TOWSON, Md. — The Towson University women's basketball team will welcome Delaware to SECU Arena for the second time this season on Thursday, March 3 for a 7 p.m. game.
The two teams last met just 22 days ago on Feb. 9 when the Blue Hens (20-6, 14-2) emerged with a very close 81-78 win. Delaware owns the 59-24 all-time edge over the Tigers (22-5, 13-3) and has won the past three meetings.
There are multiple promotions going on during Thursday's game. 100 Chick Fil A original sandwich will given away throughout the game. There will also be a 40 inch TCL Smart TV giveaway and if you login on the Towson Gameday app, the game will be worth quadruple points. Finally, if 600 student attend the game, there will a fall 2022 parking pass given away.
Last Time Out
Towson grinded out a tough win over Northeastern in its final regular season road contest, 57-56, on Feb. 27. The victory marks the Tigers' fifth in a row and second five-win stretch this season.
Aleah Nelson led the charge for the Tigers with 18 points and five assists. She also made four three's and secured three steals. Anissa Rivera added 14 points, four rebounds and two blocks. Rayne Tucker grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
22 & Counting
With Sunday's win over Northeastern, Towson reset the program regular season win record with 22 victories. The program-high was previously set during the 2007-08 campaign.
With the victory, the team also tied the program record for most wins in a season, which was also set in the 2007-08 campaign.
Since arriving in Towson in 2017, head coach Diane Richardson has now garnered two 20-win seasons, as she led the 2018-19 squad to a 20-13 overall mark.
As the Towson men's team currently sits with a 24-7 overall record, it marks the first time in Towson's history both the men's and women's teams have reached 20+ wins in the same season as the men currently have 22 wins.
In The CAA
Drexel remains in first place in the CAA with a 15-1 record. Delaware sits in second (14-2) and Towson follows in third (13-3). James Madison (9-7) is currently in fourth while Elon (7-9), Charleston (7-9) and Northeastern (7-9) are all tied for fifth.
William & Mary (5-11), Hofstra (3-13) and UNCW (0-16) complete the remainder of the standings.
Home Sweet Home
Going into the final two games of the regular season, the Tigers have an 11-1 record in SECU Arena. The only loss has come against Delaware (Feb. 9). The team has reached over 70 points six times and over 90 points on four occasions while at home.
Women's basketball is not the only team to find success while playing at SECU Arena this academic year however, as men's basketball (12-2), gymnastics (10-1) and volleyball (17-1) have also dominated in front of a home crowd. All four teams are a combined 50-5 in SECU dating back to the beginning of the fall slate.
Coming Off The Bench
The Tigers have had a huge late season push off the bench, scoring double-digit points in the last 11 contests. The team posted a season-high 49 points off the bench against James Madison (Feb. 13), led by Anissa Rivera with a game-high 21 points and Kylie Kornegay-Lucas who added 20.
Towson has scored 529 total points off the bench this slate for 19.6 points per game.
Sweepin' Up
The Tigers have completed six season sweeps of Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) opponents this season. The Black & Gold have earned two wins over William & Mary (Jan. 9 and Feb. 4), Elon (Jan. 7 and Feb. 6), James Madison (Jan. 16 and Feb. 13), UNCW (Jan. 23 and Feb. 18), Hofstra (Jan. 30 and Feb. 26) and Northeastern (Jan. 28 and Feb. 27).
Kornegay-Lucas Makes History
Kylie Kornegay Lucas' recorded a historic triple-double against Delaware (Feb. 9) with 11 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. The feat marks the first at Towson since 1993, when Tanya Belair did it against Winthrop (17p, 10r, 10s). Chris Pulaski did it when the team was Division II, amassing 12 points, 10 rebounds and 10 blocks. It is also the first in the CAA since 2018 when Shay Burnett of Elon brought in 13 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists.
D-FENSE!
The black & gold have held 12 opponents to under 35.5 percent shooting 14 times in a game this season. Towson kept Frostburg State (32.8 percent, 19-of-58), Florida (35.2 percent, 25-of-71), Wofford (30.2 percent, 19-of-63), Millersville (19.1 percent, 9-of-47), Howard (25.4 percent, 18-of-71), Delaware State (32.7 percent, 18-of-55), East Carolina (25.3 percent, 19-of-75), UMass Lowell (29.3 percent, 17-of-58), UNCW (32.2 percent, 19-of-59), Elon (33.9 percent, 21-of-62) and Charleston (27.8 percent, 22-of-79) and Northeastern (35.3 percent, 24-of-68) all below the mark. They have also held Hofstra under 33 percent shooting both times they met this season (26.7 percent, 16-of-60/32.8 percent, 21-of-64). When Towson holds its opponent below 34.9 percent shooting, they are 12-0.
