TOWSON, Md. – The William & Mary men's basketball team fell in overtime, 96-82, at Towson on Thursday night. The Tribe (13-7, 6-3 CAA) hit 11 first-half 3-pointers and led by 10 at the break, but Towson (15-7, 5-4 CAA) rallied with 57.1 percent shooting in the second half and hit five of its six shots in extra period to pull out the win. The loss snapped W&M's four-game road CAA win streak.
 
After hitting just two of its first 10 shots from the floor, the Green and Gold quickly heated up in the opening 20 minutes, hitting 14 of hits next 16 shots. Sophomore Justin Pierce sparked the Tribe as he book-ended a 13-0 run with 3-pointers. His triple at the 4:47 mark pulled W&M even at 34, before his second 3-pointer of the run with just a 1:39 left extended the Green and Gold cushion to 44-34.
 
The Tribe led by 10, 47-37, at the half, but the Tigers hit nine of their first 12 shots to start the second half. A Deshaun Morman 3-pointer capped an 11-2 Towson run to pull the home team even at 59 with 10:42 remaining in regulation.
 
W&M answered with eight-straight points to move back in front. Pierce, who finished with a career-high 27 points and 14 rebounds, scored the final five points of the run and his 3-pointer at the 7:36 mark gave the Tribe a 67-59 advantage.
 
The Tigers pulled within a point, 75-74, with 2:38 remaining on a Zane Martin 3-pointer. And the Towson sophomore knocked down a pair of free throws with 11.7 seconds remaining to send the game to overtime. He scored 10 of TU's final 16 points in regulation.
 
Towson controlled the overtime period, scoring the first five points, hitting its first five shots and outscoring the Tribe, 17-3. Martin scored 10 of the Tigers 17 points in the extra session to lead the way as he finished with a career-high 35 points.
 
Individual Player Spotlights
Sophomore Justin Pierce scored a career-high 27 points on 9-of-17 shooting, including 5-of-10 from 3-point range. He added a game-high 14 rebounds to record his fifth double-double of the season. Senior David Cohn finished with 17 points and six assists, while senior Connor Burchfield chipped in 14 points.
 
Zane Martin topped the Tigers with 35 points on 13-of-19 shooting, while Brian Starr added 15 points and five assists.
 
Inside the Numbers
• After shooting 56.3 percent (18-of-32) in the first half, W&M hit at just a 40-percent clip (10-of-25) in the second and finished the night at 45.9 percent (28-of-61). On the other side, Towson shot 57.1 percent (16-of-28) in the second half and hit 5-of-6 in overtime to finish the contest at 57.8 percent (37-of-64).
 
• W&M connected on 16 3-pointers at Towson. It marked the Tribe's eighth game of 15 or more 3-pointers this season and second-straight contest with 16. The Green and Gold shot 43.2 percent (16-of-37) from 3-point range on the night.
 
• The Tribe outrebounded Towson, 37-34, on the night. Pierce led the way with a game-high 14 on the glass.
 
• Towson turned 18 W&M turnovers into 26 points, outscoring the Tribe 26-10 in points off turnovers.
 
Notes
The Tribe's 16 3-pointers are tied for fifth in school history … W&M connected on 15 or more 3-pointers for the eighth time this season and 17th time in school history … Sophomore Justin Pierce turned in a career-high 27 points with career-highs in field goals made (9) and 3-pointers made (5) … He added 14 rebounds to produce his fifth double-double of the season … Senior David Cohn dished out six assists, bringing his career total to 408 … He is just one assist away from tying Scott Coval's career record of 409 and just two away from breaking it in just three seasons … Sophomore Nathan Knight struggled with foul trouble before fouling out in just 18 minutes of action … He finished with eight points and seven rebounds, failing to reach double figures in scoring for the first time this season.
 
Up Next
The Tribe wraps up its second three-game CAA road swing at UNCW on Saturday night, Jan. 27. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m., from Trask Coliseum. The game will be streamed online via CAA.TV and Stretch Internet. Tribe fans can catch the men's basketball action over the Tribe Radio Network with Jay Colley and Charlie Woollum on the call. The Tide 92.3 FM and 107.9 Bach FM are the flagship stations of the Tribe Radio Network and the audio is also available over the Web at TribeAthletics.com.