BALTIMORE – The Towson University men's basketball team dominated the glass in its first victory of the year, outrebounding Coppin State 51-20 en route to a 70-49 win on Thursday night.
Towson (1-1) never trailed in the game at Coppin (0-2), having a 35-10 rebounding edge in the first half. Up 10 with 13 minutes left, Towson broke away with a 16-0 run to seal the victory over its Baltimore rival.
Key Stats:
- In Towson's 51-20 rebounding margin, the Tigers had 20 offensive rebounds to Coppin State's 15 defensive rebounds.
- Towson had 19 second chance points, holding the Eagles to 0. The Towson defense held Coppin to 34.8% field goal shooting.
- 10 different Tigers recorded points in the game, led by Tyler Tejada with 17, including going 4-for-5 from three. Messiah Jones notched a double-double on 11 points and 10 rebounds while Charles Thompson tallied up seven points and 12 boards.
- For the Eagles, each Zahree Harrison and Justin Winston recorded 12 points, with the former adding five rebounds and three steals.
How it Happened
- Early on, each side looked to attack the basket, drawing contact from the attempted blockers. After each side hit a free throw, Tyler Tejada drove to the hoop and scored on the driving layup for a 3-1 lead.
- Defense continued to stay strong for both teams with constant pushes to the basket. Mekhi Lowery got fouled on the way up and hit two free throws as Towson lead 5-1 four minutes in.
- Towson kept up the gameplan and extended the lead with Chase Paar on the putback and Rahdir Hicks drawing contact and knocking down free throws. When the sixth Tiger scored points, Towson had the lead 12-5 with 12:41 to go in the 1st.
- Coppin State's early foul trouble kept putting Towson on the line on the attacks to the basket. Towson led 15-8 halfway through the first.
- The free throw shooting battle continued as the pressure in the paint let to trips to the charity stripe. Messiah Jones hit a pair of layups on second chance efforts, leading to a 24-17 Towson advantage with five minutes to play in the half.
- With the back and forth continuing, Towson kept a strong lead. In the final seconds of the half, a perfect pass in transition from Dylan Williamson to Jones for the layup made it 35-24 Towson at the break.
- Coppin State changed tactics in the second half, tying to spread out the offense and look at the perimeter. An early Tejada three-point play for a 14-point Towson lead was countered by a Zahree Harrison three the other way. Williamson returned the lead to 14 with a kickout three for a 41-27 Towson lead three minutes into the second half.
- A Christian May layup on a putback attempt got Towson's lead up to 15. Coppin State went to the paint to get within 10, then Tejada knocked down back-to-back threes, the second in transition, followed by another from May for a 56-37 lead with 11 minutes to play.
- The run continued as the defense locked down in the paint and the Tigers scored on quick plays the other way. The run continued to 16-0 as Towson led 63-37 with six minutes to go.
- Both sides traded baskets in the closing minutes as Towson finished strong, earning the 70-49 win.
Inside the Numbers
- +31 is the highest rebounding margin for Towson in a game since the Tigers rebounded Goucher by 36 on Nov. 26, 2014.
- The Tigers have won seven straight games against Coppin State dating back to 2014.
- Pat Skerry is six victories away from 200 in his career with Towson.
Next Game
- Towson is set for the home opener on Sunday, Nov. 12 at 7 p.m. as the Tigers host Robert Morris at TU Arena.
- Tickets are available by visiting https://am.ticketmaster.com/towson/. For any questions regarding tickets for Towson events, call the Towson Athletics ticket office at 410-704-4501.
- TowsonTigers.com –
