Dukes' Comeback Falls Just Short at UNCW

Thursday, January 25

Wilmington, N.C.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

6-16 (2-7CAA)

UNCW

7-14 (4-5CAA)

James Madison

UNCW

1/25/2018 11:23:00 PM | Men's Basketball

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WILMINGTON, N.C. - James Madison nearly erased a nine-point deficit with less than five minutes to play on Thursday night, but the Dukes fell just short of the comeback, dropping a tough 71-68 loss to UNCW in Colonial Athletic Association men's basketball action at Trask Coliseum.

The Dukes (6-16, 2-7 CAA) shot 43.9 percent (25-of-57) on the evening, including a 9-of-22 clip (40.9 percent) from three, but yielded 17 second chance points to UNCW (7-14, 4-5 CAA) as the Seahawks outrebounded JMU, 47-30.

Junior Stuckey Mosley racked up 21 points in the second half to close his evening with 23 on 9-of-15 shooting, marking his 10th 20-point effort of the year and his 15th straight double-digit performance. Freshman Matt Lewis posted 21 points of his own, including 17 in the first half, to go with four boards, two assists and a steal in 37 minutes of turnover-free ball.

Both teams had only led by as many as eight once each before UNCW took a 67-58 lead on a three-pointer with 4:44 to play. The Dukes immediately responded, however, as senior Ramone Snowden drilled a three of his own to start a 7-0 JMU run to cut things to 67-65 with 2:01 to play.

On the next possession, the Dukes held UNCW without a shot until senior Jordon Talley beat the shot clock buzzer with a three-point heave as he fell into his own beach to half the JMU run.

Mosley converted an old-fashioned three-point play on the next possession to make it 70-68, but the Dukes would get no closer as the Seahawks added a free throw and Mosley's three-quarter-court heave fell short.

UNCW junior Devontae Cacok racked up 26 points and 24 rebounds in the victory, going 11-of-16 from the field across 33 minutes, while Talley added 13 points.

QUOTING COACH ROWE
"That was a tough one against a good team with lots of experience. Just a couple moments here and there made the difference, especially with them hitting that late shot like they did. We'll keep working and battling and it's going to pay off for us."

QUICK HITS
- After Thursday's loss, seven of the Dukes' nine CAA contests have been decided by single-digit points or in overtime.
- Freshman Matt Lewis has now scored at least 13 points in eight straight games and has scored at least 20 in each of the last two.
- With his 23 points on Thursday, junior Stuckey Mosley has led the Dukes in scoring or tied for the team lead in 15 of 22 games this season.

UP NEXT
The Dukes will continue their southern swing on Saturday afternoon, when they travel to College of Charleston for a 3 p.m. matchup at TD Arena. On Thursday, the Cougars picked up a 62-54 win at Delaware to improve to 15-6 (6-3 CAA) on the season.