NEWARK, Del. – With second place in the Colonial Athletic Association on the line, the Towson University men's basketball team held its opponent without a basket in the final 3:58 to earn a 69-62 victory at Delaware on Monday night.
 
Towson (15-6, 6-2 CAA) recovered from an early eight-point first half deficit at Delaware (14-7, 5-3 CAA), pulling ahead by as many as 11 into the second half.  After the Blue Hens pulled back ahead with nine minutes left, Towson retook the lead on a 7-0 run, going back-and-forth the rest of the way but holding the advantage for the victory.
 
With the win, Towson stands in second place in the CAA at 6-2 in the league, only behind first-place UNCW.
 
Key Stats:

• Towson outrebounded Delaware 35-29 in the game, also having an edge on the charity stripe 15-for-20 to Delaware's 11-for-13. 
• Towson held Delaware to 62 points, the second-lowest offensive output for the Blue Hens this season.  The Towson defense held Delaware to 19.2% (5-for-26) from three-point range.
• Three Towson players scored at least 15 points in the game, led by Cam Holden with 19 points, seven rebounds and six steals.  Charles Thompson nearly got a double-double off 15 points, shooting 7-for-10 from the field, and nine rebounds.
• Including going 3-for-3 from the three-point line, Nicolas Timberlake tallied up 18 points, six rebounds and a pair of assists.
• For Delaware, Andrew Carr picked up 13 points and four rebounds while Ebby Asamoah had 12 points and six rebounds.

How It Happened:

• Delaware took advantage of its size in the frontcourt early, seeing Andrew Carr get a layup and dunk in succession to begin the game.  Nicolas Timberlake broke the mini-run with free throws, then after a Carr-three, Timberlake buried a shot from the wing to pull Towson within two at 7-5 at the first media.
• The home team continued to get room near the basket, extending its lead to eight by the under-12 mark.  Towson got a couple of key rebounds for putbacks from Cam Holden and Charles Thompson to get the Tigers within four at 15-11, 11:13 in the 1^st.
• Delaware went back up eight, then Towson used the perimeter to start to close the gap.  Antonio Rizzuto buried a three off a catch-and-shoot, then Timberlake earned five straight points to tie the game at 21 with 6:49 left in the 1^st.
• After Delaware went back ahead on a Dylan Painter hook shot, Towson powered forward with a 6-0 run, capped by two baskets from Thompson underneath, to give the Tigers a 27-23 lead with just under three minutes left in the 1^st.
• The teams continued the furious pace underneath the basket.  At a tie game, Holden hit a tough layup in traffic to give Towson a 31-29 lead at the break.
• Towson's frontcourt pushed and pulled to get space in the early stage of the second half.  At 33-33, Holden powered through for a layup, then drew a double team to get Thompson a jumper.  Next possession, Jason Gibson knocked down the kick-out three to complete the 7-0 run and push Towson up 40-33, 17:03 left in the 2^nd.
• Following a Delaware timeout and basket, Towson continued to battle in the paint, leading to the team building its lead to 11, including 3-for-3 by Holden on free throws.  Delaware responded with a 13-2 run to tie the game at 48 with 11:30 to play.
• Holden got fouled and hit a pair of free throws to get Towson back in front.  Delaware hits its next two shots for a three-point lead.  After an exchange of points, a close range layup by Thompson followed by a kick-out three from Gibson got Towson back in front 57-55.
• The back-and-forth continued as the physical play picked up.  At 61-59 Towson, Timberlake hit a fade away three with a player in his face to push the Tigers up five with just under five minutes to play.
• Delaware kept attacking, and the Towson defense held.  Following a Delaware jumper with 3:58 to play, the Tigers did not allow a basket the rest of the way.  Up three with 20 seconds left, Juwan Gray and Holden iced the game with free throws to give Towson the 69-62 victory.

Inside the Numbers

• Towson has now won nine of its last 11 games against Delaware.
• This is the 12^th game where Towson has held its opponent to 65 points or fewer.
• Cam Holden has led Towson in scoring in the last two games.
• Nicolas Timberlake has scored in double digits in each of his last four games.  Each Holden and Timberlake have 16 double-digit scoring games this year.

Next Game:

• The rematch is set for Thursday, Jan. 27^th at 7 p.m. in Towson.  For more information, interested parties may contact the Towson Athletics ticket office by visiting www.towsontigers.com, calling 1-855-TU-TIGER or emailing dkogok@towson.edu.

- TowsonTigers.com –