FEDORA

[PointGuard]

Jan. 28, 2023: Towson Tigers (14-4, 6-1) @ Drexel Dragons (10-8, 4-3)

Matt Barnes, 2nd Assistant Coach

SF Aaron Dupay hit two quick 3’s making it 6-0. Drexel hit 5 of first 6 shots to take 12-4 lead. Meanwhile we hit just 1 of our first 10 shots to drop behind 17-8. SF Wayne Burrough then hit 3 straight shots to get us to within 3. But we slid back again and by the end of the half trailed 37-26, hitting just 31% of our shots. Burrough was our top scorer with 9 points. Coach Fed has been kicking butts, but thus far that’s not done much to improve our team’s level of play.

Our shooting didn’t improve in the 2nd half and we fell behind by 14 points. Midway through the half we were still down by 12. For the next 8 minutes we would cut the repeatedly lead to 8 or 10 and then fall behind by 12-14 points. Drexel pulled away in the last few minutes and we fell hard by a final score of 78-61.

We hit just 37% of our FG attempts, 13% of our 3P attempts and 63% of our FT attempts. We out-rebounded the Dragons 40-31 but made 17 turnovers to just 10 by Drexel. Overall just a very poor showing by our team.

SF Wayne Burrough scored 17 while hauling down 9 boards and PF Deon Penn had 16 points and 8 rebounds. The rest of the team failed to produce.

The loss slipped us into a tie for 1st place with James Madison. We play them this coming week so the tie will be broken very quickly.

[PointGuard]

Feb. 1, 2023: James Madison Dukes (14-6, 6-2) @ Towson Tigers (14-6, 6-2)

Donny Flint, C:

It was very clear that Coach Fed and the other coaches were pissed off about how we played against Drexel. They worked our asses off in practice and there was a lot of yelling. Coaches want us to keep freshman SG Nick Calhoun from breaking loose. He’s averaging 14.4 ppg and 5.6 apg but has scored over 20 points in 6 of the Dukes games this season plus he’s hitting 50% of his FG attempts and 43% of his 3’s. They also want Deon and me to keep C Chris Reid from getting easy shots inside since he’s knocked down 59% of his shots this year. They’ve been asking me if I’m feeling OK since my production has been down the past 3 games. I think it’s because teams have been tightening their defense on me. Also the refs got me into foul trouble in 2 of those games.

SG Dominick Collins scored 6 points in the first minute of play as we took a 6-2 lead. But there were 11 lead changes and the game was tied 6 times in the first half. At one point we dropped behind by 7 points but cam back to forge a 39-39 halftime tie. I scored 6 and grabbed 7 boards but also picked up 2 fouls. Our leading scorer Dominick Collins with 14 points. C Chris Reid scored 9 for the Dukes so it was on my shoulders to defense him better in the 2nd half.

The early going of the 2nd half was much like the first half with the lead shifting back and forth. But midway through the half, James Madison got hot and opened a 9 point lead. Coach Fed got us to clamp down defensively and we slowly came back and finally took a 78-77 lead with 6 minutes left. With 1:43 remaining the game was tied 86-86. We got tagged with a picky foul so the Dukes went ahead 87-86 with 40 seconds to go. Coach Fed set up a pick and roll which worked perfectly with PG Shaun White driving down the lane and pulling up to sink a 6 footer giving us an 88-87 lead with 37 seconds on the clock. The Dukes missed a shot and fouled immediately sending SG Ryan Taylor to the line with 16 seconds left to play. Ryan made the first but missed the second shot putting us up by 2. We locked down defensively keeping them from getting an open shot and they were called with a travelling violation with 2 seconds to go. We escaped with an 89-87 win putting us back into sole possession of 1st place in the CAA.

There were 26 lead changes and 13 ties in this game. Even though we were outshot 53% to 49%, we won by out-rebounding the Dukes 30-28 and gaining a 17-11 turnover advantage. SG Dominick Collins poured in 24 points plus had 4 assists and 4 blocks and SF Wayne Burrough hit for 19 points. I had 8 points but pulled down 13 rebounds. James Madison’s guards, PG Chris Ausler and SG Nick Calhoun, scored 22 and 20 points, respectively.

