WVU Bests Dukes in Charleston, 86-73

Monday, November 16

Charleston, W.Va.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

1-1

West Virginia

2-0

Team	1	2	F
James Madison	38	35	73
West Virginia	48	38	86

11/16/2015 10:51:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Up against a fierce, full-court defensive effort from West Virginia, James Madison fell to the Mountaineers 86-73 in non-conference men's basketball action at the Charleston Civic Center on Monday night.

JMU fell to 1-1 with the loss while WVU, ranked No. 22 in the USA Today Coaches Poll, improved to 2-0.

The Dukes stayed within striking distance for almost the entire contest, keeping the margin under 14 points until the five-minute mark and drawing as close as seven with 10:43 to play and nine with just 6:18 on the clock.

Madison adjusted well to WVU's full-court press at halftime, improving from 35.7-percent shooting (10-for-28) in the opening period to 47.9-percent shooting (11-for-23) after the break. JMU also held the Mountaineers under 40-percent shooting (13-for-33) and did not surrender a three-pointer after halftime.

On the evening, JMU shot 41.2 percent (21-for-51) from the field and 32.1 percent (9-for-28) from behind the arc. The Dukes spread their scoring out, as four players reached double-digit points.

Junior guard Shakir Brown, who had been named CAA Player of the Week earlier in the day, picked up where he left off, scoring a game-high 21 points and grabbing seven rebounds for JMU. Brown is averaging 20.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per outing through two games as a Duke.

Junior forward Dimitrije Cabarkapa and senior guard Winston Grays III both picked up their first double-digit scoring efforts of the year, tallying 13 and 12 points, respectively, while senior guard Ron Curry battled through foul trouble to score 11 points on the wings of 3-for-5 three-point shooting.

QUOTING COACH BRADY
"They got a lot of baskets in the lane. I'm not sure that, if we had five more days to prepare, we would've had a great answer for how big, fast and athletic West Virginia is. I think we've got a really fun, really talented group, though, and we're excited for what we have in front of us."

TWEET OF THE GAME

Despite the loss, @JMUMBasketball stayed tough vs. @WVUhoops! ????This team is going to turn some heads! #BeALLIN #GoALLOUT
— JMUSports (@JMUSports) November 17, 2015

GREAT NIGHT FROM THE STRIPE
In front of a hostile crowd, the Dukes shot a blistering 91.7 percent (22-for-24) from the free throw line on the evening. The performance marked JMU's first game with a FT percentage over 90% since a 14-for-15 (93.3%) display in a home win over Longwood on Nov. 19, 2014.

STAT OF THE GAME
West Virginia outrebounded the Dukes, 42-31, on Monday, with 22 of the Mountaineers boards coming on the offensive end, leading to 26 second-chance points.

NEXT UP
The Dukes will open their home season this coming weekend in the Men Against Breast Cancer Tournament at the JMU Convocation Center. JMU will welcome FIU (Fri., Nov. 20; 3:30 p.m.), Oral Roberts (Sat., Nov. 21; 5 p.m.) and UT Martin (Sun., Nov. 22; 3:30 p.m.) to Harrisonburg for three games in as many days.