit our first basket.  We then held onto our big lead until the final 10 minutes when repeated trips to the foul line for Rutgers and lots of playing time for our subs narrowed the difference a little.  But there never was any real challenge and we came away with a 75-57 victory.   

Our top scorer was C Donny Flint with 17 points with SG Dominick Collins and C/PF Donyell Porter each scoring 12.  

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Tiger Blog

Pre-conference play ended this past week and CAA play begins this week.  Towson with its 10-1 records stood out amongst CAA teams.

Pre-Conf Team Records:

Towson:  10-1

Drexel:  7-4

Hofstra:  6-5

NC-Wilmington:  6-5

James Madison:  6-6

Charleston:  6-7

Elon:  5-6

William & Mary:  4-7

Northeastern:  4-7

Delaware:  4-7

The Tigers, not surprisingly, are predicted by those in the media covering CAA teams to win the conference title.  Following them in media prognostications are Elon, Charleston, James Madison, and Drexel.

Towson kicks off CAA play this week with an away game at Hofstra followed by a home game against James Madison.

Towson holds the 3rd best RPI rating in all of Division I basketball. After notching wins over 4 ACC teams, 1 SEC team, 2 Pac-12 teams, 1 Big East team, 1 Big 10 team, and 1 Mountain West team and their only loss being to the team that appears to be best in the West Coast Conference, it’s vexing that the Tigers are not yet ranked in the polls.  Coach Aura dismissed those concerns by saying, “I’m not really concerned about how we’re ranked.  Cracking into the polls as a CAA team is extremely difficult. I’m pleased with how our team has played thus far.  But now our focus is on doing as well as we can in the CAA and getting back to the NCAA Tournament.  After winning the conference title the past 2 seasons, we know that we have a target painted on our back and all the other CAA teams will be gunning for us.”  Coach Aura was non-committal when asked which CAA team he feels will be the Tigers primary competitor.

Towson is averaging 82.3 ppg (9th best in the nation) and giving up 69.5 ppg (124th best in the nation) with 20.5 apg (9th best in the nation) and 33.8 rpg (86th best in the nation).  The team is hitting 49.6% of their FGA’s (13th best in the nation) and 39.4% of their 3PA’s (30th best in the nation)

Two Towson players (C Donny Flint and SG Dominick Collins) have won CAA Player of the Week honors in the first 7 weeks of play.

After Towson’s first 11 games, here are player stats leaders:

PPG: C Donny Flint, 14.6 ppg; SG Dominick Collins, 12.2 ppg; C/PF Donyell Porter, 9.2 ppg; PG Shaun White, 8.9 ppg; PG/SG Jon Spann, 8.5 ppg; SF Wayne Burrough, 7.4 ppg; PF Kevin Holmes, 7.2 ppg.

RPG: C Donny Flint, 9.0 rpg; SF Wayne Burrough, 6.3 rpg; PF Kevin Holmes, 3.4 rpg, C/PF Donyell Porter, 3.1 rpg; SF Mac McCaffery, 2.5 rpg.

APG: PG Shaun White, 4.6 apg; PG Matt Faust, 2.9 apg; PG/SG Jon Spann, 2.4 apg; SG Dominick Collins, 2.1 apg; PF Kevin Holmes, 1.6 apg.

SPG: PF Kevin Holmes, 1.2 spg, C Donny Flint, 1.1 spg, SG Wayne Burrough, 1.1 apg.

BPG: C Donny Flint, 1.4 bpg; SG Dominick Collins, 1.4 bpg; PF Kevin Holmes, 1.3 bpg.

Coach Aura commented, “Our offense has been strong and improving.  While we had problems scoring from beyond the 3-point arc early in the season, we’ve steadily improved that part of our game.  And our overall shooting has also improved since we’re working the ball around well to find the open man.  Our defense has been inconsistent.  At times it’s  rock solid and then at other times we seem to have a lot of holes and go to sleep out there.  That’s an area I really want to work on as we move through CAA play.”

Edited by PointGuard

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Jan. 2, 2024: Towson Tigers (10-1, 0-0) @ Hofstra Pride (6-5, 0-0)

Lee Risinger, Head Coach of Hofstra Pride

While I would have preferred to have an easier opening game on this season’s conference schedule, I’m glad we’re hosting Towson rather than having to play on their court.  Winning this game will be a real challenge, but one I think my guys can accomplish.  First we’re 3-1 at home and only loss was by a single point to a good Bradley team (a game we gave away right at the end).  I’m hoping that we’ll have all 5,000+ seats filled with our fans at the David S. Mack Sports Complex.  Second, we have a talented team, anchored by a very experienced starting five (all seniors and juniors).  Third, we have a great inside-outside threat with C Colin Leith averaging 15.2 ppg and 7.0 rpg and guards Marco Smith (13.2 ppg and 3.8 apg) and Norman Cherry (11.2 ppg, 5.0 rpg and 4.1 apg).  Fourth, we’re a high scoring team (78.5 ppg which is 34th best in the country) with players who shoot extremely well (50.9% shooting which is 5th best in the country).  That’s not to say Towson isn’t impressive. They’ve scored well also.  One key will be to get the Tigers’ C Donny Flint into early foul trouble…a problem he’s frequently had this season and I believe Colin Leith will force Flint to foul.  That way we can then work on controlling whoever else gets hot.  Towson’s defense has been extremely effective…so we need to solve that and break it…which we’ve been working hard on in practice.  And finally, our guys feel Towson has gotten too big for its britches…and we really want to take them down a peg.

