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Men's Basketball Joe Browning

CAA's Hottest Teams Collide At SECU Arena

TOWSON, Maryland – The Colonial Athletic Association's top two teams lock horns early Saturday when UNCW's scorching Seahawks take on high-flying Towson in a 2 p.m. matinee at SECU Arena outside Baltimore.
 
The 10-5 Seahawks, winners of seven straight and atop the heap in the CAA with a clean 4-0 mark, are tackling the third leg of a four-game road trip. Coach Takayo Siddle's squad stands 2-0 on the swing following thrilling wins at Charleston and James Madison.
 
The Tigers, 14-5 and 5-1, have won five in a row and stand 7-1 on their home floor at the midway point in the season. Towson's lone home loss came on Nov. 13, 2021, to Monmouth, 79-71
 
The streaking Seahawks are tied for the ninth longest winning streak in the nation. Auburn and Davidson top the list with 14-game strings.
 
"It's been a good road trip so far, but we're not finished," said Siddle, who is looking for his first win in SECU Arena after last year's Covid-abbreviated schedule had the Seahawks play back-to-back games in the venue. "We continue to grow and get better every game. I'm really proud of these guys. We just need to stay focused and take it one game at a time."
 
The UNCW-Towson game will be carried locally on The Breeze 95.9 FM and aired on the CAA's streaming partner, FloHoops.com. Play-by-play voice Mike Vaccaro will be on the call.
 
Seahawk senior guard Jaylen Sims was totally focused on Thursday when he buried a three-pointer with 1.7 seconds left to give the Seahawks a 71-70 triumph at the Atlantic Union Bank Center. Five players reached double figures for the Seahawks for the first time this season, led by 16 points apiece from graduate guard Jaylen Fornes and freshman guard Trazarien White. Junior guard Shykeim Phillips contributed 14, Sims had 11 and graduate guard Mike Okauru pitched in 10.
 
Thursday night's buzzer beater by Sims was the No. 1 play on ESPN Sports Center's List of Top Ten Plays for Jan. 20, 2022.
 
Towson, meanwhile, also remained hot on Thursday, carving out a 74-67 home victory over Charleston. The Tigers built an eight-point lead in the second half, jumping ahead by 10 points, but the Cougars rallied to lead with 10:52 remaining. Towson regained the advantage with a 15-4 run and held on for the home victory. TU's Nicolas Timberlake led all scorers with 17 points and added five rebounds. Charles Thompson came up just shy of a double-double, tallying nine points, 10 rebounds and six blocks.
 
The Seahawks have pieced together their longest winning streak since the end of the 2016-17 season and it's clear why. The team is shooting 45.1 percent from the floor, 39.7 percent from deep and 72.7 percent at the free throw line during the stretch. On the defensive side, the Seahawks are limiting opponents to 43.8 percent shooting and 66.3 points per game.
 
The Seahawks conclude their grueling four-game road trip Monday night with a visit to Matthews Arena in Boston for a matchup with Northeastern.
 
UNCW-TU Net Notes
  • UNCW and Towson are meeting for the 45th time. The Seahawks own a 24-20 advantage in the series.
  • Towson has won five games in a row and six of the last 10 meetings between the two teams. UNCW stands 21-16 vs. Towson in CAA games and 9-10 against the Tigers on their home floor since the two became conference rivals.
  • UNCW stands 3-6 at SECU Arena and has dropped three in a row in the venue, including both games last year during the Covid-19 adjusted season.
  • The Tigers took both games last season by a combined seven points in the back-to-back contests played on Jan. 18-19, 2021. Towson won the opener, 72-69, on Jan. 17 and then completed the sweep with a 78-74 decision the following day.
  • UNCW stands 8-11 against TU's Pat Skerry and has dropped five straight outings to the Tiger head coach since a 67-61 victory over the Tigers at SECU Arena on Jan. 5, 2019.
  • The Seahawks have played four games during the afternoon in 2021-22 and have taken three of those matchups.
  • Since a 29-point blowout loss at Jacksonville on Dec. 11, 2020, UNCW has claimed its last three road games at High Point (+2), Charleston (+8) and James Madison (+1) by an average of 3.6 points.
  • It's been a good year so far for the Seahawks, who have not lost in 2022. UNCW's last defeat was Dec. 11 at Jacksonville, a span of 42 days.
  • The Seahawks have dropped five games in a row to Towson by an average of 5.2 ppg. UNCW has played five of the last eight games between the two teams at SECU Arena. UNCW's last victory on the Tigers' home court was a 67-61 decision on three years ago on Jan. 5, 2019.
For complete coverage of UNCW Men's Basketball, follow the Seahawks on the official home of UNCW Athletics, UNCWSports.com, or through our social media channels: @UNCWmenshoops (Twitter), facebook.com/UNCWMensBasketball (Facebook), @UNCWBasketball (Instagram).
 
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Players Mentioned

Jaylen Sims

#30 Jaylen Sims

G
6' 6"
Sophomore
Shykeim Phillips

#2 Shykeim Phillips

G
6' 0"
Freshman
Mike Okauru

#4 Mike Okauru

G
6' 3"
Junior
Jaylen Fornes

#1 Jaylen Fornes

G
6' 3"
Graduate Student
Trazarien White

#13 Trazarien White

F
6' 6"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Jaylen Sims

#30 Jaylen Sims

6' 6"
Sophomore
G
Shykeim Phillips

#2 Shykeim Phillips

6' 0"
Freshman
G
Mike Okauru

#4 Mike Okauru

6' 3"
Junior
G
Jaylen Fornes

#1 Jaylen Fornes

6' 3"
Graduate Student
G
Trazarien White

#13 Trazarien White

6' 6"
Freshman
F