SECOND-HALF SURGE LIFTS DUKES OVER TIGERS 73-68

Wednesday, February 6

Harrisonburg, Va.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

11-11, 4-8

Towson

9-13, 5-7

Towson

James Madison

2/6/2008 5:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

HARRISONBURG, Va., Feb. 6, 2008 ? James Madison went on a 36-7 second-half scoring burst to turn a 19-point deficit into a 10-point lead and held on to defeat Towson 73-68 in a Colonial Athletic Association men's basketball contest Wednesday evening at the JMU Convocation Center.

JMU improved to 11-11 overall and 4-8 in the CAA. The Dukes upped their home record for the season to 7-3. Towson dropped to 9-13 overall and 5-7 in the conference while also falling to 1-10 in road games this season.

Towson took a commanding 41-25 lead into the locker room at the half after shooting 58.6% from the floor and nailing 7-of-14 three-point field goals in the opening period. The Tigers had five blocks in the half and held JMU to 37% shooting from the field.

Senior Jonathan Pease (Mechanicsville, Md./Chopticon) nailed a three pointer to open the second half and give the Tigers their largest lead at 19 points. However, the bucket with 19:16 remaining would be Towson's last field goal until a dunk by freshman Robert Nwankwo (Hyattsville, Md./Parkdale) with 8:15 left.

By the time the Tigers finally converted, the Dukes had turned the 44-25 deficit into a 51-49 advantage. JMU took its first lead at 48-47 on a trey by junior forward Kyle Swanston (Spring Hill, Fla./Hernando) with 9:12 remaining. JMU pushed the momentum further, capping the 36-7 run by taking a 61-51 lead with 5:36 remaining.

JMU still led 67-56 with 2:04 left on the clock when the Tigers managed to narrow the margin to three at 68-65 with 40 seconds remaining. However, Swanston corralled the rebound on a missed jumper in the paint and hit two free throws as JMU managed to hold on for the 73-68 win.

The Dukes turned things around in the second period to