Winning is Everything

[randy]

Jan 17, 2001: Towson (11-4, 5-1) @ NC Wilmington (8-7, 4-2)

Start of 1st half

Low-scoring, slow-paced start. Down 9-11, 11:57. PF Bevon Green big off the bench, 7 pts. UNCWI is +7 FGA. Tied at 18, 7:00. It has been a struggle to score; both teams shooting below 40% FG. A late scoring spree by C Byron Hardy (13 pts), allowed us to get a lead. Halftime, Up 32-26.

Key stats / Notes (Halftime)

• Pts in paint: TOW 18, UNCWI 8
• Fast break pts: TOW 0, UNCWI 6

Start of 2nd half

UNCWI started the 2nd half on hot shooting, 6-7 FG, including two 3pt shots. Up 42-40, 15:58. PF Bevon Green continues his good game, scoring 6 of our next 10 pts. Up 52-44, 10:49.

UNCWI scored three consecutive triples, to counter our two inside baskets. Up 56-53, 8:51. UNCWI in penalty. C Byron Hardy added 4 more pts to bring his total to a game high 23 pts. But UNCWI scored a couple of fast break baskets off our turn overs. Up 62-57, 5:53.

We shut down UNCWI for almost 4 minutes, and opened up a double digit lead. We'll slow down the game. Up 68-57, 2:11.


Final Score: Towson - 74, Northeastern - 59


Box Scores
[INDENT]Hardy 23, 13, 1 (*)
Green 17, 6, 0
Wilkerson 16, 6, 1
DeMond 10, 6, 1
Martin 6, 4, 8, 5 tos
Hale 2, 5, 4
Weaks 0, 1, 3
Granger 0, 0, 1
Desmond 0, 0, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 51-38%
REB: +13
TO: +4
Pts in paint: +24
2nd chance: -4
Fast break: -7
[/INDENT]
Notes

• Excellent game for our 3 big man rotation (Hardy/DeMond/Green), as all of them scored in double figures.
• We also minimized our turn overs, committing only 12, at the same time dishing out 20 assists

CAA Conference Standings

1. James Madison, 7-0 (W7)
2. Towson, 6-1 (W6)
3. Delaware, 6-1 (W5)
4. Georgia St, 5-2 (W2)
5. NC Wilmington, 4-3 (L2)
6. VCU, 4-3 (W2)
7. George Mason, 3-4 (W1)
8. William & Mary, 2-5 (L2)
9. Hofstra, 2-5 (L3)
10. Northeastern, 1-6 (L5)
11. Drexel, 1-6 (L1)
12. Old Dominion, 1-6 (L6)

[randy]

Jan 20, 2001: Old Dominion (3-13, 1-6) @ Towson (12-4, 6-1)

Start of 1st half

SG Haven Wilkerson on fire early, 4-4 FG, including 2 triples. Up 20-7, 11:45. Control of the boards allowed us to establish a big lead, but OLD scored the last 6 pts of the 1st half. Halftime, Up 37-24.

Key stats / Notes (Halftime)

• Rebounds: OLD 10, TOW 19

Start of 2nd half

SG Haven Wilkerson got his 4th foul early in the 2nd half; we went almost exclusively to the low post in offense, and had plenty of success. It took more than 5 minutes before OLD scored their 1st FG of the 2nd half, and by then, we already established a 20 pts lead. Up 55-32, 11:59. We got into penalty, but that didn't mattered as we cruised ourselves to an easy victory in this game. I was able to field in a couple of walk ons as well (1st time this season)


Final Score: Old Dominion - 47, Towson - 73


Box Scores
[INDENT]Hardy 22, 15, 1 (*)
DeMond 14, 9, 3
Wilkerson 14, 2, 1
Martin 6, 2, 6
Hale 6, 2, 2
Green 4, 2, 0
Granger 3, 2, 2, fouled out
Weaks 2, 4, 1
Hil 2, 0, 0
Roberson 0, 2, 0
Toxey 0, 0, 1
Desmond 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 48-35%
REB: +18
TO: +2
Pts in paint: +22
2nd chance: +11
Fast break: +6
[/INDENT]
Notes

• 11 off rebounds led to 15 2nd chance pts. We also got 10 pts from fast breaks, and shot 12-15 FT. That's a total of 37 pts (more than half) earned primarily from hard work / effort.