Good start…we kept Towson from scoring for the first 2-1/2 minutes.  Damn!  We let the Tigers go on an 8-0 run after that, though.  Their interior guys are killing us.  We got back into the game and tied it up at 10-10 with 13 minutes left in the half.  Our defense is now making it difficult for them to score.  We finally got the lead back at 17-16 when we hit a 3 with 7:20 remaining.  Alright!  Great defense holds Towson’s shooting to just 37% in the first half plus made them make 11 turnovers.  We pretty much shut down everyone other than Donny Flint who scored 11 and grabbed 7 boards.  Unfortunately he only got called for one foul.  Our bench outscored theirs 18-8.  Not much for me to change at the half other than fine-tune our offensive sets some so we can pull away from Towson in the 2nd half.

We get SG Dominick Collins and Donny Flint to both pick up their 3rd foul early in the 2nd half and pull ahead by 5 after 2-1/2 minutes of play.  We go up by 21 with 9-1/2 minutes left…our offense is kicking ass.  Flint and Collins both picked up their 4th foul and PG/SG Jon Spann fouled out for Towson.  The Tigers went on an 18-4 run in the final 6 minutes, but hitting just 4 of 19 from beyond the arc kept them from catching up, and we beat them 76-69.  Great effort by our players!  We outshot Towson 53% to 44% on FG’s and got to the line 11 more times where we scored 7 more points than the Tigers which turned out to be how much we won by. 

C Colin Leith and PF Matt Johnson both scored 16 points for us.  Both really came on in the 2nd half.

For Towson, C Donny Flint scored 18 and pulled down 11 boards plus has 3 steals and 4 blocks…the guy’s a beast!  PF Kevin Holmes added 11 points.

Nobody gave us much of a chance in the CAA this season, but this game showed we can beat any CAA team.  We intend to continue doing just that.

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Jan. 5, 2024: James Madison Dukes (6-7, 0-1) @ Towson Tigers (10-2, 0-1)

Wayne Burrough, SF

Coach Fed got on us pretty good after dropping that game to Hofstra.  Not only did we lose but SG Shaun White got knocked down and fell on his hip.  He’s pretty sore and sat out of our practices, but says he will be able to play tonight, but Jon Spann will make his first start at PG.

Although I’ve done pretty well on the boards this season, my offense has been weak.  I’ve only really scored well in one game when I scored 20 against Arizona State.  I just don’t seem to be getting clear much this year.  The coaches have been working with me on my movement without the ball and plays that free me up.  I’m feeling like I’m letting the team down, so I’ve gotta get out of my funk and begin to produce.

PG Nick Calhoun has really be doing well for James Madison.  He’s averaging 16.9 ppg and hitting 52% of his FG attempts and 42% of his 3P attempts.  Freshman C Adam Ash is averaging 12.2 ppg and hitting 55% of his shots.  We better win tonight or Coach Fed will make practices pure hell.

We hit 9 of our first 11 shots and spurted ahead 20-9 with 13:45 to go in the half.  Jon Spann was on fire, scoring 9 points in his first 6 minutes of play. While our offense continued to put points on the board, our defense gave up too many easy baskets to the Dukes who narrowed our lead from 15 points to 50-41 at the break.  Coach Fed got on us in the locker room about our slack defense.  Both teams hit over 50% of their shots in the first half.  But we had a 20-15 advantage on the boards and made just 4 turnovers compared to 7 by James Madison.  C Donny Flint and I each scored 10 points.  C Adam Ash put 16 points on the board for the Dukes.

We got a double digit lead and held onto it throughout the 2nd half.  We whipped the Dukes 94-79.  We dominated the boards 43-28.

Leading our scoring was C Donny Flint with 18 points.  I scored 17 and had 8 rebounds so the coaching staff gave me pats on the back.  PG/SG Jon Spann hit for 14 points.  PF Kevin Holmes had one of his best games…a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.  SG Dominick Collins added 10 points.  All 12 of our players who got into the game scored.  James Madison’s C Adam Ash finished with 25 points.

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Jan. 9, 2024: Elon Phoenix (7-6, 2-0) @ Towson Tigers (11-2, 1-1)

Gloria Spann, mother of freshman PG/SG Jon Spann

Elon’s freshman SF Charles Barnes has been one of the brightest new stars in the CAA.  He’s averaging 10.8 ppg and has scored in double figures in 8 of the Phoenix’ 13 games.  He’s been the CAA Freshman Player of the Week 4 times already.  If my son, Jon, were starting and getting as much playing time, people would understand that he really is the best freshman in the CAA.  It’s nearly a 4 hour drive from Buckingham, VA where we live to Towson, so my husband and I can’t get to all of Jon’s home games.

