University of Delaware Athletics
Blue Hens Struggle From Field in 64-50 Setback At James Madison (Jan. 23, 2013)
1/23/2014 1:26:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Blue Hens Struggle From The Field as University of Delaware Drops 64-50 CAA Tilt at James Madison
January 23, 2013
File Photo Courtesy of Mark Campbell
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HARRISONBURG, Va. -- The University of Delaware men's basketball team could never get going offensively as James Madison used a dominating defensive and rebounding effort to post a 64-50 Colonial Athletic Association victory over the Blue Hens Wednesday night at the JMU Convocation Center.
The Dukes snapped a two-game losing streak and won their fourth straight home game as they improved to 10-10 overall and 4-3 in league play. Delaware, which dropped its third consecutive game following a 3-0 conference start, fell to 8-11 overall and 3-3 in the CAA.
Rayshawn Goins recorded a double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds to pace the Dukes, who improved to 6-12 all-time against Delaware. A.J. Davis scored a team-high 16 points off the bench on 7 of 11 shooting from the field, while Andre Nation added 12 points and Devon Moore chipped in with 10. James Madison recorded assists on 17 of its 21 field goals and held a commanding 48-32 advantage on the glass, including 18 offensive rebounds.
Delaware, which had its six-game CAA road winning streak snapped, shot just 28.9 percent from the field and hit only 13 field goals for the night. The Blue Hens also went just 3 of 12 from three-point range although UD, which entered the night tied for seventh in the nation in free throw shooting, did go 21 of 27 from the foul line. Devon Saddler (at right) led the Blue Hens with 16 points and six rebounds, while Jarvis Threatt reached double figures for the ninth consecutive game as he poured in 12 points, although he finished just 1 of 9 from the floor.
Josh Brinkley contributed seven points and six boards but Jamelle Hagins, who entered the game leading the nation with 11.7 rebounds per game, was held to just four points and four boards.
Delaware scored six of the first eight points of the contest but James Madison erupted for a 12-0 run, punctuated with an emphatic dunk by Davis, to go up 14-6 seven minutes into the game. Saddler answered with four consecutive points for UD but the Dukes countered with another 12-0 spurt, taking a 26-10 advantage on an Enoch Hood dunk with 4:12 to play in the half.
Delaware, which opened 3 of 19 from the field, broke a seven-minute scoreless stretch with two free throws by Threatt and a bucket by Saddler. James Madison went back up 14 points, before the Blue Hens scored four of the final five points of the period to cur the margin to 29-18 at the break.
Delaware finished the half just 5 of 22 from the field and 0 of 7 from behind the arc as the Blue Hens posted their lowest first half output of the season.
Two free throws by Threatt to open the second half brought UD back within single digits but the Blue Hens missed their next six shots from the floor, while three-pointers by Goins and a jumper by Taylor Bessick made it a 37-20 game with 14:53 remaining.
Carl Baptiste converted Delaware's first second half basket with a tip-in at the 13:41 mark, but four consecutive JMU points gave the Dukes a 41-22 margin with 12 minutes to play.
Delaware made a run with six consecutive points on a Baptiste jumper, two Kyle Anderson free throws and a floater in the paint by Saddler to close within 41-28 with 10:24 on the clock. But the Dukes countered with three straight points, and the lead grew to as much as 21 when Davis dunked home an alley-oop to make it a 58-37 contest with 4:09 to play.
“Congratulations to James Madison, they out-played us, out-hustled us, and out-coached us tonight,” said seventh-year UD head coach Monté Ross. “Defensively we did some good things, but we just didn't do a good job of rebounding the basketball. If Kyle, Jamelle and Jarvis don't shoot well, it's going to be tough for us to win.”
Delaware will take the weekend off before heading to rival Drexel on Monday for a 7 p.m. game at the Daskalakis Center that will be televised by the NBC Sports Network.
