ELON, N.C. – The Elon University men's basketball team hosts Towson this Saturday, Jan. 21, to begin a three-game homestand. The contest is set for a 4 p.m. tipoff time at Schar Center.
 
HOW TO FOLLOW
• Saturday's game will be streamed live on FloHoops via a paid subscription.
• Listen to the game on the Elon Sports Network from Learfield on The Varsity Network app.
• Longtime voice of the Phoenix, Taylor Durham, will be on the call with the pregame show beginning at 3:30 p.m.
• Links for the broadcast and live stats can be found on the Elon men's basketball schedule page at elonphoenix.com.
• Other in-game updates will be provided on Twitter by following @ElonMBasketball.
 
THE MATCHUP
• Elon and Towson will meet for the 17^th time with the Tigers holding a 10-6 series lead over the Phoenix.
• Towson has won four out of the past five contests against Elon including a season sweep in both games last year.
• The Phoenix's last win in the series came on March 6, 2021, as Elon came out with a 69-48 verdict in the opening round of the CAA Tournament. Hunter McIntosh led the way for Elon, posting 13 points, three rebounds and three assists in just under 30 minutes of action.
• Phoenix head coach Billy Taylor is 1-1 all-time against Towson from his time as the head coach at Lehigh.
 
LAST TIME OUT
• Zac Ervin scored a season-high 20 points, but his performance was not enough for the Phoenix to hold off UNCW from earning a 62-54 victory on Monday, Jan. 16.
• Ervin knocked down five three-pointers in the contest for his fifth straight double-digit effort. Sean Halloran added 15 for Elon as the Orlando, Fla., native was 6-of-12 from the field.
• Ervin had his first 20-point outing since scoring a career-high 29 points versus Bluefield College on Nov. 14, 2021. The Gate City, Va., native was also one three-pointer shy of matching his season-high in triples.
• John Bowen III matched his career-high with 10 rebounds for the Phoenix while scoring four points with a pair of steals and two blocks against his former team. Bowen III was a member of the UNCW program from 2019-21.
• Bowen III's performance helped the Phoenix win the rebounding battle over the Seahawks, 39-38. The Phoenix had 14 offensive rebounds in the game, its second-best outing on the offensive glass this season.
 
SCOUTING ELON
• Elon is averaging 65.7 points per game and ranks third in the CAA in fastbreak points at 9.58 points per contest.
• Halloran leads the Phoenix in scoring at 12.7 points per game while his 83 total assists rank fourth in the CAA. His 4.4 assist average is the highest for the program since Luke Eddy also averaged 4.5 assists per game during the 2015-16 season.
• Halloran leads the CAA in total steals (43) and is second in steals per game (2.3). He is currently 13^th in the country in total steals and 26^th in the nation in steals per game. His 2.3 spg average would be the best single-season performance in school history at the Division I era, besting Scottie Rice's 2.0 SPG average in 2002-03.
• Ervin continues to be the Phoenix's leading scorer during CAA play, averaging 14.0 points per contest. The senior has knocked down a team-best 47 treys on the year at a 35.1 percent clip.
• Max Mackinnon is third on the team in scoring at 10.8 points per game while also being the Phoenix's leading rebounder at 5.3 boards per contest. The Brisbane, Australia, native has two double-doubles this season, which are the most for an Elon freshman since Hunter Woods had three in 2019-20.
• Health has been a major storyline for the Phoenix this season. Five players – Halloran, Ervin, Sam Sherry, Bowen III and LA Pratt – have appeared in all 19 games so far for the Phoenix.
• Elon has seen seven of its 12 scholarship players miss a combined total of 56 games this season. In its previous game against UNCW, the Phoenix only had eight scholarship players available against the Seahawks.
• After losing 73 percent of its scoring from last year's team, 52 percent of Elon's points scored this year has come from members who did not appear in a game for the Phoenix last season (653 of 1249).
 
SCOUTING TOWSON
• The Tigers (13-7, 5-2 CAA) enter Saturday's matchup on a three-game winning streak after earning a 79-67 victory at North Carolina A&T on Thursday, Jan. 19. Towson's lone setbacks during CAA came at Delaware on Jan. 11 and at home versus College of Charleston on Dec. 31.
• Towson is averaging 68.8 points per game on 44.1 percent shooting, including 34.6 percent from three-point range. The Tigers are holding the opposition to 64.8 points per game while ranking first in the CAA in assists per contest at 13.8.
• Five Towson players are averaging more than eight points per game, including double-digit scorers Nicolas Timberlake (15.8 ppg), Cam Holden (13.8 ppg) and Charles Thompson (12.2 ppg). Holden is second in the CAA in assists per game (4.6) while Thompson is first in the league in offensive rebounds at 2.9 per contest.
• Towson is led by 12-year head coach Pat Skerry, who has posted a 185-180 record at the helm of the Tigers.
 
