Dukes Grind Out 56-52 Win at College of Charleston

Thursday, February 11

Charleston, S.C.

7:30 p.m.

James Madison University

19-7, 9-4

College of Charleston

15-9, 7-6

James Madison

Col. of Charleston

2/11/2016 11:16:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

CHARLESTON, S.C. - Sophomore guard Joey McLean scored six points in the final 31 seconds to secure James Madison's 56-52 win over College of Charleston in Colonial Athletic Association men's basketball action at TD Arena on Thursday evening.

The Dukes gritted out the win in a battle between two of the league's best defenses, bouncing back from a nine-point deficit in the second half to improve to 19-7 (9-4 CAA) on the season. Charleston, which had won four straight home games going into Thursday's action, fell to 15-9 (7-6 CAA) with the loss.

Senior guard Ron Curry notched his 18th consecutive double-digit performance with a game-high 16 points, adding four rebounds before a knee injury ended his evening after just 27 minutes. The Pennsauken, N.J., native has now scored at least 16 points in five straight contests.

McLean and junior guard Jackson Kent each added eight points for the Dukes, while juniors Shakir Brown and Tom Vodanovich grabbed seven rebounds apiece.

Both teams lived up to their defensive billing, as the Dukes held Charleston to 37.3% (19-for-51) shooting, including 31.6% (6-for-19) from the three-point line, and edged out the road win after shooting just 38.9% (21-for-54) from the field and 35.7% (5-for-14) from behind the arc.

Marquise Pointer tallied 15 points to lead the way for Charleston's offense, while Jarrell Brantley, who scored 29 in the contest at JMU, and Evan Bailey each scored 10. Brantley added seven rebounds on the evening.

QUOTING COACH BRADY
"We're very happy to win this game on the road against a talented Charleston team that plays so darn hard and is really excellent defensively. They make everything you do on offense really difficult to execute. I'm really pleased with how our guys dug down without Ron Curry and fought back from a deficit that was hard to overcome."

TURNING POINT
Down the stretch in the second half, the two teams traded six different one-point leads before Kent got a runner to fall in traffic to give the Dukes a three-point edge with 1:19 to play. After a missed Cougar free throw, McLean buried a three-pointer from the right corner late in the shot clock to put JMU up by six at 53-47 and put the game out of reach.

CONTROLLING THE BOARDS
In a physical matchup, the Dukes earned a crucial 37-34 advantage in rebounds to move to 14-2 when they win the battle on the boards. Juniors Shakir Brown and Tom Vodanovich both grabbed seven each to lead JMU to a 12-6 edge in second-chance points and a 28-20 lead in points in the paint.

AROUND THE CAA
Road teams had another good week in league play, earning wins in three of the five games on Thursday. Aside from the Dukes, Northeastern gutted out a 47-44 win at Towson, while Hofstra earned an 86-80 win at William & Mary to put the Pride and Tribe in a three-way tie with JMU in second place. UNCW closed out an 86-82 home win over Elon to remain atop the league, two games clear of the second place teams.

UP NEXT
The Dukes will be back in action on Saturday afternoon, when they close out their road trip with a 3 p.m. bout at first-place UNCW on Feb. 13. The Seahawks have won 10 in a row and sit atop the league standings with a 19-5 (11-2 CAA) mark this season.