The Tigers shooting sucked early in the game and 3 of their players (C Donny Flint, SF Wayne Burrough, and C Donyell Porter) picked up 2 quick fouls.  In contrast the Phoenix shot well and lept ahead 20-10 after 9 minutes of play.  But Towson rallied and came back in the last 5 minutes of the half to take a 36-34 lead when the buzzer sounded.  Jon scored just 2 points but played well.  SF Wayne Burrough was the Tigers top scorer with 8 points.  Charles Barnes was better than I thought, scoring 15 points for the Phoenix.

Towson held onto a small lead the entire 2nd half but never was able to pull away and create a comfortable lead.  But the Tigers did enough to win by a final score of 80-73. 

Jon scored just 3 points, but also had 3 assists and 2 steals.  PG Shaun White scored 22, SG Dominick Collins put in 15 points plus had 8 rebounds, C Donny Flint had 13 points, 5 assists and 9 rebounds, and SF Wayne Burrough added 10 points.  SF Charles Barnes scored 23 points for Elon.  Hmm...so OK, he's pretty good.

The win moved Towson into a 5-way tie for 2nd place, one game behind 3-0 Hofstra.

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Jan. 12, 2024: Towson Tigers (12-2, 3-1) @ Drexel Dragons (7-7, 0-3)

Coach Frederick Aura

To be blunt…I’m not happy about how we’re playing right now.  We looked horrible in the loss to Hofstra and our energy level was way down against Elon.  Our guys seem to think they can sleep walk through these conference games. 

We won this game 73-60.  While we shot poorly, hitting just 37% of our shots, we knocked down 8 of 15 three’s and did a great job blocking out and positioning so that we had a 47-35 rebounding advantage.  We were only up by 5 at the end of the first half, but played some very good defense in the 2nd half so that we could stretch out our lead. 

Our front line played well with C Donny Flint scoring 11 and hauling down 18 boards, PF Kevin Holmes hitting for 15 points, grabbing 9 rebounds, and getting 4 blocks and a steal, and SF Wayne Burrough finishing with 8 points and 7 rebounds.  PG Shaun White scored 14 points.

Not a great game but a win is a win on the road.  Hofstra continued to win, so we remain a game behind in a 3-way tie for 2nd place.

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Tiger Blog

Towson’s latest 3-game win streak has resulted in the Tigers moving into the Top 25 in the Media Poll.  Towson is ranked #22.  Their RPI is now 12th highest in the country.  Perry Winkle, Towson’s AD, said, “I thought the team should have broken into the Top 25 earlier this season.  But it’s good to see them in there now.  It’s well deserved.  The team has been playing exceptionally well this season.”

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Jan. 16, 2024: Northeastern Huskies (6-9, 2-2) @ #22-ranked Towson Tigers (13-2, 3-1)

Gary Stevens, Towson Student and Stats Nerd

Towson has averaged 81.4 ppg (9th best) while their opponents have only averaged 70.1 ppg (138th best).  The Tigers are hitting 47.7% of their FGA’s (35th best) and 39.1% of their 3PA’s (26th best) but only 70.3% of their FTA’s (216th best).  They also are averaging 35.2 rpg (39th best).

Northeastern are averaging 70.1 ppg (194th best) and their opponents are averaging 76.9 ppg (321st best).  The Huskies FG% is 43.6% (223rd best), their 3P% is 31.9% (281st best) and FT% is 67.3% (288th best).  They average 31.6 rpg (183rd best).

On paper, tonight’s game should be a blow-out win for Towson.  But the Tigers pre-conference success has been somewhat muted in CAA play.  I’m predicting the final score will be 82-66 in favor of Towson.

The Huskies SG Marqus Cook is averaging 17.3 ppg and PF Justin Malloy is averaging 10.2 ppg.  Towson’s best scorers are: C Donny Flint (14.7 ppg) and SG Dominick Collins (11.2 ppg).

Towson’s PF Kevin Holmes has a strained knee.  It’s not been disclosed whether that will keep him out of the game or he will play in a limited fashion.

The game’s starting.  Donyell Porter is starting in place of Kevin Holmes at PF for the Tigers.  This could create a problem since both Porter and Donny Flint have had a tendency to pick up early fouls in many of the Tigers games.

Off the tip off, the Tigers quickly brought it down court and Shaun White Fed a pass to Flint in the key. Flint put the ball on the floor and drove toward the basket, pulling up to put in a short 5 footer that went it. He was fouled on the shot and converted the free throw making it 3-0 just 7 seconds into the game.  Porter picked up 2 fouls on the ensuing possession by the Huskies and he went to the bench after just 49 seconds of play. Damn!  Holmes replaced him.  Flint scored 8 of Towson’s first 10 points, but picked up his first foul at the 17:41 mark.  Holmes only played about 2 minutes.  He had 2 assists, but seemed to be labored.  With 15:44, Flint got tagged with his 2nd foul and went to the bench with Towson on top 11-3.  The refs call the 2nd foul on Northeastern’s SG Marqus Cook at the 13:23 mark, equalizing things a bit.  This could be a game decided by who has the best bench.  With 5:44 left in the half, Towson was ahead 32-18 due to their hitting over 70% of their shots.  The half ended with Towson holding a 47-31 edge.  The Tigers hit 63% of their shots and held a 12-6 turnover advantage.  C Donny Flint had returned the court and scored 15 points and SF Mac McCaffery hit for 9 points in 8 minutes of play.

