TOWSON, Md. ? Junior guard Reggie Holmes scored 18 points, all from beyond the arc, to lead Morgan State (18-10) to an 80-64 victory over crosstown rival Towson (9-20) in an ESPNU BracketBuster contest Saturday afternoon in the Towson Center.
Holmes lit up the scoreboard at crucial times for the Bears who never trailed in the 23rd meeting between the two Baltimore schools. In stretching its win streak to seven, Morgan takes a 12-11 lead in the series. It was the Bears' first appearance in the 7th Annual BracketBuster event.
“They really clicked offensively,” said Towson coach Pat Kennedy, speaking mainly of Morgan's second half performance when they made 18 of 34 field goal attempts while building to an 18-point lead in the final moments. “They were very sharp with the basketball. We didn't convert and we did not make the plays we needed to make.”
The Tigers launched several runs to catch the Bears before things got out of hand in the late stages. Morgan led 30-19 when the Tigers went on a 9-0 run to cut the lead to a two, 30-28 with 1:38 left in the first half. But that's as close as Towson would get the rest of the way. Holmes buried two of his six three-pointers in the final minute to help the Bears to a 39-30 lead at the break.
The Tigers, who have lost 12 of their last 14 games, mounted another comeback effort early in the second half. Sophomore Jarrel Smith, who finished with a game high 21 points, scored on a breakaway layup that trimmed Morgan's advantage to four, 39-35. But almost on cue Holmes stepped up on the other end of the floor with a trey that stopped Towson's charge and sent the game in the other direction.
Holmes, who had seven rebounds to go along with his 18 points, was one of five players in double figures for the Bears, who have won seven straight road games. Most impressive was freshman Kevin Thompson's 12 points and nine rebounds off the bench. Morgan outrebounded the Tigers 51-35.
Senior Rocky Coleman was Towson's only other player in double figures with 13 points. The Tigers' leading scorer, senior forward Junior Hairston, was frustrated by Morgan's defense and registered just three points on 1 for 10 shooting from the floor. He reigned supreme on the boards, however, grabbing a game high 11 rebounds.
