UNC Wilmington downs JMU for second straight defeat, 77-65

James Madison was unable to overcome a slow start for the second straight game as UNCW used timely runs to earn a 77-65 Colonial Athletic Association men’s basketball victory Wednesday night at the JMU Convocation Center.

The Seahawks improved to 13-9 on the season and stayed in a tie for second in the CAA standings at 8-3 while the Dukes dropped their second straight, falling to 13-11 overall and 6-5 in league play. UNCW ended a four-game losing skid to Madison and won in Harrisonburg for the first time since Jan. 26, 2006 – the last season the Seahawks won the CAA.

Freddie Jackson scored a game-high 26 points on 9-of-15 shooting, including 4-of-6 from 3-point range. Craig Ponder and Addison Spruill both tallied 18 points in the win as Spruill led all players with seven rebounds and tied for game-high honors of four assists.

For the Dukes, junior guard Ron Curry (Pennsauken, N.J./Paul VI) scored a team-best 21 points while finishing with six rebounds and four assists, also team highs. Sophomore forward Tom Vodanovich (Wellington, New Zealand/St. Patrick’s College) contributed 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting and five rebounds while freshman guard Joey McLean (Greensboro, N.C./High Point Christian) finished with a career-high 11 points to go with two steals.

UNCW shot 42.4 percent (25-of-59) for the game and was on point from beyond the arc with a 60 percent (9-of-15) conversion rate. It also knocked down 81.8 percent (18-of-22) of its free throws in the victory. JMU shot 40 percent (20-of-50) from the floor and struggled from deep at just 21.1 percent (4-of-19) while making 77.8 percent (21-of-27) of its tries from the stripe.

The Seahawks held a small advantage on the boards, 36-34, and outscored the Dukes 24-12 off turnovers after forcing the hosts into 13 giveaways compared to their six. The ‘Seahawks also took advantage of their 12 offensive rebounds with 18 second-chance points. The Dukes won the war in the paint, 28-22, and also had a 14-7 edge in transition in a game which UNCW led for more than 38 minutes.

The Seahawks jumped out to an early 13-3 lead in the opening 5:43, holding JMU without a basket (0-of-6) while forcing six turnovers. Trailing by as much as 11 at the midway point of the half, a layup by sophomore forward Yohanny Dalembert (Port-au-Prince, Haiti/Lower Merion (Pa.)) with just over nine minutes to play sparked the JMU offense, as it scored 11 of 14 points, capped off by a triple by junior guard Winston Grays (Cleveland, Ohio/Benedictine (Cincinnati State)) with 5:02 left trimmed UNCW’s lead to 23-20.

The remainder of the half was all Seahawks as it closed on a 14-3 surge in the final 3:44, making 5-of-9 from the floor to give the visitors a 37-23 lead at halftime. The Dukes shot just 1-of-4 during the final stretch of the first stanza.

The Dukes cut the deficit in half early in the second, as they opened the stanza with a 9-2 run to make it a 39-32 game. But the Seahawks answered with a 10-2 surge to go up 49-34 with 13:17 remaining. UNCW stretched its lead to 19 at 61-42 past the halfway point of the frame and JMU chipped away at the lead but never drew closer than nine points down the stretch.

JMU opens a three-game road trip this Saturday, Feb. 7, when it takes on Towson at SECU Arena. The game will be televised on Comcast SportsNet, The Comcast Network and SportsNet New York.