In the first 4 minutes in the 2nd half, Towson had gone on a run that had increased their lead to 61-35.  The Tigers lead was 30 with 12 minutes remaining in the game.  With Coach Aura playing mainly subs, the Huskies cut into the lead but never threatened.  Towson came away with a solid 90-77 stomping of Northeastern.  The Tigers outshot the Huskies 57% to 50%, out-rebounded Northeastern 30-28, and had a 17-12 turnover advantage.  Towson had a 34-12 advantage on points-in-the-paint and an 11-4 advantage on 2nd chance points.

Five of the Tigers scored in double figures: C Donny Flint-22; SF Wayne Burrough-16; SG Dominick Collins-14; PG Shaun White-12; SF Mac McCaffery-11.

Towson is now in sole possession of 2nd place, a game behind 5-0 Hofstra.

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Jan. 19, 2024: #22-ranked Towson Tigers (14-2, 4-1) @ NC-Wilmington Seahawks (8-8, 2-3)

CSPN (Cable Sports Network) Top 25 Results

It’s not often we report on conference results for a Colonial Athletic Association team.  But this year there is a CAA team in the Top 25.  Towson University is ranked #22 and they travelled to North Carolina to take on NC-Wilmington earlier tonight.  Towson snuck into the Top 25 at the very end of last season…a year when the Tigers won their first round game in the NCAA Tournament.  This season they significantly upped the level of their pre-conference competition and won 10 of those 11 games and finally last week were rewarded in the polls.  Things looked rosy for Towson in the CAA, but then they got routed in their first conference game.  They then won 4 straight conference games before tonight’s game.  The only team they were trailing in the CAA standings, Hofstra, lost earlier today so if the Tigers could pull off a road win against the NC-Wilmington Seahawks, they’d be tied for the top spot in the CAA.  But the Seahawks are no pushover even though they’ve been inconsistent this season.  They had a big road win when they ripped the Nebraska Cornhuskers in early December.  Then in CAA play they started out with two wins but then lost their next 3 games including a home game against Hofstra…much like what Towson experienced playing Hofstra.

Here’s some video of Towson’s game tonight against the Seahawks:

·         The Seahawks win the tip off but Towson’s C Donny Flint steps in front of a pass into the lane and makes a great outlet pass to PG Shaun White who beats the defender for a slick layup.

·         Midway through the first half Calvin Williams receives a pass down low from Jon Spann. Williams clears it out to Russ Davis on the right side who puts it on the floor, makes a great cross-over dribble to get clear of his defender and puts up the jumper to make it 24-18 in favor of the Tigers. 

·         Late in the half, Towson’s Wayne Burrough sinks a long 3 to increase the lead to 7.

·         The first half ended with Towson on top 39-30 even though the Tigers’ star center Donny Flint only played 8 minutes due to foul trouble.

·         In the second half the lead expanded to 11 but the Seahawks’ John Shine cut into that lead with this nice 3.

·         Here we see Donyell Porter take a pass to the right of the key.  He takes his man to the basket and muscles up a shot that falls in and is fouled.  Porter then sinks the free throw to make it 63-51 with 10 minutes remaining. 

·         But 3 minutes later NC-Wilmington clawed their way back to within 4 points.

·         With 2-1/2 minutes to go the Seahawks’ Josh Pack took the ball on the end line and drove to the basket.  His finger roll slipped into the basket to cut Towson’s lead further at 68-65.

·         Then Towson’s Shaun White brought the ball down to the top of the key, kicked over to Jon Span on the left side.  Span fires it back to White who had stepped back outside the line and White buried a 3.

·         NC-Wilmington refused to give in as Josh Pack kissed in a basket off the glass and hit a subsequent free throw to again make it a 3 point game with 1:48 left.

·         After both teams hit field goals, Donny Flint was called for travelling with 39 seconds on the clock. 

·         Mike Clay hit a 14 foot jumper to make it 73-72. 

·         With 13 seconds to go, NC-Wilmington’s Byron Humphries intercepted a pass.  Towson's Jon Spann dove and deflected the ball out of bounds with 2 seconds remaining.  The inbounds pass went to Clay whose hurried 3 attempt rattled in and out of the basket.

·         Towson escaped in a 73-72 thriller.

The game was won by Towson’s guards…with Shaun White dropping in 20 points and Dominick Collins and Jon Spann each scoring 10. White also had 7 assists.

Towson is now tied with Hofstra for the conference lead.

After the game, our Alicia Carlisle (AC) caught up with Towson’s Coach Frederick Aura (FA):

·         AC: Coach, congratulations on your win tonight.

·         FA: Thank you, Alicia.  While it’s one that could easily have gone either way, it’s definitely nice to be on the winning side.  The way the Seahawks came back in the final minutes took a few years off my lifespan.

·         AC: You did it without a lot of front line production.  That’s pretty unusual for your team, isn’t it?

·         FA: Yes, but I’m glad the backcourt took up the slack.  Donny Flint got into foul trouble and then when he got back into the game, he just didn’t really get into the flow. And due to his back pain, we again didn’t start Kevin Holmes.  We brought him in for short spells, but his injury definitely limited his effectiveness.  Not only did that affect our scoring, but also our rebounding.  Fortunately SF Wayne Burrough picked up some of the slack, although I think the effort he had to put into attacking the boards affected his scoring. 

