LIVE STATS | ESPN 3 | GAME NOTES
Baltimore, Md.-- UMBC men's basketball will look to build off their 80-65 win against Saint Francis last Saturday as they make their home debut against cross-country rivals Towson at the UMBC Event Center. Senior Brandon Horvath (West River, Md./Southern) recorded his second straight double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds. The Retrievers trailed at the break but used a big run early in the second half to pull ahead for good.
Towson Game Info:
What: UMBC Retrievers (1-1) vs. Towson Tigers (0-3)
Where: UMBC Event Center - Baltimore, Md.
When: Saturday, Dec. 5 - 1:00 p.m.
How to Watch: Live stream on ESPN 3 and the ESPN app, live stats at UMBCRetrievers.com
Social Media: @UMBC_MBB, #RetrieverNation, #AEHoops
Scouting the Retrievers:
-UMBC comes back to the UMBC Event Center at 1-1 on the year after an 80-65 win at Saint Francis last Saturday. The Retrievers trailed at the half but used an early second-half run to take the lead for good. Brandon Horvath led the charge once again with his second straight double-double (18 pts, 12 reb).
-Horvath leads the Retrievers averaging 15.5 ppg and 11.0 rpg shooting 56.5 percent from the floor. Darnell Rogers (Baltimore, Md./Indian Land (SC)/New Mexico JC) is the only other Retriever in double figures at 14.0 ppg shooting 40 percent from three with five steals in two games.
-UMBC is scoring at a 71.0 ppg clip, shooting 41.7 percent from the floor as a team. The Retrievers are forcing 18.0 turnovers per game and are shooting 75.6 percent from the charity stripe after shooting 65 percent last year.
Scouting the Tigers:
-Towson will be playing their first game since Nov. 27 after having a game against Maryland canceled and Coppin State postponed this week. The Tigers are 0-3 after three opening week games at the Mohegan Sun Bubbleville against Virginia, San Francisco, and Buffalo.
-Zane Martin leads the Tigers averaging 19.3 ppg shooting 46.8 percent from the field with 11 assists. Nicolas Timberlake is the only other Tiger in double digits averaging 11.7 ppg. Victor Uyalunmo leads the team on the glass at 8.3 rpg.
All-Time Series:
-Saturday will be the 64th all-time meeting between the two and the 13th straight meeting since the 2008-09 season with the Tigers leading the series 43-20. Towson has won the seven with the last Retriever win coming in 2012 at the RAC.
-Last year the Tigers defeated the Retrievers 77-71 at SECU Arena. Sophomore Keondre Kennedy (Atlanta, Ga.) led the way with 15 points off the bench. UMBC led by three at halftime, but Towson held on to a late lead hitting free throws down the stretch to defeat the Retrievers.
Leader of the Pack:
-Head coach Ryan Odom is back for his fifth season at the helm of the Retrievers. Odom led the Dawgs to their third-straight America East Semifinal appearance, finishing fourth in the league at 8-8. He will be looking for his fourth 20-win season in five years and is the fourth winningest coach in program history. He is just three games behind Randy Monroe for third.
Welcome to Charm City:
-This year, seven newcomers will don the black and gold joining eight returning players from a team that saw two Retrievers leave due to graduation.
-Szymon Wojcik (Wroclaw, Poland/Warsaw Adult Secondary School/NW Florida State College) and Rico Quinton (Dyersburg, Tenn./Dyer County/Columbia State CC) come to Baltimore from junior colleges. Wojcik spent a year at Missouri State before playing at Northwest Florida State College last season. Quinton reunites with former teammate Dimitrije Spasojevic (Vrsac, Serbia), who were teammates at East Carolina two seasons ago.
-The Retrievers also add Jacob Boonyasith (Grand Rapids, Mich./Jenison/American) who spent the past two seasons playing against the Retrievers at American University. Boonyasith averaged 5.9 ppg and shot 37 percent from three for the Eagles in 53 career games.
-First-year players Thomas Reid (Toronto, Ontario/Oak Hill Academy (Va.), Brendan Davis (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck), and Matteo Picarelli (Milan, Italy/Inter-Community School of Zurich) will join the team, as well as Sam Grace (Baltimore, Md./Boys' Latin), the younger brother of former Retriever Ben Grace. Grace spent last season on Towson University's football team.
#AEHoops Newcomers:
-This year, the America East will add a new school into the mix with NJIT joining the league from the ASUN. The Retrievers will head to Newark, N.J. to take on the Highlanders in the penultimate conference weekend in February.
Up Next:
-The Retrievers will continue their homestand against Delaware on Tuesday, Dec. 8 at 4 p.m. No fans will be allowed to attend, but the game can be streamed on Watch ESPN and the ESPN app.