Reserve SF Ross Davis sprained his wrist and will likely miss a couple games.

[PointGuard]

Feb. 4, 2023: Towson Tigers (15-5, 7-2) @ Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens (8-12, 4-5)

Baltimore Sun

FLINT STRIKES FOR TIGERS

In a game that Towson needed to win to maintain a slim 1 game lead over James Madison to remain atop the Colonial Athletic Association standings, the Tigers center Donny Flint came up big. Flint pumped in 22 points, scoured the boards to grab 19 rebounds and came up with 4 blocks. That was enough for Towson to come away with a 61-51 victory on the road against the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens. The Tigers held the lead throughout nearly the entire game and were ahead 30-21 at the end of the first half. The only other player for Towson to score in double figures was reserve PF Jason Vickers with 11 points.

Defense predominated otherwise with the Tigers only able to knock down 33% of the field goal attempts and Delaware limited to 32% from the field. But Towson completely dominated the boards, coming away with a 46 rebounds while Delaware had only 33.

Individual Stats: C Donny Flint: 22 pts, 19 reb, 4 blk; PF Jason Vickers: 11 pts, 2 reb; SF Wayne Burrough: 9 pts, 4 reb; SG Dominick Collins: 6 pts, 6 reb, 2 stl; PF Deon Penn: 3 pts, 9 reb; SG Shaun White: 4 pts, 2 reb, 3 asts; SG Ryan Taylor: 4 pts, 2 asts; PG Alex Haywood: 2 pts.

Coach Frederick Aura said, “Donny was absolutely dominant inside tonight. Even though he was in foul trouble throughout most of the game, he was able to keep from fouling out and carried us the entire way.” Aura added, “We’ve shot very poorly in our last two road games, so we need to improve upon that the rest of the way through our season. Gotta give credit to Delaware’s defense though. Fortunately our defense was as strong as theirs.”

[PointGuard]

Feb. 8, 2023: Charleston Cougars (14-9, 6-4) @ Towson Tigers (16-5, 8-2)

Rexa Cartwright, Towson student, friend of Janeka who helps to take care of the Aura’s kids

I’m still helping Janeka and Frederick with caring for their kids. It's been a good way to make some money to help me pay some of my college expenses and the Aura's have been very nice to me. Omari and Malik now are both in high school so they really don’t need that, but Devany is now a 1st grader so I care for her when Janeka’s shifts at the hospital make it necessary.

Tonight I brought the boys with me so they can watch the game. Both are really into basketball and I’m told are very good players. We’re sitting behind the Tigers’ bench. I don’t know much about baskeball, but Omari and Malik said this could be a good game because Charleston is one of the better teams in the conference. They said their father was worried about the Cougars because they’re a good shooting team. Towson beat Charleston earlier this season by 6 points.

The TIgers got off to a good start and led 13-7 at the first media timeout. Even though the Cougars made a couple runs that tied the game, Towson was able to re-assert their dominance and ended the half on top 43-31. Malik and Omari said that Towson’s defense was the difference in the game. The dominant players for the Tigers were C Donny Flint with 10 points and 6 rebounds, SF Wayne Burrough with 8 points and 7 rebounds, and SG Dominick Collins with 9 points.

Towson opened a 20 point lead with 15-1/2 minutes left in the 2nd half. The Tigers overwhelmed Charleston and buried them by an 89-58 final score. Omari and Malik were crowing about how Towson outshot the Cougars 52% to 34% (and 53% to 38% from 3-point distance), dominated the boards 41-33 and held a 13-9 turnover advantage.

Top scorers were: C Donny Flint—21 points and 15 rebounds, SG Dominick Collins—21 points and 7 assists plus 3 steals and 4 blocks, PF Deon Penn—14 points, PG Shaun White—11 points and 9 assists, and SF Wayne Burrough—10 points and 11 rebounds.

