Bears Beat Towson In Home Opener
MorganStateBears.com

Boxscore

BALTIMORE, Md. (November 27, 2004) -- Morgan State entered tonight's contest against Towson attempting to win its first game of the season and avenge a double-overtime loss to the Tigers suffered two weeks ago. 

Towson center Holden Plack knocked down two free throws with 50.2 seconds remaining to give the Tigers a 51-50 lead. But following an MSU timeout, Alfonso Evans was fouled on a drive to the basket. He calmly stepped up and drained both free throws. 

Towson had one more shot at winning the game, but tenacious defense by the Bears led to a steal by Sam Brand. Brand in turn was fouled and ended up making both of his attempts to help seal the Bears first win of the season, and 11^th win against Towson in the 21 game series. 

Morgan State (1-2) battled the Tigers throughout the night as both teams combined for 17 lead changes and eight ties. But down the stretch the Bears forced Towson into committing costly turnovers, and the stepped up and hit some critical free throws to come away with an exciting home court victory.

Baltimore sharp-shooter Brand scored a game-high 18 points (6-18 FG) to lead the Bears over their cross-town rivals.

The Bears had balanced scoring as Aaron Andrews scored 12 points and ripped down eight rebounds, while Chris Grant and freshman guard Timothy Mathis contributed 8 points and 6 points respectively.   

The Bears played stingy team defense throughout the night and held the Tigers to 38.5 percent shooting from the floor.  But Towson (2-2) was able to knock down its free throws shot and were able to keep the contest close.  

Winstonn Tubbs finished with 15 points and 7 rebounds and shot 5-for-10 from the field. Mike Green added 12 points and Holden Plack added 11 points.

The Bears will be back in action when they travel to Annapolis to face Navy on Wednesday (Dec. 1).  Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

Bear Notes:
- Morgan State finished the 2004-05 season with a 14-16 overall record and placed 4th with a 11-7 conference mark.
- Senior All-MEAC guard Sam Brand led the team in scoring (13.6 ppg) and senior 6-foot-5 center Aaron Andrews led the team in rebounds (7.8 rpg).
- Aaron Andrews currently ranks No. 8 on the school's all-time rebounds list (2002-05; 680 rebs).
- The average height of the team was 6-foot-4; Richmond product Tim Berkley was the Bears tallest player at 6-fot-8.
- Morgan State lost to Coppin State (60-43) on March 10, 2006 in the MEAC quarterfinals held at the Arthur Ashe Athletic Center in Richmond, Va.


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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified doctoral research institution offering more than 126 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.