ELON, N.C. – Down 10 at one point in the first half and a possession with 2:44 to go, the Towson University men's basketball team finished the game on a 10-2 run to earn a 59-54 victory at Elon, its third straight victory in league play.
 
Towson (12-5, 3-1 CAA), down five at the break, held Elon (4-13, 1-3 CAA) to 34.5% shooting the second half.  With 2:44 to play, Cam Holden went on a personal 6-0 run to push Towson ahead by three.  Elon got a layup, but Towson free throws and defense held in the final seconds to give the Tigers a road win.
 
The Towson defense held Elon to 54 points, the lowest single-game total for the Phoenix this year.  54 points ties for the second-lowest point total for a Towson opponent this season.
 
Towson has now won three straight games, all in CAA play, its third three-game winning streak of the season.
 
Key Stats:

• As a team, Towson outrebounded Elon 34-29 in the game.  The big different came from the free throw line: Towson was 14-for-18 while Elon was 4-for-6.
• Cam Holden came one point shy of his season-high with 24 points to lead all players, including a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line.  He also notched seven steals, a career-high and most for a Towson player in a game since 2010, and four rebounds.
• In his first start of the season, Juwan Gray nearly had a double-double with 14 points and nine rebounds, each a season-high.  North Carolina-native Tyler Gill led the Tigers with three assists off the bench.
• For Elon, Hunter McIntosh tallied up 13 points and five assists while Darius Burford picked up five points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals.

How It Happened:

• The Towson defense held strong in the early going with the Tigers holding the Phoenix off the scoreboard in the opening 4:10. Nicolas Timberlake and Cam Holden hit second chance shots to give Towson an early 4-0 lead.
• Each side continued to play strong defense as the Phoenix tried for outside shooting.  Over a span of 2:20, the home team got a 7-0 run, capped by a Zac Ervin three off a timeout.  Juwan Gray stopped the run with a layup, then added another 1:30 later to give Towson back the lead 8-7 with just over 10 minutes in.
• Elon's three-point shooting continued, with Hunter McIntosh hitting a pair to spark an 11-0 run and give Elon the advantage 18-8.  Towson started going to its own run with threes, sparked by makes from Holden and Antonio Rizzuto, to get Towson within two at 18-16, 6:58 to go in the half.
• The long shots for Elon continued to be big for its offense as the Phoenix got the lead back up to eight.  Gray got some play down the stretch, powering into the paint to earn points and getting Towson within five at the break: 31-26 Elon.
• Both sides put forth physical play as Towson tried to get into the paint to bridge the gap.  A hook shot close range from Charles Thompson got Towson within a possession as the two teams started to trade points.
• At 36-30 Elon, Towson's defense locked down Elon for the next 4:23, forcing rushing shots and getting transition looks.  Four different Tigers contributed to a 9-0 run, capped by a Gray three off a fast break, to give the visitors the lead 39-36 at the under-12 media timeout.
• The Phoenix broke the Towson run with a Hunter Woods jumper.  Towson continued to attack the paint as Holden and Thompson kept drawing contact around the circle, adding five more combined points to lead 44-38 with 8:50 to play.  Elon broke the run, and again Towson responded, a driving layup from Rizzuto followed by a wind-up three for Holden made it 49-40 Towson, under 7:30 left.
• Elon started the get space on drives to the basket, piecing together a streak of 12 straight points, capped by a three-pointer from Chuck Hannah.  The Phoenix led 52-49, 2:44 to play.
• Towson turned to Holden to get back ahead.  Twice the Lou Henson Award Watch List member drew contact and hit free throws, then next possession, Thompson with the drop-off pass to Holden for the layup got Towson a 55-52 advantage, 1:32 to go.
• After an exchange of possessions, Towson needed to hold up three with under 30 seconds left.  McIntosh scored a layup with 5.5 seconds left, then Timberlake got fouled.  Timberlake hit both free throws to return the lead to three.  Elon was fouled but missed the front end of the one-and-one, with Gray earning the board and getting fouled.  His two final free throws sealed the game as Towson earned the 59-54 victory.

Inside the Numbers

• Towson defeats an Elon team that defeated the Tigers in the first round of the 2021 CAA Tournament.
• Towson begins the season 12-5 for the second time under head coach Pat Skerry, the last being in the 2017-18 year.
• 54 points is the second-lowest amount allowed by the Towson defense in a game this year.  Towson allowed just 52 points at Navy on Dec. 22 in a 17-point victory.
• Towson overcame a 10-point deficit, the second time this season Towson came back from such a deficit.  The Tigers came back from down 10 vs. LIU on Dec. 2 to win 72-63.  This is also Towson's first victory this season after being down at the half.
• Cam Holden is the first Towson Tiger with at least six steals in a game since Josh Brown had six vs. James Madison on Feb. 8, 2010.  Seven steals are tied for the sixth-most in a game in Towson Tigers history, with the last game above seven being Chuck Lightening earning nine steals vs. George Mason on Jan. 8, 1992.  Brian Allen had seven steals vs. Hofstra on Feb. 26, 2003.  The Towson single game record for steals is 11 by Marty Johnson vs. Bucknell on Feb. 17, 1988.
• Holden has scored in double digits for the fourth straight game and for the 13^th time this season.  He has earned four 20+ point games this season.
• Tyler Gill, playing in front of his family from Raleigh, set new career-highs in assists and minutes played.

Next Game:

• Towson heads east to Williamsburg to continue CAA play as the Tigers take on William & Mary on Monday night at 7 p.m.

- TowsonTigers.com –