TOWSON, Md. – Sophomore guard Sianni Martin's layup with 10 seconds to play helped the Towson University women's basketball team rally for a 61-58 win over Norfolk State University on Thursday evening in SECU Arena. The Tigers (7-4), who trailed by 10 with 7:47 to play, snapped a three-game losing streak with the victory.

The Tigers wrapped up nonconference schedule with the win. Towson finished nonconference play with a better than .500 record and its most nonconference wins since the 2011-12 squad was 9-3 in nonconference play.

THE BASICS
Towson 61, Norfolk State 58
SECU Arena, Towson, Md.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Tigers and Spartans struggled to find a rhythm in the first 10 minutes of the game. The two sides combined for 15 points as the visitors took a 9-6 lead after one quarter.
• Towson opened the second quarter on an 8-0 run and took a 14-9 lead with 6:55 to play. Junior forward Mary Cuevas had four points for the Tigers during that run.
• Norfolk State (5-7) responded by scoring the next seven points in the game and took a 16-14 lead with 4:14 left on the clock. Alexys Long had a three-point play for the Spartans during that stretch.
• The two teams traded points as a Cuevas layup with 2:07 to go tied the game at 18-18.
• Towson scored four of the final five points in the second quarter and took a 22-19 lead at the half.
• All four of those points came from the foul line as sophomore forward Brittany Tarr was 4-for-4 from the charity stripe.
• Tarr led the Tigers at the half with eight points, all of which came from the foul line.
• At the half, Norfolk State was shooting 23.3 percent from the field while the Tigers were shooting 20 percent. Towson was 12-for-14 from the foul line while the Spartans were 4-for-9.
• Towson scored four of the first seven points in the third quarter and led 26-22 with 6:27 showing on the clock.
• Norfolk State used a 13-4 run to take a 35-30 lead with 2:50 to go in the stanza. The Spartans were 8-for-9 from the charity stripe during that scoring spree.
• Towson battled back and tied the game at 35-35 on a pair of foul shots from senior guard Raven Bankston with 1:08 to go in the quarter.
• Norfolk State scored the final six points of the stanza and took a 41-35 lead after three quarters. Kayla Roberts had four points during that run.
• The Spartans scored eight of the first 12 points in the final period and took a 49-39 lead with 7:47 to play. Kiara Phillips drained a pair of three-pointers during that run.
• Towson used a 14-4 run to tie the game at 53-53 with 3:11 to play. The Tigers were a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe during that run. Bankston and Martin each had four points during that run.
• The two teams traded baskets as Phillips' jumper with 1:19 to play gave the visitors a 57-55 lead. However that was the final field goal Norfolk State scored in the game.
• Martin connected on the Tigers' first three-pointer of the game at 1:07, which gave the Tigers a 58-57 lead.
• Norfolk State made 1-of-2 from the foul line with 40 seconds to play which tied the game at 58-58.
• After the Spartans missed a layup with 17 seconds left on the clock, Martin grabbed the rebound and went the length of the floor for the layup which gave Towson the 60-58 lead.
• Redshirt junior guard Raine Bankston went 1-for-2 from the foul line with one second left to secure the 61-58 win.

 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Towson's win allowed the Tigers to match their win total from a year ago. Last year, the Tigers didn't earn their seventh win of the season until March 9 in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Tournament.
• With both teams struggling to shoot the ball from the field (neither team shot better than 36% from the field), the difference in the game came at the foul line. Towson was 24-for-28 (85.7%) from the charity stripe while Norfolk State was 16-for-26 (61.5%).
• Martin led all scorers with 16 points, four rebounds and three assists. Thirteen of her 16 points came in the second half to help the Tigers complete the comeback.
• Raven Bankston contributed 14 points, 12 of which came in the second half. She added four rebounds, four steals and three assists.
• Tarr had a season-high 13 points after draining a career-high 11 shots from the charity stripe.
• Cuevas had a game-high 10 rebounds and added eight points.
• Towson finished with 10 steals, it was the eighth time this season the Tigers have recorded double digit steals.
• Phillips led Norfolk State with 15 points and four assists.

The Tigers are back in action when CAA play begins on Monday, Jan. 2. Towson travels to Drexel for a 2 p.m. game in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.