Second-Round Bound in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament
March 19, 2009 • By Matt McGovern, The Breeze
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HARRISONBURG, Va. — James Madison seniors Juwann James and Kyle Swanston combined for only three points Wednesday against Mount Saint Mary’s, but two freshmen and James’ closest teammate Pierre Curtis made sure the forwards will get another chance to play.
James didn’t play in the second half because of a wrist injury and didn’t score, while Swanston was limited to just one 3-pointer. But freshman point guard Devon Moore and Curtis keyed a critical 8-0 run midway through the second half to carry Madison to a 69-58 victory over the Mount in front of a Convocation Center crowd of 1,176.
After their first postseason victory since 1983, the Dukes (20-14) advance to the second round of the inaugural CollegeInsider.com Tournament (CIT).
“We’re thrilled to get another win; [it’s] certainly a good way for our seniors to go out of the Convo with a win, a postseason win,” JMU coach Matt Brady said. “Even though Juwann got hurt and Kyle didn’t have his best game, it allows us to play another game on Monday.”
Moore picked up his fourth foul after he sunk a layup with 9 minutes, 45 seconds remaining and the Dukes up 48-46. That’s when Curtis made sure that JMU would never relinquish the lead, going for three straight layups. The junior guard stripped Mount Saint Mary’s guard Jean Cajou and went full-court for a scoop with 8:31 left, seizing a 54-46 lead.
“Our defensive intensity in the second half really was much different and at a much higher level than it was in the first half,” Brady said. “And really terrific games I think from Pierre obviously, Devon and Julius Wells had some really big-time plays for us.”
Moore led JMU with 21 points and five rebounds, Curtis added 17 points (12 in the second half) and freshman forward Julius Wells chipped in 17 points and five rebounds.
“The coaches just kept tellin’ me ‘Just keep attacking and things are gonna fall,’” Curtis said. “I just wanted to push it on the fast break and get easy layups. I think our defense really jump-started our offense today, too.”
Mount Saint Mary’s (19-14) was led in scoring by guard Jeremy Goode, who had 11 points, while forwards Sam Atupem and Will Holland added 10 points each. Forward Shawn Atupem added nine points, while Sam led his team with eight rebounds.
The Mount had a clear size advantage over Madison — Sam and Shawn each stand at 6-foot-7, while 6-7 forward Markus Mitchell also saw action — but JMU’s aggressiveness on defense negated that strength.
“We got a little apprehensive once they got their hands on a few balls [with] deflections,” Mount Saint Mary’s coach Milan Brown said. “So I think we helped them a little bit just not being on the attack. And then they did some switching, they were able to jump into lanes so, they did a good job.”
James will have an MRI on Thursday to determine the severity of his wrist injury, which he thought was broken, according to Brady. Freshman forward Andrey Semenov sat out Wednesday due to symptoms related to a head injury suffered late in the season.
The Dukes’ next opponent will be determined at the conclusion of first-round action, which ends with a Thursday-night contest between The Citadel and Old Dominion. The location of second-round games taking place Monday will also be decided at that time.
Contact Matt McGovern at breezesports@gmail.com
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April 29, 2010 Issue in Print
Attendance was pitiful tonight. JMU students should be ashamed of themselves. We are finally changing the tide by winning in Men’s Basketball and students need to start showing their support. I can remember in the 80’s when JMU incorporated a “lottery system” where students were not gauranteed to get into a game at the Convo. The MBB program was hot and the Convo was electrifying at each game. I realize that winning has not been a tradition for the last decade but in the 2008-2009 season…..we have something to cheer about.