Dukes Close Out Hard-Fought 70-64 Win at Drexel

Thursday, February 23

Philadelphia, Pa.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

9-21 (7-10CAA)

Drexel

9-21 (3-14)

James Madison

Drexel

2/23/2017 10:58:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score @JMUMBasketball 2016-17 Schedule 2016-17 Statistics

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - James Madison clamped down on defense in the second half and made 12 of its 13 free throws in the final four minutes to seal a 70-64 win over Drexel in Colonial Athletic Association action on Thursday night at the Daskalakis Athletic Center.

The Dukes (9-21, 7-10 CAA) clinched the seventh seed in next week's CAA Tournament after holding the Dragons (9-21, 3-14 CAA) to just 11-of-33 (33.3 percent) shooting after halftime after Drexel had gone 11-of-21 (52.4 percent) before the break.

Senior forward Tom Vodanovich provided a crucial spark off the bench for the Dukes, erupting for 15 points in the first half on 6-of-8 shooting, adding four rebounds in his first double-digit performance since he scored 12 against Richmond on Dec. 20.

Senior guard Jackson Kent notched his 20th double-digit game with a team-high 16 on 6-of-11 shooting while adding eight boards and a pair of assists. Junior forward Ramone Snowden grabbed a career-high nine rebounds on the evening.

Neither team ever led by double-digits in the back-and-forth contest, with the Dukes leading for fewer than 12 minutes of play and only taking the lead for good with 5:20 to play when senior guard Shakir Brown hit a jumper to give JMU a 58-57 advantage.

It would be the final field goal of the evening for the Dukes, who went 25-of-53 from the field (47.2 percent) on the evening, including a 5-of-12 (41.7 percent) clip from long range. JMU would only miss two shots the rest of the way, taking advantage of Drexel's need to foul as the Dukes made 12 of their 13 free throws to close out the Dragons.

Drexel guards Kurk Lee and Sammy Mojica paced the Dragons, scoring 18 points apiece, while Rodney Williams added 15 of his own.

QUOTING COACH ROWE
"Getting a win on the road, especially up here in Philadelphia, is tough in this league. We got a spark from Tom in the first half, then guys like Shakir and Dimitrije in the second half and the guys really battled to come home with a really tough win away from home."

CAA STANDINGS
14-3 | UNCW*
13-4 | Col. of Charleston*
11-6 | Towson*
9-8 | Elon
9-8 | William & Mary
8-9 | Northeastern
7-10 | James Madison*
6-11 | Hofstra
5-12 | Delaware
3-14 | Drexel*
*Already locked into seeds at CAA Tournament

MARATHON MAN
Thursday marked the 126th career game for senior guard Jackson Kent, who is now tied with Pierre Curtis for third on JMU's all-time games played list. The pair sits two games behind Ron Curry, who is second with 128.

UP NEXT
The Dukes will close out the regular season at home on Saturday, Feb. 25, with a televised contest against Hofstra at 12 p.m. at the Convocation Center. Hofstra knocked off William & Mary in Williamsburg on Thursday evening, taking home a

Prior to Saturday's contest, the Dukes will have a brief ceremony recognizing the careers of their seven seniors: Shakir Brown, Dimitrije Cabarkapa, Yohanny Dalembert, Jackson Kent, Ivan Lukic, Paulius Satkus and Tom Vodanovich. The recognition is scheduled to begin at 11:45 a.m.