WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Offense has long been William & Mary's calling card, but on Sunday afternoon, it was the other end of the court that led the Tribe to a 2-0 start in the Colonial Athletic Association. W&M (6-8, 2-0 CAA) limited a league opponent to its lowest point total in nearly two years and held Towson to just 14.3 percent (2-of-14) shooting from long range in a 71-61 win at Kaplan Arena. Winners in four of its last five games, the Tribe has started 2-0 in CAA play for the second-straight season and eighth time under head coach Tony Shaver.
 
On the offensive side of the ball, the Tribe's junior class of Matt Milon, Justin Pierce and Nathan Knight carried the weight. The trio combined for 50 of the Tribe's 71 points as MIlon tallied 16 of his game-high 19 in the second half. Pierce added 18 points on 7-of-12 shooting to go with six rebounds and four assists and Knight totaled 13 points.
 
Defensively, the 61 points were the fewest allowed by the Tribe this season and the lowest total for a W&M foe in league play since holding Delaware to 58 points in 2017. The Green and Gold defense limited a CAA foe to its lowest 3-point percentage since 2015 when W&M held Elon to 13.6 percent (3-of-22) from long range.
 
W&M led wire-to-wire as it raced out to a 7-0 lead in the game's opening 1:36. With Knight limited to just five first-half minutes due to foul trouble, freshman Chase Audige, who scored 13 points on the night, and Pierce sparked a 10-0 run to open up as much as a 34-20 advantage with 2:12 left in the opening frame. In total, the Tribe defense held Towson to just 32.3 percent (10-of-31) shooting in the first half, including 0-of-9 from distance.
 
Towson (5-9, 1-1 CAA) shot 57.1 percent (16-of-28) from the field in the second half and closed to within 52-50 with 7:37 remaining, but the Tribe responded with a 13-2 run to put the game away. Milon (6) and Audige (5) combined for 11 of W&M's 13 points during the stretch. The Tribe rookie punctuated the win with a fast-break slam to push the advantage to 70-56 with under a minute remaining.
 
How It Happened
- W&M hit its first three shots and forced Towson into two turnovers, jumping out to a 7-0 lead. Pierce started the game with a dunk, and Audige's corner 3 at the 18:24 mark forced a Tiger timeout.
- Towson twice drew within two points on a pair of Dennis Tunstall buckets. His old-fashion 3-point play just over three minutes into the game cut the Tribe lead to 9-7, while his putback with 14:54 remaining narrowed the gap to 14-12. Tunstall just missed a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds.
- The Green and Gold lead balloon to double figures for the first time thanks to a 10-0 run. Audige sparked it with a steal and fastbreak dunk, before finding classmate L.J. Owens for a corner 3-pointer. Pierce scored the final five points of the run, including a top of the key triple with 2:12 left to push the lead to 34-20.
- Towson scored the half's final four points to close the gap to 34-24 at the break.
- After Milon knocked down a 3 to start the second half, Towson scored seven in a row to draw within six. Jakigh Dottin's 3-point play started the run, before a Tunstall offensive putback at the 16:56 mark closed the gap to 37-31. Dottin tied for the team lead in scoring with 12 points.
- The lead ballooned back to 11 following a Pierce fastbreak 3-pointer and a Knight free throw. The margin was 44-33 with 15:08 remaining.
- Towson scored six in a row to close within four. Brian Fobbs' driving lay-up at the 10:20 mark narrowed the Tribe lead to 48-44. Fobbs led Towson with 12 points.
 - The Tigers drew as close as two, 52-50, on an Alex Thomas jumper with 7:37 to play, but W&M responded with a 7-0 run to push the lead back to double figures. Audige started the run with a top of the key 3-pointer and then found Pierce for a lay-up in transition. Milon capped the spurt with a step-back, shot clock-beating jumper with 4:03 remaining to extend W&M's lead to 64-54.
- The run extended to 13-2 as W&M scored six in a row following a Towson bucket. Milon knocked down four free throws and found Audige for a fastbreak dunk with 46 seconds left to increase the advantage to its largest at 70-56.
 
Inside the Numbers
- The Tribe knocked down double-digit 3-pointers for the second-straight game, connecting on 11-of-28 (39.3 percent) from long range.
- W&M limited Towson to 44.1 percent (26-of-59) from the field, including 32.3 percent (10-of-31) in the opening half.
- Towson was just 2-of-14 from 3-point range (14.3 percent) and did not hit its first triple until the 9:03 mark of the second half.
- The Tribe finished the game shooting 48.1 percent (25-of-52) from the field and 76.9 percent (10-of-13) at the charity stripe.
- W&M forced Towson into 15 turnovers and converted those into 22 points.
- The Tribe held a 23-4 advantage in fast-break points against the Tigers.
- Towson outrebounded W&M, 38-24, on the glass and turned 15 offensive rebounds into 15 second-chance points.
- The Tribe turned the ball over just eight times, marking its seventh-straight game with 10 or fewer turnovers.
- W&M dished out 22 assists on its 25 made field goals. Audige, Pierce and law student Paul Rowley each had four assists.
 
Notes
W&M won for the fourth time in its last five games … The Tribe started 2-0 in CAA play for the second-straight season and eighth time in 16 years under head coach Tony Shaver … Prior to Shaver's arrival in Williamsburg, W&M started CAA play 2-0 on just four occasions … The 61 points were the fewest allowed by the Tribe this season and the lowest production for a CAA foe against the Green and Gold since Delaware totaled 58 points on Jan. 26, 2017 … Towson's 14.3 percent shooting from 3-point range was the lowest for a W&M CAA opponent since Elon shot 13.6 percent (3-of-22) on Feb. 11, 2015 against Elon … Junior Matt Milon scored in double figures for the fifth time in the last six games … His 19 points were his second-highest total this season … The Tribe knocked down double-digit 3-pointers for the 140th time under Shaver and fifth time this season … W&M is 89-51 all-time when hitting 10 or more 3-pointers under Shaver and 3-2 this season … The Tribe dished out 20 or more assists for the third time in the last four games and the fifth time overall this season … W&M is 4-1 this season when it dishes out 20 or more assists in a game … Law student Paul Rowley tied a career-high with four assists … Freshman Chase Audige scored in doubles figures for the second-straight game and fifth time this season … He tallied a career-high three blocked shots as well.
 
Up Next
- The Tribe hits the road for the first time in CAA play on Thursday, Jan. 3, at Delaware. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. from the Bob Carpenter Center in Newark, Del.
- The game will be streamed online at YouTube.com.  
- 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.