CAA Conference Standings

1. Towson, 7-1 (W7)
2. James Madison, 7-1 (L1)
3. Delaware, 7-1 (W6)
4. Georgia St, 6-2 (W3)
5. NC Wilmington, 4-4 (L3)
6. VCU, 4-4 (L1)
7. George Mason, 3-5 (L1)
8. Hofstra, 3-5 (W1)
9. Northeastern, 2-6 (W1)
10. Drexel, 2-6 (W1)
11. William & Mary, 2-6 (L3)
12. Old Dominion, 1-7 (L7)

[PointGuard]

Great fight for the conference championship.

[randy]

Jan 24, 2001: VCU (11-6, 4-4) @ Towson (13-4, 7-1)

Start of 1st half

VCU 3-5 3PT. Up 14-13, 11:21. Poor transition defense on our part led to a 7 pt deficit. VCU's penalty situation helped us get back in the game. Halftime, Up 32-30.

Key stats / Notes (Halftime)

• Off Rebounds: VCU 4, TOW 11
• Pts in paint: VCU 8, TOW 22

Start of 2nd half

I wasn't pleased early as VCU grabbed 5 off rebounds already. Fortunately, VCU has not capitalized much on it, as they started the 2nd half 1-10 FG. Up 43-33, 15:54. VCU was forced to call a timeout when our lead increased to 16; they since trimmed it down. Up 51-38, 11:11.

Both teams scoring only 2 pts the past 5 minutes. VCU's FG% has now dipped to 29% FG. Up 53-40, 6:19. Both teams ramped up their scoring, but the clock is on our side. Up 64-52, 3:03. An inside basket by C Alex DeMond and a miss by VCU ensured our win.


Final Score: VCU - 52, Towson - 71


Box Scores
[INDENT]Wilkerson 20, 5, 1
Hardy 18, 12, 1 (*)
DeMond 16, 9, 1
Hale 8, 5, 3
Martin 5, 5, 5
Green 2, 5, 2
Granger 2, 2, 1
Weaks 0, 1, 0
Roberson 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 49-31%
REB: +12
TO: +2
Pts in paint: +34
2nd chance: +5
Fast break: -2
[/INDENT]
Notes

• The 31% FG by VCU included 16 easy fast break pts, so it means out half court defense was excellent the entire game

CAA Conference Standings

1. Towson, 8-1 (W8)
2. James Madison, 8-1 (W1)
3. Delaware, 8-1 (W7)
4. Georgia St, 7-2 (W4)
5. NC Wilmington, 5-4 (W1)
6. VCU, 4-5 (L2)
7. George Mason, 3-6 (L2)
8. Hofstra, 3-6 (L1)
9. Northeastern, 3-6 (W2)
10. Drexel, 2-7 (L1)
11. William & Mary, 2-7 (L4)
12. Old Dominion, 1-8 (L8)

[randy]

Jan 27, 2001: William & Mary (5-12, 2-7) @ Towson (14-4, 8-1)

Start of 1st half

We started out well offensively, 6-6 FG. Up 16-3, 13:42. SG Haven Wilkerson already in double figures, 10 pts, 4-5 FG. Up 24-10, 8:47. Our big men picked up their scoring the rest of the half, while ouw perimeter players continued to hit outside shots. WM had a very good clip for the 3pt line, 6-9 3PT, but it was overshadowed by our excellent FG%. Halftime, Up 54-33.

Key stats / Notes (Halftime)

• FG%: WM 45%, TOW 85%!

Start of 2nd half

Our offense at the start of the 2nd half was a complete opposite of the 1st, as we are currently shooting 2-10 FG and 3 committed 3 early turn over. Fortunately, our lead cushion is big enough. Up 60-43, 13:55. Our 9 2nd half turn overs has prolonged this game longer than it should be, and still gives WM some hope of coming back. Up 66-50, 6:16.

