JMU SCORES COMEBACK WIN OVER LONGWOOD

Monday, February 22

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7:00 p.m.

James Madison University

12-17

Longwood

11-18

Longwood

James Madison

2/23/2010 3:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

HARRISONBURG, Va., Feb. 22, 2010 - Four players scored at least 17 points and James Madison overcame a 15-point first-half deficit to defeat Longwood 96-86 in a non-conference men's basketball game Monday night at the Convocation Center.

JMU improved to 12-17 on the season and recorded a season-high for points with 96. Longwood dropped to 11-18 for the season.

Longwood led 52-38 with 1:20 to go in the first half. However, a pair of three-pointers by sophomore forward Julius Wells (Toledo, Ohio/Libbey) in the final minute started a 13-0 JMU run, the final seven points coming in the early minutes of the second half.

JMU took its first second-half lead at 55-54 with 14:58 to go on a tip-in by freshman guard Alioune Diouf (Powder Springs, Ga./McEachern), the first lead of the game since 2-0. The Dukes then grabbed the lead for good at 62-61 with 11:14 to go and used a 14-3 run to build a double-digit advantage at 74-64 with 7:03 to play. Altogether, JMU outscored Longwood 58-34 in the final 21 minutes to pick up the 96-86 win.

Senior guard Pierre Curtis (Denver, Colo./East) led all players with a season-high 25 points, 10 assists, and four steals. It was his first double-double of the season and just the second of his career. It was also the first time in JMU history that a player collected 25 points and 10 assists in a game. The point total was one shy of his career high while his 12-for-12 showing at the free-throw line tied the JMU record for percentage. For his career, Curtis averaged 16 points and seven assists against the Lancers.

Wells added 22 points and eight rebounds for JMU. Junior forward Denzel Bowles (Virginia Beach, Va./Kempsville) totaled 19 points, seven boards, four assists, and two blocks. Junior guard Ben Louis (Melbourne, Australia/St. Francis Xavier) added 17 points, six rebounds, and a career-high five steals.

JMU recorded a season-high 11 blocks. It was the first double-digit block total since 13 against Towson in the first round of the CAA Championship in 2003. Redshirt freshman forward Alvin Brown (Fort Washington, Md./Friendship Christian) led the charge with seven blocks and several more altered shots along with five points, both career highs. It was the third-most blocks in a game ever for the Dukes

Dana Smith led Longwood with a double-double of 25 points and 10 rebounds. Antwan Carter narrowly missed a double-double with 17 points and nine boards. Kevin Swecker added 15 points while E.J. Dawson chipped in 10 points and six assists.

Longwood's 52 first-half points were a JMU opponent season best. The Lancers hit 11-of-17 threes in the opening half but connected on just one more in the second half with 2:44 to go. They had just 34 second-half points after scoring 33 points on threes alone in the opening session. LU had just 12 second-half points with 6:30 to go.

Longwood built a quick lead in the early minutes, hitting each of its first four three-pointers en route to a 12-5 lead just two minutes into the contest. The Lancers quickly built the margin to 12 at 21-9 with 13:19 to go. JMU got no closer than nine until the two Wells threes at the end of the half for the 52-44 halftime margin.

JMU will be at VCU Wednesday night for a 7:30 p.m. Colonial Athletic Association contest before the final home game of the season on Saturday at 7 p.m. against Drexel.