TOWSON, Md. – De'Monte Buckingham scored 20 points to lead three UNC Greensboro (UNCG) men's basketball players in double digits during a 74-64 setback to Towson in a non-conference contest at SECU Arena Tuesday night.
Buckingham also added eight rebounds for the Spartans.
Buckingham enjoyed an insane sequence late in the second half in which he scored eight straight points in 19 seconds. He made two foul shots, sank a 3-pointer on UNCG's next possession, stole the ball and made another 3-pointer.
It was a terrific stretch of action for UNCG that resembled Reggie Miller's historic performance in Madison Square Garden in Game One of the 1995 Eastern Conference semifinals.
Khyre Thompson scored a season-high 14 points and
Bas Leyte finished with 11 points. They both had strong moves around the basket and finished in traffic.
Despite its second-half deficit, UNCG demonstrated a never-say-die attitude until the final buzzer. They kept attacking the basket, defended with passion, and continued diving on the floor for loose balls.
In his two career trips to the state of Maryland, Thompson has enjoyed prime-time scoring performances. Last year against Coppin State, he scored a career-best 18 points. In two career games in the state of Maryland, Thompson has averaged 16 points.
If you factor in his previous best season-high point total of 13 in a home win over Coppin State earlier this season, Thompson is averaging 15 points against opponents from the state of Maryland during his career.
UNCG also finished with a season-high 15 assists and shot 52 percent from the field.
Gallery: (12-14-2021) UNCG at Towson (Dec. 14, 2021)
Records
UNCG 7-4
Towson 8-4
Quotable
UNCG head coach Mike Jones on the game.
"Another tough team. Another physical team. I thought these were two teams back-to-back that were very physical in the way they defended and the way they played on offense. I don't think we responded the right way early in the game. We figured it out a little bit later. We made a nice run at the end of the first half. Teams like this are the type of teams we will have to beat in our conference in order to do what we want to do as a team."
How It Happened
- Dante Treacy scored UNCG's first basket of the game to tie the game at 2-2 52 seconds into the contest.
- UNCG held Towson scoreless during a 3:48 stretch of the first half.
- UNCG had eight assists on its 12 first half baskets.
- The Spartans scored the final six points of the first half.
- UNCG held Towson scoreless for the final 2:12 of the half.
- Thompson scored UNCG's first 10 points of the second half, including making 3-pointers on two consecutive possessions.
- Leyte, who took a charge during the game, became the first player other than Thompson to score in the second half when he converted a layup with 12:20 remaining.
Inside the Numbers
- Buckingham, who had 17 points after halftime, has scored in double figures in four straight games.
- This was the eighth time this season that Buckingham has reached double digits in scoring.
- He has 67 career double digit scoring games.
- This is the ninth time in UNCG's last 10 games that Buckingham has finished with at least six rebounds.
- UNCG ended the first half shooting 50 percent (12-for-24).
- This was Thompson's third game in double figures this season and the seventh of his career.
- This was Leyte's fourth game in double figures this season and the fifth time in his career.
- Thompson and Buckingham combined to score 27 of UNCG's 37 second-half points.
- UNCG scored 36 points in the paint.
- Kobe Langley tied a season-high with four assists.
- Seven different Spartans had at least one assist.
- Towson won the rebounding battle, 26-23.
- Towson made 10 3-pointers, its second straight game in double digits.
- Terry Nolan Jr. (19 points), Niclas Timberlake (14), and Charles Thompson (11) led Towson in scoring.
- UNCG fell to 0-3 all-time at Towson.
Up Next
- UNCG visits UMBC on Thursday, Dec. 16 at 7 p.m.