·         AC: But your guards really were successful tonight.

·         FA: That didn’t surprise me. They’re a good bunch.  But tonight they hit over 50% of their field goals.  And they made 5 out of the 6 three-point shots they took.  They also had 13 assists.  Shaun White, in particular, had a big night and 14 of his 20 points came in second half so he was carrying us.  And Jon Spann tipping the ball out of bounds with just 2 seconds to go created the desperation shot by the Seahawks at the buzzer.  But my heart was in my throat when that shot nearly went in.

·         AC: You seemed to be upset with the refs tonight. 

·         FA: Every coach gets upset with the refs at times. But there was only one foul called on NC-Wilmington the entire 2nd half.  I’ll leave it at that.

·         AC: Thank you Coach.  Your team is back on top in the Colonial Athletic Association and your two wins this week should solidify your inclusion in the Top 25.

·         FA: Now it’s time to get ready for our next game.

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Jan. 23, 2024: Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens (4-13, 0-6) @ #22-ranked Towson Tigers (15-2, 5-1)

Janeka Aura, wife of Head Coach Frederick Aura

We have the entire family here tonight.  Fred won’t admit it, but he’s pretty excited about his team being ranked in the polls.  Our boys actually jumped right on their homework as soon as they got home from school and basketball practice so they could come to the game.

It’s now been nearly 4 months since the beginning of practice.  Fred gets so involved with his team that it’s good when the kids can get to a game.  Even if they can’t talk with him then, they can see him and feel closer to him.

The Tigers went ahead 8-0 after just 2 minutes of play.  Kevin Holmes was starting again even though he’s still not 100%.  He hit 2 quick baskets.  After 5 minutes of play, Towson was on top 17-2.  With 9:15 remaining in the half, our lead had ballooned to 21 points.  With 3 minutes left the lead was 30.  The half ended with the score: Towson-48, Delaware-17.  Team stats showed the Tigers with advantages throughout: 58% to 21% in FG%, 21-12 in rebounds, and 9-4 in turnovers.  PF Kevin Holmes and SG Dominick Collins both scored 11 points.

The Tigers slept through the first 5 minutes of the 2nd half allowing Delaware to cut the lead to 17 points. But Towson then woke up and again pull away to achieve a 79-50 blowout victory.  The Tigers completely dominated the boards, 47-26.

C Donny Flint had a big double-double, 19 points and 17 rebounds.  SF Wayne Burrough scored 15, PG/SG Jon Spann hit for 11 points, and PG Shaun White had 10 points and 6 assists.

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Jan. 26, 2024: #22-ranked Towson Tigers (16-2, 6-1) @ Charleston Cougars (10-10, 4-3)

Graduate Assistant Coach Adrian Brown

Coach Fed’s mother is undergoing an operation so he’s not with us. 1st Assistant Coach Kenyon Haynes is handling the team tonight.

Charleston jumped out in front and built a 9 point lead.  But we chipped away and the lead flip-flopped throughout the final 10 minutes of the half.  We trailed by a slim 44-42 margin at the break.  Our comeback was spearheaded by our guards.  PG Shaun White scored 14 points.

We began taking charge in the 2nd half.  While we never built a huge lead, we held a lead most all the way and finished by gaining an 88-78 road victory over Charleston. 

PG Shaun White had a double-double with 24 points and 11 assists and he also had 2 steals and 2 blocks.  SG Dominick Collins scored 11, PG Matt Faust had 11 points, and PG/SG Jon Spann added 8 points.  C Donny Flint scored 9 and had 14 rebounds.  SF Russell Brown scored 22 for the Cougars.

Hofstra continued to win so we’re still tied with them for 1st place in the CAA.

On the weekend following this game, we moved up to #19 in the Top 25.

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Jan. 30, 2024: William & Mary Tribe (7-12, 3-5) @ #19-ranked Towson Tigers (17-2, 7-1)

Connie Farnsworth, Tigers fan

I became a basketball fan after a friend took me to a couple Towson games 2 years ago.  I enjoy the atmosphere and the excitement.  The more games I attend, the more I understand about the game, but I’m still no expert.  My favorite player for the Tigers is PG Shaun White.  He’ll be graduating in a few months, so maybe I will most closely follow Jon Spann after Shaun leaves.

The Tigers scored first and never looked back.  They built a 50-27 lead at the half.  They didn’t seem to be shooting all that well, but they sure man-handled the Tribe for rebounds.

In the 2nd half, they merely held William & Mary at arm’s length and won with ease by a final score of 84-60.  I was told after the game that the Tigers held a 34-18 advantage in points in the paint and an 18-2 advantage in 2nd chance points.

C Donny Flint scored 16 and had 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks.  SG Dominick Collins dropped in 15 points plus had 5 rebounds and 4 assists.  SF Kevin Holmes scored 12 and had 5 rebounds.  PG Shaun White had 11 points and C/PF Donyell Porter scored 10 and grabbed 5 rebounds.

