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| @Towson_MBB Review: A Season to Remember

Nobody outside the Towson basketball program knew what head coach Pat Skerry had in store for Tiger fans during the 2012-13 season. That's why it's funny to look all the way back to the first exhibition game against Bloomsburg -- a game the Tigers won 87-65.

“We did some things offensively tonight which were not surprising because we have the ability to score,” said Skerry after the game. “Our defense has miles to go. We're nowhere near where we need to be. I love our guys though and the work and effort that they've put in. I think our upside can be pretty good.”

Towson had several obstacles to overcome during the 2012-13 season. First off, they had to get over the stigma of the 1-31 season in 2011-12. Nobody knew or cared that Towson was the most inexperienced team in the nation; only that they won one game and were in the midst of 16 straight losing seasons. Secondly, the team had to realize that when the season ended on March 2, there would be no postseason. The current players would be penalized for sins of the past and it was just another hurdle to overcome.

Starting out against future CAA opponent College of Charleston on the road sure sounded a lot better than facing Kansas as the Tigers did in 2011-12. But this wasn't much easier as the Cougars jumped out to a 40-14 halftime lead and held on to win 75-58. Junior Jerrelle Benimon led the Tigers with 23 points as Skerry's worries about the defense came true. The Tigers allowed Charleston to shoot 56.3 percent from the field, including 60 percent for the first half.

The Tigers were then off to Eastern Kentucky to take part in the Comfort Suites Invitational. That meant four games in four days from November 16-19. Towson went 3-1, defeating Radford (75-67), Kennesaw State (69-63) and Cincinnati Christian (79-40). Their only loss took place against the host, a 71-69 defeat in overtime. Junior Rafriel Guthrie scored 16 points off the bench to lead the Tigers, who outrebounded Eastern Kentucky 43-30, but couldn't overcome 17 turnovers.

Towson was 3-2 heading into their first local test against rival Loyola, where it fell 65-53 on Nov. 26 at Reitz Arena. Jerome Hairston led the Tigers with 13 points, but offensively, they were just never in sync. They shot just 32 percent from the field and made two of 12 from beyond the arc.

The Tigers also struggled in their next game, falling at UMBC, 66-62. Towson again struggled offensively, shooting 37 percent from the field.

On Dec. 5, Towson took a trip to Vermont and came back with a strong 68-64 victory as Benimon led the team with 29 points and 10 rebounds.

They followed that solid performance with a 46-40 loss at Georgetown on Dec. 8. The Tigers' defense was stifling as they held the eventual BIG EAST Player of the Year Otto Porter to just 10 points and the Hoyas to only 29 percent shooting from the field.

Even with the strong showing at Georgetown, the Tigers ended up losing four games in a row, falling at Temple (72-61) and at home to North Dakota State (65-48) and Coppin State (64-61).

Towson went into the Christmas break at 4-8 and needed to regroup. Prior to the New Year, the Tigers took the cross-country flight to Corvallis, Ore. to take on the Oregon State Beavers out of the Pac-12. Towson could have easily packed it in when it got down 44-25 with 16:08 left. Instead, the Tigers went on a 35-16 run to tie the game at 60-60 and force overtime. In overtime, junior Marcus Damas nailed a jumper with 0.8 seconds left to give the Tigers their first win over a BCS program since 1995, when they defeated Louisville. Benimon had a monster game with 20 points and a career-high 21 rebounds

That Damas jumper was more than just a game-changer. Towson was a 4-8 team searching for an identity and after the Oregon State win, the Tigers won four straight games and six of seven. They started the New Year with wins at UNCW (79-74), at Drexel (69-66) and a scintillating double overtime win over William & Mary (99-86) at home.

On Jan. 12, they fell at home to Northeastern, 70-59, but didn't stay down long. They bounced back with a rod win over Delaware, 69-66, followed by a 73-47 rout over James Madison, on Jan. 19.

Towson had won four straight games on the road, but was still inconsistent at home. The Tigers lost to Georgia State, 71-69, on Jan. 21 as eventual CAA Rookie of the Year R.J. Hunter erupted for 27 points, including many critical buckets down the strech in a tight game.

