Thursday night, Towson State needed the greatest comeback in its history -- from 25 down -- to beat Winthrop.
Last night, all that was required was a domination of the final five minutes in a 69-62 Big South Conference victory over UNC-Asheville at the Towson Center.
It was the final home game of the season for Towson (12-13, 6-10), which built a 47-29 lead early in the second half, squandered it completely, then outscored the Bulldogs 10-2 during the stretch run.
The controversial finish of their meeting at UNC-Asheville (the Tigers lost in overtime after apparently having the game won in regulation) had something to do with their energetic start in the rematch.
"We wanted to come back and play strong against them," said Tiger guard Ralph Blalock, who became the 19th player in Towson history to score 1,000 or more points.
"I don't say we got cheated down there. But with one second on the clock and the ball bouncing around three or four times, it's hard to believe time didn't run out. Then they call a foul [against Towson's Michael Keyes] when the ball was loose. We got burned on that one."
UNC-Asheville was the opponent in Towson's first Big South regular-season game three years ago, and last night in their last. The Tigers are heading for the North Atlantic Conference next season.
The Tigers prevailed in that initial Big South game, 85-64, and appeared en route to a similar romp in the finale after shooting 56.3 percent from the floor in the first half.
Although coach Terry Truax substituted liberally, Towson had no trouble asserting itself against a Bulldog club undersized and weakened by injuries.
Blalock returned after missing three games with a fractured thumb, but did not start. By halftime, 12 Tigers had played.
"It was good to have everybody together again," said Truax. "Ralph and Stevie [Thomas] are still a little rusty. With four games in eight days, we needed to get people in there."
But, as usual, Towson showed its downside after playing strong basketball for 25 minutes.
UNC-Asheville's active center, William Coley, began flourishing out of the patterned offense and the Tigers seemed to relax with the big lead.
"Our team just seems to want to play to the pace of the game and not create its own," said Truax. "That's an area that continues to concern me. We play in spurts. Part of it was my substitution pattern."
UNC-Asheville (11-15, 7-9) rallied for a 60-59 lead on a tip-in by Robert Stevenson with 5:04 remaining.
But the Tigers went ahead again on Blalock's jumper and UNC-Asheville unraveled during its next seven possessions, during which it turned over the ball three times, missed two shots and had another attempt blocked by Thomas.
Towson turned two of the turnovers into easy baskets and now visits Tennessee tomorrow, assured of the seventh seeding and a date against Charleston Southern in the quarterfinals of the Big South tournament.
Blalock (nine points) said it "means a lot to become part of an elite group in Towson history. It lets me feel like one of the top players in the conference as well."
Towson finished with a 52.5 shooting percentage and forced the Bulldogs into 23 turnovers after "stepping up our level of intensity on defense" at crunch time, said Blalock.