Dukes Trek to Philly for Thursday Night Battle at Drexel

2014-15 JMU MEN'S BASKETBALL

GAME #18

9-8 (2-2 CAA)

JMU Game Notes

James Madison at Drexel
Daskalakis Athletic Center (2,509) – Philadelphia, Pa.
Thursday, Jan. 15, 2015 - 7 p.m.
TV: Comcast SportsNet, The Comcast Network, SNY
Live Stats | Live Video | Live Audio

Twitter: @JMUMBasketball, #JMUDukes

3-12 (1-3 CAA)

Drexel Game Notes

Game Plan

James Madison heads north to Philadelphia to take on Drexel on Thursday night at 7 p.m. at the Daskalakis Athletic Center.
The game will be televised on Comcast SportsNet, The Comcast Network and SNY with Al Koken providing play-by-play and Blaine Taylor providing color commentary. It will also be available online at MadiZONE HD SportsNet or Dragons TV. The game can also be heard on the JMU/nTelos Wireless Broadcast Network and on the local airwaves at WSVA AM 550 and 92.1 FM.

Scouting Report

JMU enters Thursday with a 9-8 overall record and 2-2 mark in CAA play while Drexel is 3-12 on the season and 1-3 in league play. The Dukes are 2-3 on the road while the Dragons are just 1-6 at home this season.
This is the 25th meeting all-time between the two programs and 24th since DU became a CAA member in 2001-02. The Dragons hold an 18-6 advantage against the Dukes, including an impressive 9-1 mark in games played at the "DAC." Up until Matt Brady's hiring in 2008, the Dukes had never beaten Drexel, and he's posted a 6-6 mark over the previous six seasons.
Last season, the teams split the two meetings, with each team winning on its home court. In the previous meeting, the Dukes escaped with a 63-61 overtime win on Feb. 19, 2014, at the JMU Convocation Center. Ron Curry broke the OT tie with a 3-pointer with 6.5 left and Andre Nation added free throws after an inbounds steal to secure the win. Curry led the way with a game-high 18 points while Charles Cooke and Nation had 13 and 12, respectively. JMU limited DU to just 30.4 percent shooting, which was led by Frantz Massenat's 15 points.
Last time out for the Dukes, William and Mary had Terry Tarpey record the program's first-ever triple double and Marcus Thornton knocked down seven triples as JMU fell 81-73 on Saturday in Williamsburg. Tarpey had 18 points, 11 rebounds and a career-high 10 assists while Marcus Thornton scored a game-high 27 points. Ron Curry had 14 points while Winston Grays and Jackson Kent both produced 13 points. Leading 56-51, W&M used a 12-2 to pull away, ending JMU's hopes at a road win.
Comparing the two squads in this Thursday's matchup, JMU scores 65.4 points per game and allows 66.8 per contest while Drexel scores just 57.7 points while conceding 63.9 to its foes. JMU shoots 44.1 percent from the floor and 32.7 from long range while its opponents shoot 43.3 percent on average. DU shoots 38.4 and 30 percent, respectively and averages having the opposition shoot 44.6 percent.
Players to watch are JMU's Ron Curry and Drexel's Damion Lee. Curry has averaged 12.0 points per game during the start of CAA play, including double-figure scoring in the last three games. He is scoring 10.2 points per game this season and is second in the CAA with 4.5 assists for game. He has 10 double-figure scoring games this season, including a season-best 20 points in the team's second game of the season versus Radford. Lee leads the CAA with 20.8 points per game and is a top player in a plethora of individual categories. He leads the league in steals (1.7) and is second in free throw percentage (.842), fifth in 3-pointers made (2.7), sixth in 3-point percentage (.388) and eighth in rebounding (6.0) and shooting percentage (.436).
Following this game, JMU returns home to host Elon Saturday night at 8 p.m. in a televised contest live on the American Sports Network and tape delayed on Comcast SportsNet (11:30 p.m.).

Previous 10 Meetings between JMU and Drexel
2013-14: JMU 63, Drexel 61, OT, Feb. 19, 2014
2013-14: Drexel 78, JMU 60, Feb. 8, 2014
2012-13: Drexel 60, JMU 48, Feb. 10, 2013
2012-13: JMU 51, Drexel 43, Jan. 12, 2013
2011-12: Drexel 78, JMU 61, Feb. 22, 2012
2011-12: Drexel 63, JMU 56, Feb. 8, 2012
2010-11: JMU 68, Drexel 54, Feb. 9, 2011
2010-11: JMU 60, Drexel 52, Jan. 26, 2011
2009-10: JMU 77, Drexel 65, March 5, 2010 (CAA First Round)
2009-10: Drexel 67, JMU 64, Feb. 27, 2010
Drexel leads 18-6 (DU leads 9-1 in Philadelphia)

Calendar