Towson Tigers

The Towson Tigers have operated in virtual anonymity for as long as most college basketball fans and gamblers can remember as a middle of the pack team in the Colonial Athletic Association. This virtual invisible existence would continue at the start of the 2005-06 season as the Towson Tigers would try and pad their win total with a multitude of unlined games. Even their lined games would often be against little known opponents, offering a unique challenge to college basketball handicappers.

Difficult read Towson Tigers

Towson Tigers would prove to be a difficult read in the pre-season of November/December for 2005 due to that light schedule. The idea, of course, was to bulk up their win total for a potential post season bid, most likely in the NIT if all went well.

Another reason that programs such as Towson Tigers schedule light early is to try and build up some much needed confidence, as there is little, if any, winning tradition and no real habit of success to fall back on. Therefore, it is hoped that a successful non-conference schedule will change the minds of the players as they enter the tougher and more intense league games come January.

The season began for the Tigers with a 67-80 loss at Loyola-Maryland as a 3.5-point chalk as Towson got off to a disappointing start as an overlay. This was followed by three straight unlined games, the first two of which were home wins over MD Baltimore and then Morgan State. That was followed by a shocking and revealing 49-78 loss at Norfolk State.

Back on the board in their Colonial Athletic Association opener against William & Mary, the Towson Tigers scored a 76-45 win as 4.5-point dogs. But any good will gained by that win went quickly out the window as the Tigers were clobbered at Northeastern 67-89 as 17.5-point dogs.

Towson’s alarming reality check would continue with back to back unlined losses at American and then at home to VMI. Full panic set in after a 52-86 blowout loss against Syracuse as 20-point neutral court dogs. Towson finally got back into the win column with an unlined triumph over Lehigh. In the final tune up before CAA play kicked into high gear, the Tigers beat Charleston 86-75 as 14.5-point dogs.

Unwanted bargain values

League play kicked in with a 71-85 loss to Old Dominion as 11.5-point dogs. At this point Towson had done nothing to distinguish itself as a team that anybody would want to wager on, and this served to transform them into unwanted bargain values that would be getting better lines than deserved precisely because of their being unwanted by the masses.

Towson went on to win and cover their next three games at James Madison, at home against Hofstra and then at Delaware. The streak was halted by a 46-78 loss as 14-point road dogs at NC Wilmington. Towson next proved to be in the unusual role of an overlay with a 66-62 win over Georgia State as 4.5-point chalks.

Towson Tigers Value remained

Interestingly enough Towson’s value remained on the board as they covered their next two games despite losing them straight up. First was a 61-69 loss at Drexel as 14-point dogs followed by a 70-82 loss at Hofstra as 14.5-point dogs.

The dog bit again in Towson’s next game, a 61-76 loss to Delaware as 2.5-point chalks. But back into the role of dog, the Tigers got the cash in back to back games starting with a 75-81 loss at Virginia Commonwealth as 14.5-point dogs. That was followed by an 84-80 home win over Drexel as 5.5-point dogs.

Dogs continued to bite

The dogs continued to bite in Towson games as the Tigers covered three straight games in that role. In the season finale, however, they lost to Northeastern 70-86 as 6.5-point dogs and then lost 64-72 to Georgia State as 1-point dogs in the CAA tourney.