TOWSON, Md. - It sounds like a broken record, but in the first four games, the Tigers have 95 turnovers. That's an average of 24 turnovers per game. If the Tigers average that figure over the next 27 games, they will shatter the school record of 572 that was set in 2002-03 by committing 744 turnovers.
On Sunday, Towson lost to UNC Greensboro, 72-60, in the consolation game of the Maui on the Mainland Regional from Murfreesboro, Tenn. Towson had 28 turnovers and just six assists in that loss as UNCG scored 31 points off of Towson turnovers. In their previous loss to Belmont on Saturday (87-41), the Tigers turned the ball over 23 times. The Bruins took advantage of that stat with 26 points off turnovers.
On the one hand, Towson was asking two freshman guards to start their careers off against Kansas and Michigan on the road and then they had to face an excellent Belmont team that lost at Duke by just one point. But, on Sunday, they lost to a 1-3 UNC Greensboro team that won just seven games last year and had not really been competitive in its three losses.
The game was tied at 21-21 at the half, so the Tigers were very competitive in this one. Towson ended up shooting 55% from the field and held the Spartans to 38% shooting from the field. But, add in the 28 turnovers and the 52% free throw shooting (13 of 25) and those those things are tough to overcome.
The guard position has been an issue for a very long time for the Tigers. I wrote about the biggest reason for the turnaround of the Towson football team (posted on Sunday) and that was at the quarterback position. The Tigers will make a major step when the guard position is upgraded.
Right now, the two freshmen starters - Kris Walden and Deon Jones - are averaging a combined 12 turnovers per game (Jones averages five turnovers per game while Walden has a 7.0 average). Because of the youth and lack of help from the frontcourt, teams are pressing Towson from start to finish. At some point, the Tigers will improve against the press, but right now they are struggling and Coach Pat Skerry doesn't want to hear about excuses.
"You don't get any points for putting freshmen out there," said Skerry in the postgame interview on WNST. "We've been consistent at turning it over. We have to get better or get new guys. We have to improve skill level or add pieces."
The good news is that Towson will finally be home this weekend. You can't ask for a worse break for Skerry and one of the youngest teams in the country to start their schedule on the road. The Tigers will face Oregon State at the Towson Center on Saturday, which is the latest start for a home game since the 2002-03 season when they opened at home on December 5.
Another problem for Towson is the fact that the Tigers have had numerous players attempting to play the point over the last decade. This season, Walden is the closest thing to a true point guard on the roster and when he sits, Jones, who is really a swingman, has to play the point.
Skerry can't make a trade or sign a free agent. There's no Chris Paul or Steve Nash breaking ankles in pickup games at Burdick (though they have nothing better to do at the moment).
Consistency at the point has been a major issue, going back to the 90s. Here are just some of the names who have played point guard over the last five years: Brian Morris, Dre Conner, Josh Brown, Troy Franklin, Tim Crossin, C.C. Williams and Vernon Carr.
Skerry is bringing in three guards next season who can handle the ball in Frank Mason, Jerome Hairston and USF transfer Mike Burwell while junior power forward Jerrelle Benimon, a Georgetown transfer, handles it extremely well.
But, you can't only pin the turnover problem on the guards. The frontcourt players have to handle the ball better. Senior Robert Nwankwo, sophomore Erique Gumbs, sophomore Marcus Damas and freshman Jervon Pressley have combined for 41 turnovers in four games, an average of over 10 turnovers per game from your frontcourt.
The good thing is that Towson has something to build on as the Tigers have outrebounded their opponents by an average of two rebounds per game and Nwankwo is averaging 13.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game against some higher quality big men.
Fortunately, there are 27 games left to work on limiting the turnovers and it all starts against another tough team on Saturday when the Tigers face Oregon State of the Pac-12 at 2 p.m. at the Towson Center.