When Towson got out of its comfort zone during the 2012-13 season, Skerry went back to emphasizing the formula he's always preached -- defense and rebounding. The Tigers were outrebounded by the Panthers by four and allowed Georgia State to shoot 11-for-22 from beyond the arc.

"For us, if we don't defend and rebound at a high level, there is really no one that we will beat," said Skerry after the Georgia State game. "We obviously proved that we can't handle prosperity. We didn't guard the three-point line or rebound. That's not who we are. Because we didn't do that, we got exactly what we deserved. We will not win shootouts."

Towson went on a mini-slump after the loss to the Panthers, falling at home to George Mason (77-67) and on the road to William & Mary (63-56).

Once again, Towson was at a crossroads in the season at 10-12 overall and 5-4 in the CAA.

The Tigers, led by the stellar play of Benimon, bounced back again though and went on a four-game winning streak. They won 68-66 at Old Dominion, topped UNCW (81-68) and Delaware (85-65) at home and then got revenge on the Panthers by downing them in overtime, 90-82, in Atlanta on Feb. 9. Benimon led the team in scoring in three of those games and Guthrie tallied 23 against Georgia State.

After falling at eventual CAA Champion James Madison, 75-70, the Tigers came back to end the season winning four straight games. That stretch included wins at Hofstra (57-50) and a thrilling 72-71 victory against Drexel. The win over the Dragons ensured the fact that the Tigers would have a winning season for the first time since the 1995-96 campaign when they went 16-12.

In a season of milestones, Towson had one more to go. They had never defeated George Mason in the CAA and had a shot at redemption on Feb. 26. Benimon had the game of the year, scoring a career-high 31 points, but the Tigers needed overtime to beat the Patriots, 85-81. The victory halted a 20-game losing streak to George Mason, who last fell to the Tigers on Jan. 6, 1992.

Playing in the final men's basketball game in the Towson Center on March 2, the Tigers ended their season in dramatic fashion, beating Hofstra 67-64 as Hairston scored 17 points. Towson finished the season, in front of a crowd of 4,119, tied for second-place in the CAA with Delaware at 13-5. The Tigers were 18-13 overall and an impressive 9-8 on the road. By posting their 18th win of the season, the Tigers completed a NCAA-record 17.5 game improvement over last year's team that finished 1-31.

"This is such an amazing accomplishment," said Skerry. "To set an NCAA record like this means so much. This year, I learned what pride means and I learned it from these players. We had no post-season in front of us and we just kept going. My appreciation and deep respect for these guys will last forever."

Benimon (17.1 ppg, 11.2 rpg, 1.9 bpg) was named CAA Player of the Year and to the CAA All-Defensive team. Hairston (9.9 ppg) was chosen for the CAA All-Rookie squad and Skerry was voted the CAA Coach of the Year.

The Tigers will lose grad student Bilal Dixon, who averaged 6.9 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 52.4 percent from the field with 38 blocks. However, Damas (11.4 ppg, 5.3 rpg), Mike Burwell (9 ppg) and Guthrie (8.1 ppg) will return as seniors.

Towson was successful during the 2012-13 season due to a defense that allowed teams to shoot just 39.7 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from beyond the arc. The Tigers also outrebounded their opponents by a +6.5 margin per game.

Towson will have to improve on its assists (10.2) to turnover (14.8) margin (-3.9). The Tigers also shot just 65.4 percent from the foul line and only 32 percent from beyond the arc.

Help is coming in the form of sophomore Vermont transfer Four McGlynn, who shot 89 percent from the foul line and 38 percent from beyond the arc as a freshman in 2011-12. He averaged 12 points per game off the bench to lead the Catamounts.

Towson should also have a stronger bench with the return of sophomore Kris Walden, along with freshmen Timajh Parker-Rivera and Barrington Alston, who missed most of the season due to illness. Freshman Marquis Marshall sat out the season while taking a redshirt and Towson is also bringing in three more freshmen in Shamiek Sheppard (6-5, 210), a 3-star Rivals recruit; John Davis (6-5, 215) from Philadelphia; and Walter Foster (6-8, 230) from Atlanta.

The Tigers will also open their new arena next season with Navy as their first opponent. The CAA Tournament will also be moving from the Richmond Coliseum to Baltimore next season. One things for sure, this team has certainly given us a lot to look forward to during the summer months.



-TowsonTigers.com-

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