[PointGuard]

Towerlight (Towson University student newspaper):

Tigers Roar

Towson’s basketball team kept a tight grip onto sole possession of 1st place in the Colonial Athletic Association with their 89-58 humbling of Charleston. The Tigers 9-2 record in the CAA kept them a game ahead of 2nd place James Madison and put more distance between them and the rest of the conference. Towson’s season record now stands at 17-5 and their RPI is 35th best within all of Division I basketball.

In their victory over Charleston all five starters scored in double figures. But more impressively, all five are AVERAGING in double figures for the entire season. Leading the way is sophomore center Donny Flint with 14.3 ppg. Flint, who sat out last season after transferring from Butler where he played just one season for the Bulldogs, is also averaging 10.7 rpg. He’s been named the CAA’s player of the week twice this season and has 10 double-double games this season. Last season’s scoring leader, senior PF Deon Penn, has continued his consistent excellent offensive and defensive play inside and is averaging 11.3 ppg and 6.6 rpg. Penn and Flint, backed by the team’s two Jason’s, Jason Vickers and Jason Miner, provide interior dominance that other teams have a tough time matching. SF Wayne Burrough is averaging 11.0 ppg and 5.9 rpg. Burrough has been the model of consistency during his 3 seasons with the Tigers, averaging 10.5 ppg and 5.3 rpg as a freshman, 10.0 ppg and 5.6 rpg as a sophomore before continuing to improve on those stats this season. Burrough was the star of Coach Aura’s inaugural recruiting class at Towson. At the guard positions, sophomore SG Dominick Collins and PG Shaun White have been solid performers throughout this season. Collins, another of Aura’s transfers who also sat out last season after playing at Southern California as a freshman, is averaging 10.6 ppg, 3.0 apg and 3.2 rpg. Collins has scored over 20 points in two of the Tigers last three games and has hit 22 of 37 shots in those 3 games. White is a junior who played two seasons of JC ball. He’s averaging 10.2 ppg, 4.8 apg, and 2.4 rpg. He’s also hitting 46.2% of his FG attempts, 43.6% of his 3’s and 93.0% of his FT’s.

Lauding his starters, Coach Aura said, “I had some concerns when the season started since 3 of the 5 had never played for us before. But they coalesced as a group very quickly. And they continue to play better and better together as the season progresses. Not only are they strong offensively, but they all play solid and aggressive defense. If an opponent is successful at shutting down one or two of them, the others will pick up any slack for us. I know I wouldn’t want to have to prepare a game plan to take on such a talented five. Our competitors can’t focus on one or two. To do so just means they’re going to get burned by the others. The other thing that sets these guys apart is that they’re unselfish. Not one of them is looking to be the “star”. Instead they just want to contribute and work together as an efficient unit and seem to exalt in making each other look good.”

He followed up by saying, “I don’t want to discount the other players on our team. Several of them could be starting. It makes my job a lot easier to be able to send in guys from the bench knowing that they will fit in well and play solid offense and defense. Three of our top subs, SG Ryan Taylor, PF Jason Vickers, and C Jason Miner, are seniors. Each of those three provide solid minutes each and every game as they’ve done in previous seasons. My other reserves who are on scholarships will be back in upcoming seasons and I think several of them have the ability to step into starting roles in the future. The style of aggressive defense we play means our starters will tire, so it’s imperative that our bench is ready and able to fill in successfully.”

Aura added, “I don’t want to miss giving a shout out to our 3 walk-ons and ineligible transfer player who are a part of our team. All four of these guys work hard in practice and are a big component in our preparation for upcoming games. They’re also good teammates who help the team blend together well. So while fans may focus on the stats of our starters, it takes all 15 guys on our team to keep us winning.”