WM cut down our lead to 11, but that's the closest they were able to get, as SG Haven Wilkerson scored 12 of our last 14 pts.


Final Score: William & Mary - 64, Towson - 82


Box Scores
[INDENT]Wilkerson 31, 3, 2 (*)
Hardy 19, 6, 1
DeMond 11, 8, 6
Hale 11, 4, 2
Green 6, 4, 1
Martin 4, 2, 7, 5 tos
Granger 0, 1, 1, 4 tos
Weaks 0, 0, 1
Roberson 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 64-45%
REB: +8
TO: Even
Pts in paint: +20
2nd chance: +4
Fast break: -1
[/INDENT]
Notes

• A career-high in scoring for SG Haven Wilkerson, who scored outside (3-3 3PT) and several drives
• WM converted 10-22 3PT

CAA Conference Standings

1. Towson, 9-1 (W9)
2. James Madison, 8-2 (L1)
3. Georgia St, 8-2 (W5)
4. Delaware, 8-2 (L1)
5. NC Wilmington, 5-5 (L1)
6. VCU, 5-5 (W1)
7. George Mason, 4-6 (W1)
8. Hofstra, 3-7 (L2)
9. Northeastern, 3-7 (L1)
10. Drexel, 3-7 (W1)
11. William & Mary, 2-8 (L5)
12. Old Dominion, 2-8 (W1)

[randy]

We are leading the conference with a 9-1 record. But our next 3 games are all on the road, and we are up against all 3 teams that are just 1 game behind us at 8-2: @ Georgia St, @ James Madison, and @ Delaware. After this 3 game road trip, we'll finish our season with 4 out of 5 games at home, where we are currently undefeated.

If we do well on this road trip, we would most likely finish 1st in the conference. If we come up empty, things will get complicated. In other words, our final ranking within the conference depends on what will happen in our next 3 games

Jan 31, 2001: Towson (15-4, 9-1) @ Georgia St (12-7, 8-2)

Start of 1st half

Close game early, as both teams set of big men trying to outdo one another. I got called up for technical early, after yelling at the ref. Calls seem to have gotten our way after the technical though, as GAST got into penalty early. Up 22-14, 11:37. We committed costly turn overs, which allowed GAST to take the lead. We settled in as soon as C Byron Hardy and SG Haven Wilkerson came back on the floor; those two combined for 36 pts in the 1st half. Halftime, Up 50-39.

Key stats / Notes (Halftime)

• FG%: TOW 75%, GAST 44%

Start of 2nd half

SG Haven Wilkerson continues to wax hot, as he scored 8 of our 1st 10 pts in the 2nd half. PF Bevon Green added 4 unanswered pts, and very quickly we were up by 21 pts. Up 64-43, 14:45. Led went as high as 28. Still almost 10 minutes left, but the way we limited GAST to only 6 pts in the 1st 10 mins of the 2nd half, it's safe to say we have locked out this win. Up 73-45, 9:52. I pulled off my starters with around 7 mins left. 1 game down, 2 more to go in this very crucial 3-game road trip.


Final Score: Towson - 90, Georgia St - 60


Box Scores
[INDENT]Wilkerson 29, 3, 3
Hardy 26, 12, 2 (*)
Green 10, 2, 0
Desmond 9, 2, 1
Hale 7, 4, 2
DeMond 4, 3, 2
Roberson 3, 0, 1
Granger 2, 1, 2, fouled out
Martin 0, 3, 4
Weaks 0, 3, 2
Toxey 0, 1, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 67-34%
REB: +12
TO: +8
Pts in paint: +16
2nd chance: +2
Fast break: -6
[/INDENT]
Notes

• If I didn't pulled them out early, both SG Haven Wilkerson and C Byron Hardy could have gone to score 30 pts each. Those two players are averaging a combined 36.2 ppg, the highest for a 2-man combo in the conference.
• Players are getting more knowledgeable with our motion offense. 2nd straight game we shot more than 60% FG

