When: Friday, February 2, 2024
Where: OceanFirst Bank Center | West Long Branch, N.J.
Time: Friday- 7 p.m.
Team Records: Towson (11-7, 3-4 CAA) vs. Monmouth (12-6, 5-2 CAA)
Stream: FloHoops
Series: Tied at 1-1                                                                                                                                
TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University women's basketball team travels to New Jersey to face off against Monmouth in their first matchup since the CAA Championship.
 
Straight Ballin'
Patricia Anumgba was named the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) Player of the Week earlier this week. Anumgba led the Tigers to a perfect 2-0 week in the CAA averaging 26.5 points per game shooting 64.3% (18-28) from the floor and going 11-of-17 (64.7%) from behind the arc. Anumgba started the week with a career-high 28 points on 58.8% (10-17) shooting, knocking down a career-high eight triples as the Tigers defeated Hampton, 83-53. The Silver Spring, Maryland followed up with a game-high 25 points, shooting 72.7% (8-11) from the field while adding three assists in Towson's 80-64 victory over William & Mary.
 
Raining Threes
On Friday, the Tigers broke the record for most three-pointers made in a single game in program history, knocking down 16. Patricia Anumgba led the way with a career-high eight triples, one away from Dominique Johnson's record of nine in a single game. The Tigers finished with a higher three-point percentage (44.4%) than total field goal percentage (37.2%).
 
Non-Con Recap
The Tigers finished with a 7-3 record 2023-24 season. Towson split their first two games of the season. before winning six straight, including an overtime thriller against Liberty. The Tigers fell in their last two games to close out non-conference. Kylie Kornegay-Lucas led the team in points (13.5), rebounds (8.7), assists (4.3), steals (2.4) and blocks (0.6). Patricia Anumgba averaged 13.3 points per game while adding 2.1 steals. Quinzia Fulmore averaged 10.5 points and 5.7 rebounds per game.
 
Shooting the Lights Out
India Johnston was named the CAA Player of the Week. 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.
 
Getting Down to Business
Redshirt senior guard Kylie Kornegay-Lucas was named the CAA Player of the Week earlier this season. 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.
 
Super Pat
Junior guard Patricia Anumgba has been phenomenal in her second season at Towson averaging a career-high of 14.9 points, which leads the Tigers. The Silver Spring, Md. native has finished in double-figures in 15 of the 18 games this season, including a career-high of 28 points against Hampton. Anumgba currently ranks second on the team in steals per game, averaging 1.4 steals per game.
 
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%.
 
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.
 
TU Fortress
The Tigers hold an 88-60 (.595) home record since TU Arena was built, including a 35-18 (.660) record against non-conference opponents. Towson holds a 53-42 (.558) 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 1,000 points during her collegiate career. Kornegay-Lucas has totaled 881 points at Towson, including 466 last season.
 
Scouting Monmouth
The Hawks sit tied for third place in the CAA with a 5-2 mark. Monmouth ranks 12th in the nation in blocks per game averaging 5.7 with Belle Kranbuhl leading the way with 2.33 blocks per game. Monmouth leads the conference and ranks 16th in the country in rebounding margin, grabbing 9.6 more rebounds than their opponents. The Hawks fell in their conference opener to William & Mary 70-66, but bounced back with wins over Campbell and College of Charleston. Monmouth was downed by Elon 65-60. The Hawks bring in a three-game win streak after picking up wins over Drexel, Hampton and William & Mary.
 
Last Time Out  
The Black & Gold took on rivals Delaware last Sunday. The Tigers gained an early lead after a 7-3 run. Towson took a six-point lead into the second quarter, until a 10-2 run gave the Blue Hens a two-point advantage. The Tigers finished the quarter on a 7-2 run to take a 29-26 lead into halftime. Towson grew the lead to seven early in the third, but Delaware cut the deficit to one after an 8-2 run. The teams went back and forth with Delaware taking a narrow lead into the fourth. The teams traded small runs early, before the Blue Hens closed out the game on a 20-4 run as Towson fell 73-59.
 
Next Up
The Tigers return to TU Arena to host the College of Charleston for Alumnae/Women in Sport Day on Sunday, February 4th at 1 p.m. The game will be streamed on FloHoops.