When: Friday, December 20, 2023
Where: TU Arena | Towson, Md.
Time: Friday - 12 p.m.
Team Records: George Mason (8-2) vs. Towson (7-2)
Stream: Monumental/FloHoops
Series: George Mason Leads 18-12
TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University women's basketball team closes out non-conference play with a Friday matchup against George Mason.
 
Shooting the Lights Out
India Johnston was named the CAA Player of the Week today. Johnston led the Tigers to a perfect 3-0 week averaging 16.0 points per game. The Bear, Delaware native shot 60.7% (17-28) from the floor and 61.5% (8-13) from behind the arc. She started the week dropping 12 points on 80% shooting in Towson's 73-70 overtime victory over Liberty. Johnston followed up with a career-high 24 points, scoring the Tigers' final 11 points and shooting 8-of-12 from the field against George Washington. On Sunday, she wrapped up the week with 12 points and a career-high four rebounds in Towson's 68-60 win over American.
 
Starting the Season Off Right
The Tigers are off to a 7-2 start in the 2023-24 season. Kylie Kornegay-Lucas leads the team in rebounds (8.1), assists (3.9), steals (2.4) and blocks (0.6). Patricia Anumgba leads the Black & Gold with 14.2 points per game while shooting 42.4% from the floor. Quinzia Fulmore averages 10.3 points per game while Alexia Nelson is averaging 9.0 points per game.
 
Getting Down to Business
Redshirt senior guard Kylie Kornegay-Lucas was named the CAA Player of the Week. Kornegay-Lucas led the Tigers to two wins at the Navy Classic and picked up MVP honors after averaging 17.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.5 steals per game. She had a team-high 15 points with nine rebounds while adding season-highs with six assists and five steals against Abilene Christian. The Camden, Delaware native followed up with a season-high 19 points and nine rebounds against Quinnipiac.
 
Preseason POY
Kylie Kornegay-Lucas was named as the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) Preseason of the Year and earned All-CAA First Team honors. Kornegay-Lucas was the 2022-23 CAA Defensive Player of the Year after leading the conference in steals (79) and ranking 26th in the nation. The redshirt senior guard averaged a team-high 14.1 points on 39.7% shooting and 32.9% 3pt shooting, while averaging 7.3 rebounds. The Camden, Del. native led the Tigers in assists and blocks with 132 assists and 27 blocks. She finished with the second highest free throw percentage in program history at 84.2%.
 
Towson, Morgan, UMBC Create Charm City Hoops Classic
Towson, Morgan State and UMBC have agreed to play each other every year in both men's and women's basketball in what is being billed as the Charm City Hoops Classic. The three schools participated in the Battle of Baltimore series for six seasons from 1997-98 through 2002-03. The Tigers went 2-0 defeating UMBC 76-72 and followed up with a 80-69 victory against Morgan State.
 
Atop the Chart
The CAA announced its annual Preseason Poll to start the season. The Tigers were picked to finish in first place after receiving nine first-place votes. Stony Brook was picked to finish in second with Northeastern in third place. 
 
Running It Back
The Tigers return four of their five starters from last year. Towson brings back 73.8% of the last year's scoring, including the top three scorers. The Tigers return 76.7% of the rebounds, including two of the top seven rebounders last year in the CAA. The Black & Gold had nobody leave due to the transfer portal.
 
Receiving Votes
The Tigers are now No. 20 in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Preseason Poll after being No. 23 the previous week. Towson was ranked as No. 19 in the preseason poll. The Tigers reached as high as No. 14 this season and have been ranked in every poll this season. Towson is joined by Stony Brook at the No.18 spot.
 
TU Fortress
The Tigers hold an 85-58 (.594) home record since TU Arena was built, including a 35-17 (.673) record against non-conference opponents. Towson holds a 50-41 (.549) against CAA foes. The Tigers finished with an 8-1 home record in conference play last year. Towson had won its last ten games in TU, tying a program record before losing to Monmouth in the championship.
 
Fresh Faces
Towson welcomes six newcomers this season: Semaya Turner (Saint Francis U), Kayla Morris (CSU Bakersfield), Anaiah Jenkins, Caydence Hadley, Aminata Diakite (Salt Lake CC) and Anasia Staton (CCBC Essex).
 
Last Season Recap
The Tigers had a phenomenal season last year, finishing with a 21-12 record and a 13-5 CAA record that earned Towson a share of the regular season title. In non-conference play the Tigers picked up a win over DePaul at the Fort Myers Tip-Off. In CAA play, the Tigers had the second-best defense holding opponents to 60.5 points per game. Towson won six of its final seven games to earn the No.1 seed in the CAA Tournament after holding tiebreakers over Drexel and Northeastern. The Tigers advanced past Hampton and William & Mary in the quarter and semifinals. Towson fell against Monmouth in the championship, which sent the Tigers to Cambridge for a first-round matchup against Harvard in the WNIT First Round.
 
Stepping Into the Spotlight
Quinzia Fulmore thrived after stepping into the starting lineup last season. She started in 31 of the 33 games last season, including all four postseason games. The junior forward from Greensboro, North Carolina averaged 10.3 points per game to rank second on the team. Fulmore finished with a field goal percentage of 52.7% in 33 games. She pulled down 7.3 rebounds a game to rank fifth in the CAA and tied for first for the Tigers. Fulmore had registered eight double-doubles to rank second in the conference.
 
The Climb to the 1,000 Club
Redshirt senior guard Kylie Kornegay-Lucas is nearing 1,000 career points in career and Towson. The Camden, Delaware native has accumulated 909 points during her collegiate career. Kornegay-Lucas has totaled 656 points at Towson, including 466 last season.
 
Scouting George Mason
The Patriots bring in a 8-2 record to TU Arena. George Mason ranks 16th in the nation in rebounding pulling down 45.10, including 17.2 offensive rebounds. Sonia Smith leas the Patriots with 13.2 points per game, shooting 39.7% from the floor. George Mason opened the season with a 96-45 victory over Bowie State, then followed up with a 84-77 win against Marshall. The Patriots defeated William & Mary 77-72, then picked up a 60-52 win over Pittsburgh. George Mason won 83-63 over Robert Morris. The Patriots were victorious against American 72-62, before closing out November with a 70-38 victory against Coppin State. George Mason fell 86-77 to Maryland, but bounced back with a 77-30 win against Mount St. Mary's. Most recently, the Patriots fell to East Carolina 65-44.
 
Last Time Out  
The Black & Gold took on Maryland. The Terrapins came out firing, jumping out to a 23-8 lead. Anaiah Jenkins made her first collegiate basket early in the second quarter, but Maryland extended its lead to 46-15 going into halftime. In the third quarter, the Tigers went on a 9-2 run led by Quinzia Fulmore's seven points. The teams battled back and forth with Towson cutting the deficit to 23. The teams traded baskets to close out the third quarter. Mariah Wilson knocked down back-to-back threes early in the fourth, but the Terrapins finished the game on a 19-3 run to win 99-51 over the Tigers.
 
Next Up
The Tigers will start CAA play on Friday, Jan. 5th at 7 p.m. against Elon. The game will be streamed on FloHoops.