CAA Conference Standings

1. Towson, 10-1 (W10)
2. Delaware, 9-2 (W1)
3. James Madison, 8-3 (L2)
4. Georgia St, 8-3 (L1)
5. NC Wilmington, 6-5 (W1)
6. VCU, 6-5 (W2)
7. George Mason, 5-6 (W2)
8. Northeastern, 4-7 (W1)
9. Hofstra, 3-8 (L3)
10. Drexel, 3-8 (L1)
11. William & Mary, 2-9 (L6)
12. Old Dominion, 2-9 (L1)

[randy]

RPI: #12; Bubble watch: (In) #42

Feb 3, 2001: Towson (16-4, 10-1) @ James Madison (14-6, 8-3)

Start of 1st half

C Byron Hardy with 9 pts, as he has been productive on all 4 low post play we have run thru him. Up 21-12, 12:38. JMU got into penalty with more than 9 mins remaining in the 1st half. We shot 10-12 FT, and got 7 "bonus" pts combined from Granger/Weaks/Desmond, who normally puts up a zero in the scoring column in most games. We didn't shoot well on the latter stages of the 1st half, and our lead went down to 8 from a high of 16. Halftime, Up 40-32.

Key stats / Notes (Halftime)

• 2nd chance pts: TOW 8, JMU 0

Start of 2nd half

JMU continues to chip away our lead, coming to within 5 on at least 3 occasions. But SG Haven Wilkerson and C Alex DeMond coming up with clutch baskets. Up 46-39, 15:21. SG Haven Wilkerson has been our go to guy in the 2nd half, where he has scored 8 pts already. Up 53-41, 11:45.

We have 17 turn overs already, and JWU coming back once again. SG Haven Wilkerson continues to be our only consistent scorer in the 2nd half, and even the likes of C Byron Hardy (5-13 FG) have struggled to make shots. Up 58-51, 6:21. Score remained close the next 3 minutes. Up 64-57, 3:21.

Twice, we had a chance to increase our lead to 9 (or 10), but we came up with consecutive turn overs. JWU scored on transition after our 20th turn over of the game. Timeout. Up 64-59, 2:03.

TOW: We go to C Byron Hardy, who easily scores in the low post. Hardy has struggled most of the game, but he has converted on his last 3 attempts. Up 66-59, 1:42.

JMU: We'll m2m defense. And we came up with a steal.

JMU intentionally fouling now. After converting 2 FTs, we went up by 9 with a little over a minute left. Safe lead now.


Final Score: Towson - 74, James Madison - 67


Box Scores
[INDENT]Hardy 23, 9, 0 (*)
Wilkerson 19, 3, 4
DeMond 11, 7, 0
Martin 7, 3, 4, 5 tos
Green 5, 0, 0
Granger 3, 1, 2
Weaks 2, 6, 1
Hale 2, 5, 2, 5 tos
Desmond 2, 0, 0
Roberson 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 48-40%
REB: +10
TO: +7
Pts in paint: +16
2nd chance: +7
Fast break: -5
[/INDENT]
Notes

• A good win against one of the better teams in the conference. And we did it despite not shooting as well as were doing the past 2 games, and turned over the ball 20 times. Aside from 2nd chance pts, another contributor to our win today was our FT shooting. We shot 22-27 (82%) FT today. These 2 factors are a "must-do" on games where our offense is not clicking like today.

CAA Conference Standings

1. Towson, 11-1 (W11)
2. Delaware, 9-3 (L1)
3. James Madison, 8-4 (L3)
4. Georgia St, 8-4 (L2)
5. NC Wilmington, 7-5 (W2)
6. VCU, 7-5 (W3)
7. George Mason, 5-7 (L1)
8. Northeastern, 5-7 (W2)
9. Hofstra, 4-8 (W1)
10. Drexel, 4-8 (W1)
11. William & Mary, 2-10 (L7)
12. Old Dominion, 2-10 (L2)

[randy]

Rank (Media/Coaches): #24 / NR; RPI: #11; Bubble watch: (In) #27

Feb 7, 2001: #24 Towson (17-4, 11-1) @ Delaware (14-7, 9-3)

Start of 1st half

DEL impressive from long range, started the game on 5-6 3PT. What put us in a deficit though is our 6 turn overs. Down 12-19, 11:46. We continue to throw the ball away, with 10 1st half turn overs. While DEL keeps on hitting their outside shots, finishing with 8 3pt shots in the 1st half. Only C Byron Hardy's 16 pts (8-9 FG) has kept us from being blown away completely in the 1st half. Halftime, Down 29-43.

