11-04-2024 4:18am

TU OPENS WITH

Towson Men's Basketball Tips off the 2024-25 Season at Saint Mary's (CA) on Monday Night

When: Monday, November 4, 2024
Where: UCU Pavilion | Moraga, Calif.
Time: Monday - 10 p.m.
Team Records: Towson (0-0) at Saint Mary's (0-0)
Broadcast: ESPN+, audio broadcast on TowsonTigers.com (Spiro Morekas)
Series: First Meeting

TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University men's basketball team starts the 2024-24 season out west against the Saint Mary's Gaels on Monday night.

Preseason Awards
Sophomore guard/forward Tyler Tejada was named to the All-CAA Preseason First Team while junior guard/forward Christian May was selected to the All-CAA Preseason Second Team. Redshirt sophomore guard Dylan Williamson was named All-CAA Honorable Mention.

Tejada was named CAA Rookie of the Year last year after averaging 10.1 ppg with 3.3 rpg. The sophomore guard shot 42 percent from the floor and 35 percent from three last season. He scored 30 points against Monmouth and hit the game-winning three pointer against UNCW.

May led the Tigers in scoring with 10.8 ppg while shooting 39 percent from the floor and 34 percent from three. He was tied for third on the team in the rebounds, averaging 4.1 per game.

Williamson ranked second on the team in scoring with 10.2 ppg. He shot 40 percent from the floor and 34 percent behind the arc while leading the Tigers in assists with 98.

Mr. Do It All
Graduate student guard Nendah Tarke did it all for the Tigers last season, averaging 9.8 points, the fourth highest total on the team. He averaged 5.1 rebounds to rank second on the Black & Gold. He also added 1.5 spg, which ranked sixth in the CAA last year. He also had 13 blocks which was third on the team. Tarke finished in double figures in 13 of his 24 games.

Home Court Advantage
Towson has had a major home court advantage over the last nine years at TU Arena. Since moving into the arena from the Towson Center in 2013, the Tigers have gone 104-43. Towson has had a winning record in home games in seven of the nine seasons.

The Tigers broke the school record for consecutive home wins at TU Arena against Stony Brook on January 11 when Towson won their 15th straight home game dating back to the 2022-23 season.

Receiving Votes
Towson was voted No. 16 in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25 Preseason Poll. The Tigers are the only ranked CAA team in the poll with College of Charleston and UNCW receiving votes.

Tigers on TV
Towson will play 12 games on national and linear television this season with ten happening at TU Arena.

The Tigers will play four games on CBS Sports Network, which include Hofstra (Jan. 16), at Northeastern (Jan. 27), Drexel (Feb. 1) and at Monmouth (Feb. 8).

Towson will have eight games on Monumental Sports Network: James Madison (Nov. 16), UMBC (Dec. 7), Bryant (Dec. 22), Northeastern (Jan. 9), Stony Brook (Jan. 18), Delaware (Feb. 13), William & Mary (Feb. 27) and Hampton (Mar. 1).

Winning Ways
The Tigers have won 18 or more games in nine of the last 11 seasons, winning a share of the CAA Regular Season title in 2022. Towson was 20 or more games in its last three seasons for the first time in program history.

Skerry is the 2nd winningest head coach in Towson University Men's basketball history (only 17 behind Vince Angotti). He has the highest win percentage for Towson in its Division 1 history. Skerry will tie coach Terry Truax for the 2nd most seasons as head coach with 14. He has nine winning seasons, the 2nd most in Towson history.

Defense!
The Tigers led the CAA in scoring defense, holding opponents to 63.6 ppg, while ranking second in the conference in rebounding, grabbing 39.3 per game. Towson held opponents to under 60 points, 12 times last season.

The Best in Maryland
In the last three years, the Tigers have a 66-35 (65.3%) record, the best in the DC-Maryland-Virginia area.

Starting off Strong
Towson has a tough start to its non-conference schedule this season. The Tigers play three teams in the first four games that made the NCAA Tournament last season. Towson starts pff the season against Saint Mary's, currently ranked fifth in College Insider.com Mid-Major Preseason Poll. Towson hosts Penn State Wilkes-Barre in its home opener, before traveling down south to take on South Carolina. The Tigers return to TU Arena to welcome former CAA foe James Madison.

O Canada
The Tigers head to Canada to take part in the Western Slam in Lethbridge, Alberta. Towson tip-offs the tournament against Kent State then take on Kennesaw State before wrapping up the three-day tournament versus UC Irvine.

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 ten first-place votes. The Tigers were picked ahead of defending CAA Champions Charleston, who were picked second and received three first-place votes.

Running It Back
The Tigers return four of their five starters from last year. Towson brings back 80% of the last year's scoring, including the top three scorers. The Tigers return 71% of the rebounds, including two of the top seven rebounders last year in the CAA. Towson returns reigning CAA Rookie of the Year Tyler Tejada and CAA All- Rookie guard Dylan Williamson who ranked second on the team in scoring last season (10.2) and led the Tigers in assists (2.9).

Fresh Faces
Towson welcomes six newcomers this season: Abdou Samb (IUPUI), Chike Ndefo, Caleb Embeya, Amir Shaheed, Mandela Tarke and Ryan Skerry.

Last Season Recap
The Tigers won 20 games last season for the ninth time in the last 11 seasons. Towson picked up non-conference wins against UMass, Nicholls State, UMBC and Morgan State. In CAA play, the Black & Gold defeated UNCW and Charleston while also picking up wins over Stony Brook and Delaware. Towson earned the five seed in the CAA Tournament and defeated Willliam & Mary then Towson defeated UNCW for the second time, before falling against Charleston in the semi-finals.

Scouting Saint Mary's
The Gaels are coming off a 26-8 season, where they reached the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight season. They won a share of the WCC regular season title for the second straight season. The Gaels were picked to finish second behind 2023-24 WCC runners-up Gonzaga, who they defeated in two of three meetings last season. Saint Mary's had two players named to the WCC Preseason All-Conference Team, as defending WCC Player of the Year Augustas Marciulionis and defending WCC Defensive Player of the Year Mitchell Saxen were selected.

Next Up
The Tigers will return home for their home opener against Penn State Wilkes-Barre on Friday, November 8th at 6 p.m. The game will be streamed on FloCollege.