WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – William & Mary's second-half comeback fell short at the hands of Towson, 70-58, on Saturday afternoon at Kaplan Arena. Despite the loss, the Tribe (15-7, 7-2 CAA) remained atop the Colonial Athletic Association standings, a game in front of a pack of three teams, which includes the Tigers who have won six in a row.
 
Trialing for the majority of the afternoon, the Tribe closed to within two thanks to a quick 6-0 run with 6:34 remaining. Senior Andy Van Vliet found graduate student Tyler Hamilton for a lay-up to narrow the gap to 56-54.
 
The Tigers (12-9, 6-3 CAA) answered with a seven-point run to put the game out of reach. Brian Fobbs (3) and Allen Betrand (4) scored all seven during the spurt. In total, Towson ended the game by scoring 12 of the final 14 points and holding the Tribe to just one field goal over the final six and a half minutes.
 
Despite battling foul trouble in the second half, senior Nathan Knight led the Tribe with 20 points and six rebounds. Knight missed nearly nine minutes of game action after picking up three fouls in the opening six minutes of the second half. He was forced to the bench with four fouls and 13:57 remaining. Van Vliet was the only other Tribe player in double figures with 10 points and six rebounds, while Hamilton added eight off the bench.
 
Towson started fast, scoring the game's first six points and hitting nine of their first 11 from the floor. The Tigers led by as many as nine, 14-5, early in the first half before the Tribe pulled even at 21 on a Miguel Ayesa 3-pointer midway through the frame.

The Tigers shot 63% in the first half on the way to a four-point lead, 39-35, at the intermission. TU started the second-half strong as well, scoring the first seven points to open up a double-digit lead, just four minutes into the final period.
 
As part of Coaches vs. Cancer Week prior to the game, W&M head coach Dane Fischer and his wife, Chelsea, pledged to donate $5 for each Tribe student that attended Saturday's game. In total, the student attendance was 1,121, meaning the Fischers donated $5,605 to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society in honor of Chelsea's mother, Nancy Chowning, who passed away from cancer when her daughter was 16 years old. Towson head coach Pat Skerry also generously donated to the Fischer's cause prior to the contest.
 
Jacob Gibson led the Tigers with 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range. Fobbs (17) and Betrand (16) both finished in double figures as well.
 
How It Happened
- Towson scored the game's first six points to take control early. In total, the Tigers hit nine of their first 11 shots from the floor. TU's lead reached nine at 14-5 just over five minutes into the contest on a Nicolas Timberlake cutting lay-up.
- W&M used an 11-3 run to pull even at 21 midway through the opening frame. Graduate student Bryce Barnes found freshman Miguel Ayesa on the break for a corner 3-pointer at the 9:33 mark to draw the Tribe even and force a Towson timeout. In total, the Tribe hit seven shots in a row.
- Brian Fobbs scored seven points during a 9-2 Towson run to extend the visitors' lead. He scored five-straight, including a baseline jumper to stretch the advantage to 34-27 with 4:01 left.
- Knight scored the Tribe's final eight points of the first half. His 3-point play with 48 seconds left narrowed the halftime margin to 39-35.
- Towson scored the first seven points of the second half to open up a double-digit lead. Nakye Sanders tallied the first three, before back-to-back Allen Betrand buckets pushed the Tigers advantage to 46-35 with 16:11 left.
- Knight picked up his fourth foul with 13:53 remaining. He was whistled for three fouls in the opening 6:07 of the second half, including two on the offensive end.
- The Tribe scored six in a row to close the gap to 50-45 with 11:19 remaining on a Barnes driving lay-up. Junior Luke Loewe added a fast-break old-fashion 3-point play during the run.
- Fobbs answered with four-straight points to push the margin back to 54-45 at the 10:30 mark.
- A 9-2 Tribe run drew the home team within a bucket. Senior Andy Van Vliet scored five during the run, including the igniting 3-pointer. Tyler Hamilton's lay-up off a pass from Van Vliet at the 6:34 mark narrowed the gap to 56-54.
- The Tigers answered with seven in a row to push the lead to nine, 65-56, with 1:13 remaining. A Fobbs steal and fast-break dunk extended the margin to seven and forced a W&M timeout with 3:31 left.
- Towson scored 12 of the game's final 14 points in picking up its sixth-straight win. The Tigers forced W&M into five turnovers in the final six minutes and limited the Green and Gold to just one made field goal during the stretch as well.
 
Inside the Numbers
- Towson shot 53.1% (26-of-49) for the game after connecting on 63% (17-of-27) in the first half.
- W&M finished the contest at 44% (22-of-50) but was just 4-of-21 (19%) from 3-point range.
- The Tribe outscored Towson, 36-22 in the paint, but the Tigers converted 14 W&M turnovers into 23 points.
- TU outrebounded W&M, 31-24 and outscored the Green and Gold, 12-2, in second-chance points.
 
Up Next
- The Tribe continues its season-long four-game homestand when it welcomes Northeastern to Kaplan Arena on Thursday, Jan. 30. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
- The game will be broadcast on FloHoops. All Tribe's remaining 11 CAA games will be streamed on FloHoops. A FloHoops subscription is $12.50 per month or $95.88 per year ($7.99 per month) and provides access to 130 CAA men's basketball games, as well as special features.
- Tribe fans can catch the men's basketball action over the William & Mary Sports Network with Jay Colley and Charlie Woollum on the call.
 
Tribe fans can get an inside look at William & Mary basketball this week on Monday night. Tribe Talk Presented by Chesapeake Bank with Dane Fischer is back at Precarious Beer Hall. The 30-minute on-air show begins at 7 p.m. Fans can hear the live broadcast on the William & Mary Sports Network and its flagship station 92.3 FM The Tide. Tribe Talk will also be available online via the Tune-In App.