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Feb. 2, 2024: Hofstra Pride (14-6, 8-1) @ #19-ranked Towson Tigers (18-2, 8-1)

Nate Culuko, 3rd Assistant Coach (Scouting)

When comparing our players with Hofstra’s players, our guys are stronger.  But the Pride play with pride and cohesiveness.  Great teamwork has kept them winning.  The team does just enough to win.  Our average margin of difference in CAA games this season is 8 points; the Pride’s average marge of difference in their CAA games has been 5 points.  For the entire season Hofstra is scoring 79.5 ppg while its opponents have averaged 76.1 ppg (compared to our 81.8 ppg and our opponents’ 69.5 ppg).  They run a fast-paced offense with a lot of offensive freedom.  Their primary set is a flex offense with a lot of outside attack.  They primarily employ a man-to-man defense.  Top scorers are C Colin Leith (16.0 ppg), PG Marco Smith (12.2 ppg), and SG Norman Cherry (10.9 ppg).  Leith is their top rebounder (7.8 rpg).  Cherry is averaging 4.1 apg and Smith is averaging 3.4 apg.  Smith, Cherry, and Leith are extremely efficient shooters.  The team as a whole is the best shooting team in the CAA, hitting a phenomenal 51.6% of their FG’s and 41.6% of their 3’s and their offensive efficiency is highest in the CAA (52.1%).  They’re very good at drawing fouls.  They’re less imposing defensively but they have held opponents’ 3-point shooting in check (just 32.3%).  They don’t get many offensive rebounds (7.0/game) but they have a 33.4 rpg to 29.6 rpg advantage over their opponents.  They turn the ball over more than anyone else in the CAA (17.2 topg).  Suggest we double team Leith initially but be ready to shift to whoever has the hot hand.  In our 76-69 loss to them earlier this season, we got beat inside with Hofstra scoring 36 points in the paint.  The Pride hit 52.9% of their shots against us, got to the line 11 more times than us, and forced us to make 17 turnovers.  Leigh and PF Matt Johnson both scored 16 points and reserve PF Jim Robinson had 10 points.  We lost that game to Hofstra because they had a huge run in the 2nd half and we failed to respond to it and being to climb out of the hole we dug for ourselves until too late in the game…need to avoid that this time.

First Half:

We got off to a good start…8-0 after 3 minutes.  5 minutes later we were ahead 19-2 having held Hofstra to 1 for 9 from the field and forcing 7 turnovers.  While Hofstra finally began scoring, our offense continued to pour points in.  We led by as much as 24 points and settled for a 47-27 halftime advantage.  We outshot the Pride 53% to 37%, held a 16-14 rebounding advantage and a 10-3 turnover advantage.  SF Wayne Burrough was our high scorer with 8 points, but C Donny Flint had 7 points and 6 rebounds.

Second Half:

We cooled off offensively but maintained our lead.  We revenged our previous loss to Hofstra with an 88-64 stomping of the Pride.  We dominated the boards 39-28 and made just 7 turnovers compared to 17 by Hofstra.  We had a 40-18 advantage in points in the paint.

C Donny Flint had 13 points and 9 rebounds, SF Wayne Burrough scored 13, SG Dominick Collins had 12 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals and a block, SG Copley Dwiggins scored 11, and PG/SG Jon Spann scored 10 and had 8 assists.

The win and Hofstra’s loss put us in sole possession of 1st place in the CAA.  The win also moved us up to #17 in the polls.

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Feb. 6, 2024: #17-ranked Towson Tigers (19-2, 9-1) @ James Madison Dukes (12-10, 6-4)

The Towerlight (Towson University Student Newspaper)

TIGERS TAKE THEIR SHOW ON THE ROAD

Last night Towson’s basketball team travelled to Harrisonburg, Virginia to take on the James Madison Dukes.  The Tigers whipped the Dukes by 15 points when then played earlier this season in SECU Arena.  Towson needed to figure out a way, though, to stop James Madison’s freshman C Adam Ash, who scored 25 points in that game.  Also, the Dukes SG Nick Calhoun has been scoring 16.6 ppg this season.

The Tigers held a small lead through the first 8 minutes but then ran off 7 straight points to go ahead 23-14 with 8:43 remaining.  Then Towson continued to build on their lead until the very end of the first half at which point they the Tigers held a 42-23 margin.  Towson held the Dukes shooting to 31% and controlled the boards 24-14.  PG/SG Jon Spann poured in 13 points and SG Dominick Collins had 11 points at the half.

James Madison cut into the lead in the 2nd half and got within 12 points before the Tigers rallied to begin rebuilding their lead.  But then the Dukes came on to draw within 5 at 70-65 with 2 minutes to play.  Then James Madison hit a 3 with 1:20 to go.  Neither team could score and as Towson tried to work the clock down, the Dukes fouled with 29 seconds remaining.  Wayne Burrough made the first shot but missed the second.  Donny Flint recovered the rebound and cleared the ball to Jon Spann who was fouled with 24 seconds on the clock.  Spann made the first and missed the second but Donyell Porter muscled away the rebound and got it to Spann who was fouled again.  With 21 seconds to go Spann hit both free throws.  The Dukes hit a 3 that cut the final difference to 74-71 in favor of Towson.  James Madison outshot the Tigers 44% to 37%, but Towson held a 43-32 rebounding advantage.  Towson had 14 second chance points while James Madison had none.

