Men's basketball drops close game to Towson, 71-68

NEWARK, Del. — Despite double-digit efforts from four Hens, including two from the bench, Delaware lost to Towson in the last seconds of the game 71-68 to join the Tigers in the basement of the CAA standings.

The game was close throughout the whole second half, but the Hens fell apart and made no field goals in the final four minutes, allowing Towson to surge back and secure the win. The Hens had one last chance with the ball but a buzzer-beating three pointer from Jawan Carter fell short, handing the Tigers just their fourth win of the season.

Head coach Monte Ross chalked the loss up to the team not playing aggressive enough with the lead which allowed Towson to get back into the game late.

“In order to get back into games, get leads and extend leads, you have to put stops together,” Ross said. “You have to learn how to win... it's something we'll get better at.”

Freshman forward Josh Brinkley scored a team- and career-high 17 points off the bench and added eight rebounds to his total in a game which the Hens fell into foul trouble quickly. This allowed Brinkley and D.J. Boney more minutes off the bench to contribute, with Boney adding 10 points and 5 assists.

The early foul trouble sparked an early run for the Tigers, with Towson leading 15-4 just five minutes into the game. Two timeouts later and 10:00 left in the first, the Hens trailed by just three points. Junior guards Alphonso Dawson and Jawan Carter lead the team back into the game to trail by just five points, 38-33, at halftime, but Dawson couldn't articulate any feeling other than frustration post-game.

“Every loss is frustrating,” Dawson said. “It's very frustrating, especially against a team like that who's in the bottom of the conference with us. Our guys played good, but it wasn't enough.”

The proof is in the numbers: Delaware (5-13, 1-6 CAA) had 15 more field goal attempts than Towson (4-12, 1-6 CAA) did, yet they both hit 27 shots to go 39.7 percent and 50.9 percent from the field, respectively. Towson also outshot Delaware at the foul line, hitting 14 of 23 while the Hens attempted eight and hit just six.

The Hens tied the game three minutes into the second half at the hands of Dawson, who broke the 1,000-point plateau a few possessions into the half. After a Towson jumper put them up two, Carter hit one of his four three pointers to give the Hens their first lead since 2-0 at the beginning of the game.

Ross liked what he saw from his team coming back from the break.

“We always talk about the effort and energy needed, and I was happy with their effort and energy tonight,” he said.

The Hens started to watch their lead slip away after extending it to seven with 10 minutes left in the game and allowed the Tigers to regain some momentum. Towson outscored Delaware 20-10 in those final 10 minutes.

“This has been the most frustrating part of the season,” Dawson said after the Hens fifth-straight loss. “We knew in the beginning of the season it'd be tough with a young team, trying to mesh everything together. But once you get into conference play with back-to-back games, so many tough losses take a toll on you.

“Coaches and staff have done a good job of keeping our heads up, but at this point they gotta be scratching their heads too.”

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