Turning the page on the new year has been an arduous task for Towson and leading scorer Four McGlynn.
As the Tigers (8-9) have struggled in Colonial Athletic Association play en route to a 1-3 start, so too has McGlynn.
In those four games, the 6-foot-2, 180-pound junior averaged 5.0 points, shot 20 percent (6 of 30) from the field and 15.8 percent (3 of 19) from behind the 3-point arc, and converted 55.6 percent (5 of 9) of his free throws.
In his previous 13 games, McGlynn averaged 14.8 points, shot 43.9 percent (50 of 114) from the floor and 44.1 percent (26 of 59) from 3-point range, and made 98.5 percent (66 of 67) of his foul shots.
But the shooting guard still has the support of his coach, Pat Skerry.
"The better he plays, the better we'll play," Skerry acknowledged Tuesday. "He was playing at a really high level before league play began, and there's a great disparity in his numbers. He's practicing hard and getting extra shots, and he's been watching some film, and I think that will change. He did a good job against Northeastern [nine points, three assists and zero turnovers in a 52-49 loss on Saturday]. He had some really good looks and wanted to take some big shots. He just didn't knock them down, and I think he's got enough confidence to continue to be aggressive and shoot and score the ball, and our belief is that he will make those shots."
McGlynn did not start against Northeastern, marking his first absence from the starting lineup this season. Skerry said McGlynn came off the bench to protect the ball and play defense, but would not commit to McGlynn starting at Delaware (2-13 overall and 1-3 in the CAA) on Wednesday night.
"Sometimes when players miss shots, they let it get to them mentally, and he's missed a couple free throws, which is uncharacteristic of him," Skerry said. "He's just got to keep doing what we would expect him to do, which is to re-set and operate with a greater sense of urgency. I think if he does that, he will be consistent like he was before conference play started. It's certainly not the start he or we had hoped for. It's just that it happens quick. Four games in eight days is quick, and it's not ideal, but it is what it is. Now we've got to try to improve for the better."
McGlynn's place in the starting lineup was filled by 6-6, 200-pound sophomore A.J. Astroth. Although the guard did not score a point and grabbed just two rebounds, Skerry said Astroth's strength is his ability to play defense.
"He's guarding pretty good, which is kind of what we need from him," Skerry said. "Now he's got to help us on offense, and it just doesn't have to be by shooting the ball. It's spreading the floor, getting to the glass, it's cutting hard, is he drawing fouls, does he have really good ball security, those things. He's got some athleticism and some strength, and he's got to figure out different ways to score, which will help us other than just trying to shoot the ball."