ELON BASKETBALL LIVE RETURNS
• With the start of the new calendar year coinciding with the beginning of Colonial Athletic Association play, Elon Basketball Live presented by MaGerks returned on Monday, Jan. 9. The show will take place at MaGerks Pub & Grill in Elon.
• Elon Basketball Live is the exclusive chance for fans to hear directly from head women's basketball coach Charlotte Smith and head men's basketball coach Billy Taylor all winter long. The longtime voice of the Phoenix, Taylor Durham, will chat with both Smith and Taylor, along with player guests, about recent and upcoming games.
• Fans are invited to attend the broadcast live and can also listen via The Varsity Network app on their phone or smart device. The show will also be available on Tuesday morning via The Voices of Elon Athletics Podcast on Spotify.
 
TICKETS ON SALE
• Season tickets are now on sale for $170 for men's basketball.
• Single-game tickets are now on sale! Single-game tickets begin at $15 for men's basketball.
• Fans are able to purchase a book of 10 ticket vouchers for $75. These vouchers are redeemable for a ticket to any Elon men's or women's basketball regular season home game. Use all 10 for any one game, or use one voucher for 10 different games. Fans will also receive an Elon mini autographed basketball from the head coaches. These tickets represent a 50 percent savings for men's basketball tickets and a 25 percent savings for women's basketball vs. single-game prices.
• Ticket vouchers must be redeemed for a reserved seat ticket prior to entry. This can be done at the Schar Center Box Office during regular business hours (M-F, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.) or starting 90 minutes prior to tipoff.
• For more information, visit ElonTickets.com or call the Elon Ticket Office at 336-278-6750.
 
LAUNCHING THE BILLY TAYLOR ERA
• Billy Taylor was named the 19^th head coach of the Phoenix on April 15, 2022. Taylor arrived to the Phoenix after spending the past three seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Iowa.
• Prior to working with the Hawkeyes, Taylor spent five years as head coach at Lehigh University followed by six seasons as the head coach at Ball State University and three at Belmont Abbey College.
• In his time at Iowa, the Hawkeyes ranked as one of the top offensive teams in the country, ranking fifth nationally in scoring average in both 2021 (83.7) and 2022 (83.2). The program also led the country in assist-to-turnover ratio in both seasons.
• Taylor was a two-time Patriot League Coach of the Year (2003, 2004) and led Lehigh to both the regular season and tournament titles in 2004, earning a bid to the NCAA Tournament that season. He also guided Ball State to the 2009 MAC West Division crown.
 
OPENING TIP
• Elon welcomes back seven letterwinners from last year's team including five upperclassmen. Among the notable returners for the maroon and gold includes graduate student Torrence Watson and senior Zac Ervin. Both players are the leading returning scorers for Elon at 9.2 and 7.1 points per game, respectively.
• The Phoenix also welcomes back redshirt Jerald Gillens-Butler, who hopes to return to form after being named an All-Colonial Athletic Association honorable mention prior to last year. The Orlando, Fla., native appeared in only 10 games last year after missing most of the prior season due to an injury.
• A pair of graduate transfers will look to make an immediate impact for the Phoenix this season. Sean Halloran arrives to the Phoenix after an outstanding four-year career at Belmont Abbey. The Orlando, Fla., native finished as the all-time career assist leader with the Crusaders while helping the program to back-to-back Conference Carolinas Tournament Championships and three straight NCAA tournament appearances. He rounded out his career averaging 14.4 points per game as a senior and concluded his career with 1,422 points.
• Another graduate transfer, John Bowen III, brings size to the Phoenix front line at 6-foot-9 and 215 pounds. The Bladenboro, N.C., native last played at UNCW in 2019-20 and appeared in 28 out of 32 games. Prior to UNCW, Bowen III was a teammate of Halloran's at Belmont Abbey and averaged 8.9 points per game and 5.5 rebounds per contest in 2018-19 while starting 27 of 28 games.
• A pair of freshmen will also look to make an impact for the maroon and gold in 2022-23. Max Mackinnon is a 6-foot-5 swingman from Brisbane, Australia, where he won back-to-back gold medals with the U20 Australian National Team. He was also named an All-Star 5 at the Australian National Championship.
• Another freshman, LA Pratt, is a 6-foot-5 guard from Columbus, Ohio, who was a three-time All-4A Team member and three-time conference champion at Lincoln Park High School. He scored over 1,000 points in high school and helped guide the program to two WPIAL Championship appearances and two State Semifinal appearances.
 
UP NEXT
Elon continues its three-game home stand with a matchup versus Hofstra next Thursday, Jan. 26, at 7 p.m. at Schar Center.