JMU men’s basketball drops exhibition to D2 Philadelphia, 79-76

Four James Madison players scored in double figures but three free throws in the closing seconds lifted Division 2 Philadelphia to a 79-76 exhibition victory in an exhibition Sunday afternoon at the Convocation Center.

Sophomore forward Paulius Satkus (Raudondvaris, Lithuania/Barking Abbey (England)) was one rebound shy of a double-double. He scored a team-high 20 points to go with nine rebounds, six of which came on the offensive glass. Two other JMU sophomores scored 14 points apiece in forward Yohanny Dalembert (Port-au-Prince, Haiti/Lower Merion (Pa.)) and guard Jackson Kent (High Point, N.C./High Point Christian). Kent also knocked down four three-pointers, which tied for the game-high.

The Dukes trailed 70-64 with less than six minutes to play but Satkus hit a 3-pointer with 3:57 to play, which sparked a 10-0 run that was capped by a Dalembert layup with 1:45 remaining. The Rams answered back with a Derek Johnson three to cut it to one and after Satkus got an offensive rebound and putback, Jordan DiCicco scored his only points of the game on a trey with 49 seconds to go. Philadelphia stopped JMU on the ensuing possession and Johnson was fouled on a 3-point attempt with 2.2 seconds on the clock. He hit all three free throws and JMU’s desperation shot at the buzzer was off the mark, giving Philadelphia the win for the first time in seven exhibition attempts against JMU.