Key stats / Notes (Halftime)

• 3 pt shooting: TOW 0-2, DEL 8-13
• Take away C Byron Hardy's offensive production, the rest of the team contributed only 13 pts, 5-18 FG, 10 turn overs

Start of 2nd half

Our offense was in full gear, led by SG Haven Wilkerson's 9 pts in the 2nd half. But DEL has added three more 3pt shots and countless other outside jumpers, and we haven't reduced our deficit. Down 44-58, 12:11. We still can't reduce our deficit below double digits. Down 50-64, 7:39.

Our deficit increased to 18. Just when everyone thought we were down, we came up with a 10-0 run to cut the lead to single digits. Down 60-68, 2:50. Another miss by DEL. We secured the def board. We went to C Byron Hardy who powers his way inside for another 2 pts. 12-0 run. Down 62-68, 2:15.

DEL hits a clutch basket. Timeout. Down 62-70, 1:55

We miss. We get 2 successive off rebounds. Both times we shot the ball, we missed. 3 opportunities. DEL missed also. Timeout. Down 62-68, 1:06

Time is not on our side. We'll go small, hurry up, look for 3s. Press, and foul intentionally. To no avail though


Final Score: Towson - 65, Delaware - 75


Box Scores
[INDENT]Hardy 26, 12, 0
Wilkerson 20, 4, 4, 5 tos
DeMond 13, 5, 2
Hale 6, 4, 0
Green 0, 5, 0
Martin 0, 2, 6, fouled out
Weaks 0, 1, 0
Granger 0, 0, 2, fouled out
Toxey 0, 0, 0
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 48-45%
REB: +7
TO: +4
Pts in paint: +18
2nd chance: +5
Fast break: +8
[/INDENT]
Notes

• Wow, only 4 players from our team scored in this game. We're not going to win too many games with that kind of scoring distribution. But we almost did win, as we shot a little bit better than DEL, won the rebounding battle, got more 2nd chance and fast break pts. DEL's 11 3pt shots made was, and an 18 pt lead with just over 6 mins remaining, proved to be too much to overcome

CAA Conference Standings

1. Towson, 11-2 (L1)
2. Delaware, 10-3 (W1)
3. Georgia St, 9-4 (W1)
4. VCU, 8-5 (W4)
5. James Madison, 8-5 (L4)
6. NC Wilmington, 7-6 (L1)
7. George Mason, 6-7 (W1)
8. Northeastern, 5-8 (L1)
9. Drexel, 5-8 (W2)
10. Hofstra, 4-9 (L1)
11. Old Dominion, 3-10 (W1)
12. William & Mary, 2-11 (L8)

[randy]

Rank (Media/Coaches): #24 / NR; RPI: #11; Bubble watch: (In) #27

Feb 10, 2001: Drexel (10-12, 5-8) @ #24 Towson (17-5, 11-2)

Start of 1st half

Good individual battle between C Byron Hardy (9 pts) and DREX's C Jermainse Spry (10 pts). Up 19-17, 11:42. Great FG shooting, rebounding, and defense helped us established a big lead. Halftime, Up 51-33.

Key stats / Notes (Halftime)

• FG shooting: DREX 37%, TOW 75% (38 pts in the paint)
• Rebounds: DREX: 6, TOW: 22
• The game would have been over already, if not for our 10 turn overs, which lead to 8 fast break pts for DREX

Start of 2nd half

4 players already in double figures, and our lead increased to more than 20 pts. We are now +20 in rebounding. We should cruise our way to victory here. Up 69-46, 12:45. I didn't see the need for my starters to come back on the floor. All players played, including the 4 walk ons.


