JMU KNOCKS OFF WOFFORD 78-74 IN MEN'S BASKETBALL

Saturday, November 25

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James Madison

11/25/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

JMU KNOCKS OFF WOFFORD 78-74 IN MEN'S BASKETBALL

Terrance Carter had 16 points as JMU defeated Wofford 78-74.

Game Box Score

HARRISONBURG, Va., Nov. 25, 2006 ? James Madison University built a 14-point lead in the second period after trailing by one at halftime and the Dukes held on in the final minutes for a 78-74 non-conference men's basketball victory over Wofford College on Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center.

JMU evened its record at 2-2 and improved to 2-0 at home following Wednesday's 89-87 win over Virginia Military Institute. The back-to-back wins are the first for the Dukes since claiming conference victories over Delaware and Towson in February of the 2005-06 season. Wofford fell to 4-2 on the season and 2-2 on the road.

The Dukes held the Terriers to their lowest point total of the season at 74. JMU also had its lowest number of turnovers (13) this season, its highest steal total (nine), and its best performance at the free throw line, going 15-for-20 (75%).

Neither team led by more than four points in a back-and-forth first half that saw Wofford take a 39-38 advantage into the break. The Terriers had balanced scoring in the opening period as five players scored at least five points. Meanwhile, the Dukes relied largely upon the inside presence of sophomore Juwann James (Jacksonville, Fla./Raines) and junior Terrance Carter (District Heights, Md./Largo), who combined for 24 of JMU's 38 points.

JMU forced five of Wofford's 18 turnovers during a 17-5 run to start the second half that helped the Dukes build a 55-44 advantage. After the Terriers closed to within six at 55-49, the Dukes put together a 9-1 burst to take their largest lead of the game at 64-50 with 9:55 remaining.

Over the next four minutes, WC went on a run of its own, 12-2, capped by back-to-back three-pointers from senior Adam Sheehan (Columbia, S.C./Cardinal Newman) and sophomore Matt Estep (Rupert, W.Va./Greenbrier East), as the Terriers closed within four at 66-62.

Junior center Gabriel Chami (Cordoba, Argentina/New Hampton) had back-to-back baskets on post moves to help the Dukes end the slide and sophomore Colbey Santos (East Wareham, Mass./Tabor Academy) added a three-point field goal with 4:07 remaining to put the Dukes back up by double figures at 73-62.

The Terriers had one more run in them as they chipped away at the Dukes' lead with nine unanswered points, ending with an Eric Marshall (Grovetown, Ga./Greenbrier) lay-up with 1:24 remaining to pull within 73-71.

Sophomore Joe Posey (Colonial Beach, Va./Notre Dame Academy) went 4-for-4 at the free throw line on back-to-back possessions to put JMU up by six. Junior Shane Nichols (Radford, Va./Radford) connected on a three-point basket with five seconds left to make it a one-possession game, but freshman Pierre Curtis (Denver, Colo./Charis Prep, N.C.) hit one of two free throws to clinch the four-point JMU victory.

James had his second 20-point outing of the season to lead JMU, finishing with 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field. He also had a team-high eight rebounds. Curtis and Posey each had 16 points and Carter added 12. Curtis' point total was a career hi