The team has also held its opponents to less than 10 points in a quarter 15 times this season. The Tigers most recently held the Huskies to nine points in the third quarter of action.
The black & gold have registered nine double-digit steal games, led by a season-high 18 takeaway performance against Millersville. Aleah Nelson leads the squad with 33 total steals.
Towson has generated 536 total points this season off turnovers, for 19.9 points per game. When the team registers more steals than their opponent, they are undefeated, 15-0.
Taking Care of the Ball
Towson has done an exceptional job of taking care of the ball this season, ranking fourth in the league with a 2.07 turnover margin. The team is also 98th in the nation and third in the CAA in assist/turnover ratio (0.97).
Floor general Aleah Nelson has also been careful with the rock, as she ranks 15th nationally and first in the conference in assist/turnover ratio (2.54).
When the Tigers have fewer turnovers than their opposition, they are 17-0.
Prolific Scoring
At least two Tigers have cracked double figures in 26 of 27 outings so far this season. Nelson has now scored 10+ points in 25 of 27 contests including the last 13 outings. Kubek has reached double digits in 22 games this slate and has scored 18+ points in four of past five outings.
Five Tigers have also registered +20 point performances in Nelson, Allie Kubek, Anissa Rivera, Kylie Kornegay-Lucas and Rayne Tucker. Nelson and Kubek pace the squad with five games over 20 points apiece.
Towson has had two players score 20 or more points four times this season:
- James Madison - Jan. 16 (Kubek-28, Rivera-20
- Northeastern - Jan. 28 (Nelson-24, Kubek-22)
- Delaware - Feb. 9 (Nelson-24, Kubek-20)
- James Madison - Feb. 13 (Rivera-21, Kornegay-Lucas-20)
When Towson lands four or more players in double-digits, they are 12-0.
Making Some Noise
Towson moved up again to No. 16 in the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Poll, released March 1. The team was previously ranked No. 18.
BYU (24-2) remains in the top spot while Princeton (20-4), FGCU (26-2), Missouri State (21-5) and South Dakota (22-5) complete the top five.
Drexel (23-3, 15-1) leads the CAA in the poll as they are slotted at No. 9. Delaware (20-6, 14-2) sits at No. 21.
The black & gold are still highest ranked CAA team in the NCAA NET rankings, sitting at No. 76. Drexel comes in at No. 85 followed by Delaware at No. 97.
Coming Home
Five of 14 student-athletes on Towson's roster represent their home state of Maryland. Aleah Nelson is the lone Baltimore native while Allie Kubek (Elkton), Ryann Evans (Columbia), Rayne Tucker (New Carrollton) and Anissa Rivera (Capitol Heights) are also from close by.
In The Rankings
The Tigers continue to be among the best rebounding teams in the country, ranking eighth in total rebounds with 1,227 total boards. The team is seventh in rebounds per game (45.44) and ninth in offensive boards per game (16.1).
The team is also killing it on offense, ranked 19th in scoring offense (75.8) and 17th in scoring margin (15.4).
The Tigers currently rank top 40 in the nation in 11 statistical categories.
Crashing The Boards
As one of the top-10 rebounding teams in the country, the black & gold have grabbed 40+ boards in all but three contests so far this season, including the last 14 of 15 outings. The team has also reached 50+ rebounds on five occasions.
Towson has either won the fight off the glass or tied in 20 games.
Anissa Rivera (7.1), Kylie Kornegay-Lucas (6.0) and Allie Kubek (6.0) are all currently averaging over six boards per game.
Scouting The Blue Hens
Delaware has won all but two games in CAA play, falling twice to Drexel (Jan. 23 and Feb. 20). The Blue Hens have won their last two, defeating Elon (65-61) and William & Mary (67-45).
Jasmine Dickey leads the conference and ranks third in the country with 25.2 points per game. Ty Battle paces the team off the glass with 10.8 rebounds per night.
Next Up
Towson will return to SECU Arena to finish out the regular season against Drexel on March 5 (2 p.m.). The team will also celebrate its three seniors, Narrie Dodson, Skye Williams and Kiara Johnson, during the contest.
Tigers in the Community
For the 7th consecutive year, the department exceeded 10,000 hours of community service to the Greater Baltimore region, finishing with 11,162 hours of community service in the 2018-19 academic season. Towson ranked #1 nationally for community service and won the 2018 National Championship for Community Service through the Helper Helper NCAA Team Works Competition. Towson had a 97% participation rate, attended 118 community service opportunities and volunteered with 19 organizations. The Tigers won the 2018 Volunteer of the Year Award from Susan G. Komen of Maryland.