Final Score: Drexel - 72, Towson - 90


Box Scores
[INDENT]Hardy 20, 9, 0 (*)
Hale 18, 3, 1
DeMond 11, 6, 0
Wilkerson 10, 6, 3
Desmond 10, 1, 0
Hill 6, 2, 0
Barber 4, 3, 0
Roberson 3, 2, 3
Weaks 2, 4, 1
Martin 2, 1, 6
Green 2, 0, 1
Ford 2, 0, 0
Granger 0, 3, 4, 4 tos
Toxey 0, 1, 1
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 66-42%
REB: +26
TO: +14
Pts in paint: +36
2nd chance: +9
Fast break: Even
[/INDENT]
Notes

• Much of the 2nd half became more of a practice session for the walk ons and seldom-used players. Everyone scored, except for the 2 back up point guards.

CAA Conference Standings

1. Towson, 12-2 (W1)
2. Delaware, 11-3 (W2)
3. Georgia St, 9-5 (L1)
4. VCU, 9-5 (W5)
5. James Madison, 8-6 (L5)
6. NC Wilmington, 8-6 (W1)
7. George Mason, 6-8 (L1)
8. Hofstra, 5-9 (W1)
9. Northeastern, 5-9 (L2)
10. Drexel, 5-9 (L1)
11. William & Mary, 3-11 (W1)
12. Old Dominion, 3-11 (L1)

[randy]

Rank (Media/Coaches): #24 / NR; RPI: #13; Bubble watch: (In) #29

Feb 14, 2001: George Mason (10-13, 6-8) @ #24 Towson (17-5, 11-2)

Start of 1st half

SF Aaron Hale got injured. GM started the game with 1-13 FG, but hit their last 2 shots. Up 12-6, 11:16. Had to stretch my bench because of the injury to Hale. GM got into penalty, but we shot poorly from the FT line, 6-13. Halftime, Up 28-23.

Key stats / Notes (Halftime)

• FG shooting: GM 24%, TOW 48%
• Having an opponent that shot 24% FG (20% 3PT), we can only blame ourselves on why this game is close, whether its out FT shooting or the 5 off rebounds we have given up.

Start of 2nd half

GM beginning to get consistent on their outside shots, and had continued to stay close in this game. Up 40-36, 14:46. We have played better offensively in the 2nd half, including zero turn overs, but GM has always come up with clutch plays and we still can't get enough seprataion. Up 48-43, 11:04.

We finally get to increase our lead to double digits, with consistent shooting from SG Haven Wilkerson, 14 of his 19 pts here in the 2nd half. Up 58-48, 7:43. Lead mostly stayed in double-digits, and time is running out for GM to start a rally. Up 67-54, 2:24. Should be safe now, but I'm leaving my starters on the floor.


Final Score: George Mason - 58, Towson - 75


Box Scores
[INDENT]Wilkerson 31, 4, 4 (*)
Hardy 17, 10, 0
DeMond 10, 8, 1
Green 8, 3, 1
Granger 3, 3, 2
Weaks 2, 6, 2
Hale 2, 0, 0
Desmond 2, 2, 0
Martin 0, 2, 4, fouled out
Barber 0, 1, 0
Hill 0, 1, 0
Roberson 0, 0, 2
[/INDENT]
Stats Comparison
[INDENT]FG: 54-33%
REB: +13
TO: +3
Pts in paint: +28
2nd chance: +7
Fast break: +3
[/INDENT]
Notes

• I was left with only SG Haven Wilkerson, as my only dependable perimeter threat, and he didn't disappoint today, shooting at a very efficient 12-21 FG.

CAA Conference Standings

1. Towson, 13-2 (W2)
2. Delaware, 11-4 (L1)
3. Georgia St, 10-5 (W1)
4. James Madison, 9-6 (W1)
5. NC Wilmington, 9-6 (W2)
6. VCU, 9-6 (L1)
7. George Mason, 6-9 (L2)
8. Hofstra, 6-9 (W2)
9. Northeastern, 6-9 (W1)
10. Drexel, 5-10 (L2)
11. William & Mary, 3-12 (L1)
12. Old Dominion, 3-12 (L2)