TOWSON, Md. ? Marty Johnson, who played for the Tigers from 1986 to 1988 during their East Coast Conference days, is Towson's 2009 Colonial Athletic Association Legend.
The CAA began its legends program eight years ago, Towson's first year in the league. The program recognizes outstanding contributions by various members of each school's basketball history. A recipient can be a former player or coach.
Beginning with George “Bucky” Kimmett in 2002, Towson's legends have also included Kurk Lee, Bill Leonard, Vince Angotti, Chuck Lightening, Devin Boyd and Bobby Washington.
Johnson and the entire 2009 class will be recognized at the Thursday night awards banquet
Although he spent only two seasons at Towson, Marty Johnson, '88 made a tremendous impact on the Tigers' basketball program.
A transfer from the University of Richmond where he was a reserve for two years, the Baltimore native joined the Tigers prior to the 1986-87 season when Towson was a very young Division I program. With Johnson in the lineup, the Tigers enjoyed unprecedented success over the next two years.
In 1986-87, he made an immediate impact, leading the Tigers to a 5-1 start... Despite being picked to finish last in the East Coast Conference, the Tigers had a winning record for most of the season until a five-game losing streak in February left them with a 12-15 record.
Seeded sixth in the ECC Tournament, the Tigers drew third-seeded Rider in the quarter-finals. Although Towson was 0-4 in its previous ECC Tournament games, the Tigers were hosting the tournament in the Towson Center. Led by Johnson, who scored 18 points with 5 assists and 5 steals, the Tigers reached the semi-finals with an 89-79 win over Rider. In the semi-finals, he scored a career high 24 points to lead Towson past Lafayette by 70-66, the Tigers' first win in eight games against the Leopards. However, the Tigers' hopes of winning their first ECC championship were ended in the finals as Bucknell edged Towson, 86-74. Marty was named to the ECC all-tournament team after averaging 19.0 points and 4.3 assists per game.
While leading the Tigers to a 14-16 record, Johnson was the team's second-leading scorer with a 14.8 average. He was also sixth in the ECC, averaging 4.2 assists per game. With 75 steals in 30 games, he was fourth in the ECC with a 2.5 average.
As a senior, the Cardinal Gibbons High School product had an even better season, averaging a team-leading 17.6 points per game. The sixth-leading scorer in the ECC, he was named second team All-ECC. With 124 steals in 30 games, he set a school record for steals and ranked second in NCAA Division I behind Mookie Blaylock of Oklahoma. He was honored as the ECC's Defensive Player of the Year.
Named second team all-region by the NABC, he also averaged 5.0 assists per game, fifth in the ECC.
For the second year in a row, he led the Tigers on a run through the ECC Tournament. In the ECC Tournament, the seventh-seeded Tigers stunned second-seeded Drexel, 74-67. In that game, Johnson scored 24 points while holding the Dragons' Michael Anderson, the ECC Player of the Year, to 15 points. In the semi-finals, Johnson turned in another 24-point effort as the Tigers edged Rider, 59-56.
Playing in the ECC championship game for the second year in a row, the Tigers faced Lehigh before a crowd of 4,271 and a national TV audience on ESPN. However, the Tigers came up short as Lehigh pulled out an 84-78 win. In his final game, Johnson scored 19 points with five assists as Towson ended the year with a 14-16 record again.
In his two seasons as a Tiger, Marty Johnson played in 60 games and scored 971 points, a 16.2 average. He also had 199 steals, a 3.3 average. With 278 assists, he averaged 4.6 assists per game. He ranks fourth on the Tigers' career list of steal leaders and his 16.2 career scoring average places him ninth.
Since graduating from Towson a degree in Sociology, Marty has served as the president of Friends and Family Real Estate Investment Company in Baltimore. He and his wife, Kimberly, are the parents of four children, including two boys and two girls.