When asked how this year’s team would do the rest of the season, Coach Aura responded, “I never predict the future. We want to keep everyone on our team healthy and injury-free. If we do that I think we will do well within the CAA. Any CAA team can beat us though, particularly when we play on their court. Four of our remaining seven games are on the road. And when it comes down to post-season tournament play, it often takes a lot of good fortune as well as solid play. So I, like the entire team and my assistants, just have to focus on each upcoming game. Every team wants to knock us off. We try to turn that around by concentrating on the things that each opponent does well and figuring out how each of us can neutralize those aspects of their game.”

[PointGuard]

Feb. 11, 2023: Towson Tigers (17-5, 9-2) @ Elon Phoenix (9-13, 4-7)

Coach Frederick Aura

We’ve been playing pretty well, but road games are always a worry. I also am concerned that it’s easy for our guys to let up when we’re playing a team that’s down toward the bottom of the CAA standings. We beat these guys by 27 when they played at our place earlier this season. But that doesn’t ensure a victory when we play in their den. PF Erick Church and C Del Garren provide interior strength for the Phoenix. We need to keep them in check but that always increases the likelihood that our interior guys, Deon Penn and Donny Flint, can get into foul trouble. Yeah, I’m a worry wart.

Good early defense allowed us to take a 18-0 lead six minutes into the game. We continued to control the game and forged a 52-32 halftime advantage. The refs sent the two teams to the foul line for a total of 44 foul shots in the first half. Three of our starters and 2 our our subs had 2 fouls assessed against them in the half. We outshot the Phoenix 55% to 23%. Due to foul troubles, SG Dominick Collins only played 8 minutes by scored 9 points to lead our offense.

We continued to play well in the 2nd half but pretty much put it on cruise control. Solid play on both ends of the court yielded a surprisingly easy 89-69 victory. We now have a 2 game lead over 2nd place James Madison.

We had 4 players score in double figures: SF Wayne Burrough topped our scoring with 15 points, SG Dominick Collins hit for 13, and PG Shaun White and C Donny Flint both scored 10 points with Flint also pulling down 13 rebounds and blocking 3 shots. Our starters played well, but we also got scoring from 6 different reserves. I was particularly impressed with the level of play by subs PF Jason Vickers, PG Matt Faust, and SG Copley Dwiggins. Elon’s PF Erick Church led all scorers with 22 points.

[PointGuard]

WBAL Radio Sports Report

In local college basketball, the Towson Tigers hosted the Northeastern Huskies last night at SECU Arena on the Towson University campus. The Tigers' defense squashed the Huskies' offense in the first half. Northeastern could only convert 21% of their shots while Towson's offense pulled away for a 46-26 halftime advantage. Even though they relaxed their defense a bit in the 2nd half, the TIgers never let Northeastern back in the game. Towson drubbed the Huskies by a final score of 87-63. The Tigers dominated all phases of the game, outshooting Northeastern 42% to 35%, dominating the boards 46-29, and holding a 19-13 turnover advantage.

Leading the way for Towson was C Donny Flint with 10 points and 15 rebounds. But all the other starters for the TIgers also scored in double figures with SG Dominick Collins hitting for 13, PG Shaun White 11, and PF Deon Penn scoring 12 while pulling down 9 boards. Coach Aura played his bench liberally with all 6 reserves scoring.

[PointGuard]

WBAL Radio Sports Report

Towson's basketball team braved a snowstorm when they travelled to New York to take on the Hofstra Pride. But a fresh new foot of snow on the ground didn't stop the Tigers as they did their own storming, a 93-79 thrashing of Hofstra. Following an extremely close first half that was filled with numerous lead changes, the Tigers built steadily on their first half narrow 43-40 edge to go up by as much as 17 points in the 2nd half. The Tigers pulled away even though their talented center Donny Flint fouled out early in the 2nd half.

Dominick Collins led Towson's scoring with 20 points. It's the 3rd time in their last 6 games that Collins has scored 20 or more points. Other major contributors to the Tigers' offense were SF Wayne Burrough with 16 points and PF's Deon Penn and Jason Vickers, both of whom scored 14 points.

