The Towson men’s basketball season came to a disappointing end Thursday night, as the Tigers fell at Murray State, 85-73, in the quarterfinals of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). Towson finished the 2013-14 campaign with a 25-11 overall record, including the first two postseason tournament victories in the history of the TU basketball program.
Coach Pat Skerry’s squad played well in the first half Thursday night and led Murray State, 39-36, at halftime. But as has been their tendency all season, the Racers came on strong in the game’s second half. Towson was still within seven points, down 68-61 with 7:10 remaining, but Murray State outscored the Tigers 17-12 down the stretch to earn the win and advance to the CIT final four.
A pair of seniors led Towson offensively, as Mike Burwell tallied 20 points and two-time Colonial Athletic Association player-of-the-year Jerrelle Benimon contributed 18. Sophomore Four McGlynn, with 10 points, was the only other Tiger to score in double figures.
Besides Benimon and Burwell, the Tigers also lose seniors Marcus Damas and Rafriel Guthrie. The only starter from Thursday night’s contest who returns next season is sophomore forward Timajh Parker-Rivera. Parker-Rivera grabbed seven rebounds Thursday night, second only to Benimon’s nine boards.
