UMBC (5-5) at Towson (4-5) | Saturday, Dec. 7, 1:00 p.m. (TU Arena) | Monumental Sports Network & FloCollege | Live Stats

SETTING THE STAGE  

• The Retrievers completed a seven-game home stand against Morgan State on Wednesday, Nov. 27.
• UMBC just finished a stretch of seven games over a span of 17 days in November. All of those games were at home.
• The Retrievers went a comb ined 26-of-50 from 3-point range in their victories versus Howard and Morgan State.
• UMBC is 27th in the country in 3-pt field goal percentage (40.4).
• Senior guard Bryce Johnson is 4th in the America East in scoring (15.2 ppg.).
• Graduate student forward Josh Odunowo is fourth in the AE in field goal percentage (.551).
• The Retrievers have recorded five of the top 12 scoring performances in the America East this season. They are third in the league in scoring (83.1 ppg.).

 SERIES HISTORY

• UMBC has dropped eight straight against the Tigers.
• The Retrievers last win was a 66-62 decision during the 2012-13 season at the RAC Arena.
• Last season, the Tigers won 89-73 at The Peake. Christian May scored 24 points to lead Towson. Franck Emmou scored 16 points for the Retrievers.

 ABOUT TOWSON

• The Tigers have dropped three straight, all of which came in the Western Slam Tournament  in Lethbridge, Alberta last week.
• Towson will compete against Duquesne in the Lebron James Classic next Saturday.
•  Dylan Williamson has been off to a strong start to the 2024-25 season. He is tied for the team lead in points per game, averaging 14.7. He is shooting 42.3% from the floor and 45.1% from behind the arc, the highest on the team. The redshirt sophomore guard tied a career-high in points with 26, making a career-best nine field goals against Nicholls State. Williamson has finished in double figures in seven of the nine games this season.

 LAST TIME OUT: UMBC FALLS AT GEORGETOWN

• The UMBC men's basketball team dropped an 86-62 decision on Monday evening at Capital One Arena.
• Senior forward Josh Odunowo scored 14 of his team-high 18 points in the opening half to pace the Retrievers. Odunowo went 7-for-13 from the field and added five boards and two rejections. Senior guard Marcus Banks Jr. contributed 16 points and produced six boards, four assists, and two steals.
• UMBC (5-5) jumped out to a 17-11 lead after a layup by Odunowo at the 12:45 mark, but the Hosts went on a 21-4 run to grab a 32-21 advantage with 6:18 left and never trailed again.
• Georgetown ( 7-1) took their largest lead of the stanza at 36-24 after a dunk by Jordan Burks, but UMBC went on an 11-1 spurt to close within 37-35 with just 1:13 left before the break. Odunowo, Banks Jr., and senior guard Bryce Johnson combined for six straight points to cap the stretch.
• UMBC, who fell to 0-2 on the road, trailed just 41-35 at the break.
• The Retrievers were within 51-43 after a layup from Odunowo with just over 14 minutes left in the contest, but Georgetown scored 12 straight points to stretch their lead to 63-43 with 10:26 remaining.
• UMBC was never able to get any closer the rest of the way.
• Freshman forward Thomas Sorber led the hosts with 23 points and 8 caroms while Jayden Epps added 16.

  BOMBS AWAY

• UMBC leads the AE with 9.2 3s made per game this season, which ranks 77th in the country.
• The Retrievers 17 makes against Valley Forge were an America East single-game high.
• The Retrievers lead the league in 3-pt field goal percentage (.390)and are 17th in the nation.
• Marcus Banks Jr.(2.8) and Louie Jordan (2.0) rank 4th and 8th respectively in treys per game.
• Jordan is 2nd in 3-pt percentage (.476) while Banks Jr. is 4th (.452)

SHARING IS CARING

• UMBC dished an America East high 31 assists in the win versus Valley Forge. It was their highest output since they handed out 29 vs. Coppin St. on 11/30/2022.
• It was also the most in the conference since Maine and Bryant recorded 32 during the 2022-23 season.
• The Retrievers lead the league in the league in the category at 15.9 pg.
• Ace Valentine is fifth in the league with 3.6 helpers per game and is 2nd in assist/turnover ratio (2.4)

 
TAKING A LICKING & KEEP ON TICKING
Bryce Johnson drew a career-high eight fouls in back-to-back games against Coppin State and Saint Peter's.
Johnson leads the squad with 40 fouls drawn thus far in 2024-25.
Johnson is 73rd in the country with 51 free throw attempts.
 
A PROGRAM ON THR RISE
UMBC is enjoying their best stretch in program history as the Retrievers have gone a combined 149-113 (.568) over the past nine seasons. UMBC enjoyed three straight 20+ win seasons from 2016-17 to 2018-19. Their 25 victories in 2017-18 was a program-high.
UMBC became the first #16 seed to knock off a #1 seed when the Retrievers shocked Virginia, 74-54, in the 2018 NCAA Tournament.
Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena (formerly the UMBC Event Center) officially opened on Feb. 3, 2018, as the UMBC men's basketball team hosted the Vermont Catamounts before a capacity crowd of 4,753. Both the men's and women's basketball teams played their February and March games in the new facility, which included three post-season victories.
The on-campus facility can accommodate nearly 6,000 patrons for commencements, concerts, featured speakers, and other events. It includes spectator facilities, such as concessions, catering, hospitality, restrooms, security and guest services.
 
COACH FERRY
Jim Ferry is in his 23rd season as a collegiate head coach and his third at UMBC.
Ferry led the Retrievers to consecutive 18-14 records as well as an appearance in the America East Finals in 2021-22.
Prior to his arrival in Baltimore, Ferry served in 2020-21 as the interim head coach at Penn State. He led the Nittany Lions to an 11-14 overall mark and a
7-12 Big Ten record that included wins over NCAA Tournament
teams No. 14 Wisconsin, No. 15 Virginia Tech , Rutgers, and Maryland (twice).
Ferry spent 10 seasons as head coach at LIU Brooklyn, guiding the program to unprecedented levels of success. He led the Blackbirds to the Northeast Conference regular-season titles and tournament championships in 2011 and 2012, including their first NCAA Championship appearance in 14 years.
 
AMERICA EAST PRESEASON POLL     
Rank   Team (First-Place Votes)          Points
1          Vermont (8)                 64
2          UMass Lowell (1)         55
3          Bryant                          52
4          Maine                          39
5          UMBC                          31
6          Binghamton                30
7          UAlbany                      26
8          NJIT                             15
9          New Hampshire          12
 
MILESTONE WATCH   
900 career points -Marcus Banks, Jr. (859)
900 career points - Bryce Johnson (804)
800 career points -  Marlon Short (771)
600 career points, Josh Odunowo, (548)
200 career 3-pointers-Marcus Banks, (168)
450 career rebounds - Marlon Short (403).
300 career field goals - Bryce Johnson (274)
150 career 3pt-fg - Bryce Johnson (128)

UP NEXT
UMBC will host DIII Cairn on Tuesday evening.