Towson Tigers Blown Out Of The Pavilion By Villanova, 78-44

The Towson Tigers stormed out of the gates of this 2013-14 season, opening the campaign with three-straight victories at home in Maryland. In the final game of their season-opening home stand, the Tigers defeated Temple in convincing fashion behind Jerrelle Benimon’s 32 points and 10 rebounds.

But when Towson visited the Villanova Wildcats on Saturday, the Tigers looked slow, lethargic and, frankly, out of their league. A chance to make another statement win against a high-major conference foe turned into an embarrassing afternoon for the road team.

Jay Wright looked on confidently as the Cats ran all over Towson, 78-44. Towson entered the contest averaging 80.7 points per game.

James Bell paced the Wildcats, dropping 20 points on 7-12 shooting from the field. Villanova also had JayVaughn Pinkston, Ryan Arcidiacono and Darrun Hilliard in double-figures as well.

It was a game of many struggles for Towson, starting with Benimon posting a paltry (for him) 11 points and 6 rebounds on 3-8 shooting. Sophomore starting point guard Jerome Hairston never got comfortable in The Pavillion, battling with foul trouble throughout the length of the game.

But the two most staggering takeaways from this game was Towson’s irregular inefficient play. The Tigers turned the ball over 24 times and shot just 2-17 from three-point land. Entering the game, Towson was averaging just 12 turnovers per game and 42.0 percent from deep.

The road ahead doesn’t get easier for Towson anytime soon. The Tigers will take on Andrew Wiggins and the Kansas Jayhawks on Friday.