The win was the Tiger's 6th straight and improved Towson's season record to 20-5 and their CAA record to 12-2 which keeps them 2 games ahead of 2nd place James Madison. The Tigers will next host NC-Wilmington this Wednesday at SECU Arena.

[PointGuard]

Feb. 22, 2023: NC-Wilmington Seahawks (9-16, 4-10) @ Towson Tigers (20-5, 12-2)

Terrence Kennedy, Youth Basketball Coach

I coach a youth basketball team composed of 9 and 10 year olds. Towson University asked us to play a short exhibition game against another team of kids the same age during halftime of tonight’s game. Our kids are tremendously excited. I’ll try to pass along some thoughts on how the Tigers do against the Seahawks as well…that is if the kids don’t get too rambunctious while they sit in the stands waiting to play their exhibition game. I’ve never been to a Towson game before but have watched them on TV a little.

Towson had a tough time solving NC-Wilmington’s 2-3 zone defense but the Tigers’ defense is even more effective. 6 minutes into the game, Towson is on top 8-5. But it took 15 minutes into the game before the Tigers were able to shake the Seahawks to build a 27-18 advantage. When the half ended Towson was ahead 40-30 with SF Wayne Burrough dropping in 11 points and C Donny Flint grabbing 7 rebounds in the half for the Tigers.

My boys got out onto the court to play about 10 minutes against the other youth team. Play was erratic, even a little more than usual. But the crowd loved it. Both teams had a really tough time getting the ball in the hoop…lots of forced shots that never had a chance of going in. Finally our one good player, Bobby Fairchild, took control, got free for a couple individual drives and put in a few buckets. So we outscored the other team but it all didn’t really matter. The kids had fun and thought they were stars. Most of the boys left after we finished or early in the 2nd half since tomorrow is a school day. I stayed so I could watch the remainder of the Tigers/Seahawks game.

The Tigers scored the first 10 points of the 2nd half to take a 50-30 lead with 18 minutes remaining. Towson continued to control the game and went up by 29. At that point, Coach Aura played his entire bench which allowed NC-Wilmington to cut into the lead a little. No matter though. Towson stomped the Seahawks by a final score of 82-62. The Tigers controlled the boards 42-30 and held a 16-9 turnover advantage.

Leading the scoring for Towson was SF Wayne Burrough with 21 points. He also had 4 assists and 8 rebounds. SG Dominick Collins hit for 19 points plus had 7 assists and 6 boards, PF Deon Penn had a double-double (16 points and 12 rebounds), PF Shaun White had 14 points and 8 assists, and C Donny Flints had 12 rebounds.

James Madison got stomped at home by William & Mary, so the Tigers now have a 3 game lead in the Colonial Athletic Association.

[PointGuard]

Feb. 25, 2023: Towson Tigers (21-5, 13-2) @ William & Mary Tribe (11-15, 8-7)

Perry Winkle, Towson Athletic Director

I accompanied the team because I needed to meet with my counterpart from William & Mary.

First half was close all the way with the lead switching back and forth the whole 20 minutes. We cam out of it with a slim 33-31 lead. A combination of strong defense and weak shooting on both ends of the court.

Coach Aura must have revved the guys up good in the locker room because they came on in the 2nd half singeing the net. Our guys dropped in 53 points in the 2nd half to come away with an 86-74 road win. Our 44-29 advantage in rebounding was a big reason for our victory.

Six of our players scored in double figures: SG Dominick Collins dropped in 22 points, PF Deon Penn and SF Wayne Burrough hit for 14 points apiece, C Donny Flint had 13 points, PG Shaun White scored 12, and PF Jason Vickers added 11. Flint had 12 rebounds, Burrough pulled down 9, Penn had 8, and White grabbed 6. White also had 7 assists.

Late in the game, Jason Vickers was injured. Followup assessment determined he sustained a sprained toe. If this doesn’t keep him out of the next couple games, it’s likely to limit his action. Jason has been playing well coming off the bench and has one of the team’s best shooting percentage from the field. Shaun White is nursing a sore wrist, but it’s not expected to keep him from playing in our next game.