Topping the scoring for Towson was SG Dominick Collins who scored 19 points.  PG/SG Jon Spann put in 16 points.  SF Wayne Burrough had 10 points and 10 rebounds.  C Donny Flint pulled down 15 boards plus held the Dukes’ Adam Ash to just 7 points.

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Feb. 9, 2024: #17 ranked Towson Tigers (20-2, 10-1) @ Elon Phoenix (11-11, 6-5)

Matt Barnes, 2nd Assistant Coach

Argh! A second away game this week! These are always gut-wrenching. In our previous game we beat Elon at our place, but just by 7 points.  So that means we need to play better this game.  Freshman SF Charles Brown is still the Phoenix’ leading scorer, averaging 12.0 ppg.

I got down to North Carolina a day early so I could check in on a recruit we’ve got on our list.  Watched a game his high school team played.  He scored well, but he wasn’t much of a passer…so since he’s a PG, that’s not good.  Also both he and his parents are extremely interested in his playing close to home, so getting him to come to Maryland would be tough anyway. I plan on suggesting to Coach Aura that we drop him from our list, but he’s focused on the game with Elon right now, so I can bring it up tomorrow.  We have one SF still on our list..the kid is pretty interested in us, but we already have 2 SF’s recruited.  We don’t need another one, so we may as well drop him also.

Elon nearly ran us off the court in the first half.  Our defense was nearly non-existent.  The Phoenix scored 46 points while we only had 35 first half points.  Even Elon’s subs were scoring with ease against us.  Coach Aura really tore into the guys in the locker room.  He made some adjustments on our defensive assignments as well.

The butt-chewing and defensive changes worked.  Elon only scored 23 points in the 2nd half.  C Donny Flint took command of the boards on both ends of the court.  We quickly overtook the Phoenix and then went up by 5.  But Elon scored the final 5 points of the half and regulation time ended with the scored tied at 69-69.  Our starters caught fire in the OT and we scored 10 of the first 12 points.  We then hung on to gain an 85-80 overtime victory.

PF Kevin Holmes and PG Shaun White each scored 13 points for us.  Holmes also had 4 steals and 2 blocks.  C Donny Flint hit for 11 points but more importantly he pulled down 18 rebounds and had 4 blocks and a steal.  SG Dominick White scored 10.

Hofstra got beaten by 3 points in a road game against Northeastern.  That means we now are 2 games ahead of them.

SF Wayne Burrough sprained his toe and his play in our next couple games will be limited.

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Feb. 13, 2024: Drexel Dragons (12-11, 5-7) @ #17 ranked Towson Tigers (21-2, 11-1)

Tom Nielson and Jeff Ridgefield, fans

Tom: We got some good seats tonight, Jeff.

Jeff: Big crowd tonight…made us almost miss the tipoff.

Jeff: Whoa!  Great pass by White and basket by Holmes.  I love those alley-oop plays.

Tom: Tigers are kicking butt and taking names tonight.  Already ahead 28-11 and we’re got 10 more minutes to go in the half.

Jeff: Towson’s zone is giving Drexel fits.  41-15 now.  Drexel is having a tough time getting shots off.

Jeff: The Tigers backed off in the last part of the half, but a 49-30 lead at the break should be enough for us not to have to worry much in the 2nd half.

Tom: Looks like both teams’ defenses are dominating here in the 2nd half. 

Jeff: Yeah, but Aura has pretty much gone to getting his bench a lot of playing time.

Tom: Hey!  74-58…another win for the Tigers.  That’s 12 straight wins for Towson.  Good defense all the way.  Great offense in the first half.

Jeff: It was good to see PF Kevin Holmes score 16.  He’s been picking his game up as time goes on this season.  C Donny Flint’s 10 points and 9 boards would have been higher if he’d played more.

Tom: Yeah, but all that playing time the bench got will pay dividends.  And the subs played pretty darn well.

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Feb. 16, 2024: #17 ranked Towson Tigers (22-2, 12-1) @ Northeastern Huskies (9-15, 5-8)

Nathan Parks, walkon SG

We beat the Huskies by 13 when playing them at home.

Northeastern’s SG Marqus Cook has averaged 17.5 ppg.

We hit over 60% of shots and were up 20-12 but too many fouls being called on us.

We were head 44-31 at the half after hitting 50% of our FG’s and 63% of our 3’s plus 23-13 rebounding advantage.  SF Mac McCaffery scored 8 points for us.

We fell apart in 2nd half.  We went ice cold from field and foul line and made a bunch of turnovers that allowed Huskies to close to within 46-42 after 4 minutes of play.  The crowds going crazy.

Then our defense took hold and we pulled away to 66-50 lead with 7 minutes left in the game.  Now us on the bench are going crazy.

We beat Northeastern by a 75-61 score.

We only hit 14 of 30 free throws but outshot the Huskies 46% to 40% and outrebounded them 46-30.

PF Kevin Holmes had 15 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks.

C Donny Flint scored 10 and had 9 rebounds, 1 steal and 4 blocks.

Northeastern’s SG Marqus Cook had 20 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks.

As usual, 100% bench-time for me.

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Feb. 20, 2024: NC-Wilmington Seahawks (12-13, 6-8) @ #16 ranked Towson Tigers (23-2, 13-1)

Carmen Giordano, fan

Gino, my father, and I attend Towson basketball games together.  But he’s come down with a new virus that is circulating.  This one affects the gastrointestinal system and not the respiratory system.  So he’ll miss the game tonight but he loves the games so much that I plan to text him throughout the game to let him know what’s going on.

·       Hey Pop, nice sized crowd tonight…Teri, Mel, Sid and Travis, our normal seat-mates are nearby and asking about you.  Travis said that none of the Seahawks really is a star, but that their PG Bart Casper hits a high percentage of his shots.  Mel doesn’t think the Tigers will have problems with NC-Wilmington’s 2-3 zone.  There’s a small section of green Seahawks’ fans on the other side of SECU Arena.  The Tigers are warming up now and soon we’ll have the National Anthem.

·       Teri predicts Towson to win by 20. I said I’d be happy with a 1 point win that would increase our win streak to 15 games.

·       Seahawks scored first 5 points but Shaun White hit a 3 after 2 minutes of play.

·       You’d be screaming…lotsa turnovers…we’re down 10-5.

·       Donny Flint’s in foul trouble AGAIN!  13:51 to go in half.

·       Wayne Burrough to the bench with 2 fouls…6 fouls on Tigers, none on Seahawks… behind 11-9 with 11 minutes left in half.

·       Jon Spann pulled up on a drive and scored to give us our first lead at 13-11.

·       Spann just hit two 3’s…we’re ahead 21-15 with 7 minutes to go.

·       Kevin Holmes knocked down a 3 and then he picked off a pass and tossed it ahead to Mac McCaffery for a jam…we’re up 28-15.

·       9 fouls on us, none on NC-Wilmington with 4 minutes left in half.

·       First half is over, Pop.  You’re missing a good show by the Tigers…they’re ahead 44-25 and they’ve only been to the foul line for one shot.  But they’re outshooting and out-rebounding the Seahawks.  PG/SG Jon Spann has 11 points and 3 assists. Coach Aura has already played the entire bench a lot.

·       Gonna go get something to eat and drink…back with you when 2nd half starts.

·       Slow start by the Tigers except for White who’s carrying them.  55-37 now and White has 14 points.

·       I KNOW how much you hate mascots.  Doc the Tiger is going crazier than ever.  Everyone around me is saying if you were here you’d be complaining that you came to see a basketball game and not a g__ d___ fake animal.

·       Hey now. Stop.  You’re supposed to be relaxing and just reading my texts, not sending ones with words that might be us both kicked off texting by Verizon.  You’re just reading about, not having to watch, Doc the Tiger.

·       Refs suck tonight…10 fouls on Tigers in 1st half and just 1 on Seahawks and now 7 on Tigers and just 1 on Seahawks in 2nd half.  Guess they’re trying to help NC-Wilmington get back into the game…it’s now 57-43.

·       Think Coach Aura musta kicked some butt.  Towson on fire now.  We’re up 80-53.  Entire bench being played now.

·       We just won our 15th straight game.  Final score was 94-72 in favor of Towson.  Total domination of the boards by the Tigers (38-23).  Towson hit 16 of 32 on 3’s.

·       Top scorers: Shaun White-18, Jon Spann-13, Kevin Holmes-13, Dominick Collins-10, Wayne Burrough-9, Donyell Porter-9, Mac McCaffery-8.  Donny Flint had 11 rebounds.  Only guy to score much for NC-Wilmington was SG Mike Clay with 23 points.

·       Everybody said to tell you to get well quick, Pop.

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Feb. 23, 2024: #16 ranked Towson Tigers (24-2, 14-1) @ Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens (8-18, 4-11)

Adrian Brown, Graduate Assistant Coach

We handled Delaware with ease (79-50) when we played them at home.  Even though they are last in the CAA, we need to not take them lightly.  They’ve won their last 4 home games.  Their primary offense is the Shuffle but they use a lot of offensive freedom.  They play mostly man-to-man on defense.  We have the advantage when comparing starters, but their two starting guards have combined to score 19.1 ppg and their bench has scored more and rebounds more than does ours.  We need to control their guards so we plan to press a lot to try to wear them down while we rotate our guards in and out of the game.

There were 10 lead changes and 7 ties in the first half.  Donny Flint got into foul trouble (as usual).  But we were able to gain a small advantage toward the end of the half at 42-37. 

But we immediately began to steadily increase our advantage in the second half and did so throughout the entire final 20 minutes. Donny Flint fouled out after playing just 18 minutes, but Coach Fed played the entire bench extensively.  All 12 of our players scored as we came away with a 78-61 victory.  We held a 35-26 rebounding advantage.

PG Shaun White led our scoring with 15 points.  Flint had 10 points.  PF Kevin Holmes had 9 points and 9 rebounds.

With 2 games left in the regular season, we’re now 4 games ahead of 2nd place Hofstra so have sewn up first place in the CAA.  We have a 16 game win streak that we’re all intent on continuing.  We host Charleston next.  The Cougars scored 103 points in their last game, so we need to work hard on defense in our practices before that game.

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