Dragons Down JMU, 78-67, for Fifth Straight Win at the DAC

Thursday, February 6

Daskalakis Athletic Center

7 p.m.

Drexel University

13-11,6-5CAA

James Madison

9-14,2-10CAA

James Madison

Drexel

Photo by: Gavin Baker

Dragons Down JMU, 78-67, for Fifth Straight Win at the DAC

2/6/2020 8:53:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Five Dragons Score in Double Figures as Dragons Move to 6-5 in CAA

PHILADELPHIA – Five Dragons scored in double figures as Drexel Men's Basketball remained hot at home with a 78-67 win over Colonial Athletic Association foe James Madison inside the Daskalakis Athletic Center on Thursday night. The Dragons improve to 13-11 overall and 6-5 in the CAA. The Dukes drop to 9-14 and 2-10 in the conference.

Thursday's wire-to-wire win was the fifth straight at home for Drexel, who hit 10 wins at the DAC for the first time since 2011-12. That team concluded the regular season undefeated at home and went 15-1 overall.

James Butler scored 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting with 14 rebounds, four assists, three blocks and two steals, locking up his 16^th double-double of the season and leading the Dragons in scoring, rebounding, blocks and steals.

Zach Walton, Sam Green and Camren Wynter all turned in 11 points, and T.J. Bickerstaff added 10 points off the bench. Walton hit half of his eight attempts from the field and matched the team high in steals. Green hit three three-pointers, and Wynter added seven boards and five assists.

Bickerstaff shot 3-of-4 from the floor and did not miss any of his four foul shots for his third double-digit scoring game of the year. The freshman pulled down six rebounds, one shy of his personal best, and added a block and a steal each.

As a team, the Dragons sank 11 treys on 29 attempts, shooting .379 from beyond the arc. Drexel finished a game with double-digit three-pointers for the sixth time this season and was one long-range make short of its season high.

James Madison needed four minutes and 11 seconds to make its first field goal and trailed the hot-shooting Dragons 13-1 early in the game. With an 18-11 advantage, Drexel ripped off a 14-4 run to push its margin to 32-15 – its largest of the game – with 6:56 remaining. Wynter highlighted the run with treys on consecutive possessions.

Drexel made just three baskets over the final 5:18 of the first half as the Dukes clawed back into the game. Mate Okros' trey with 4:30 to play restored the Dragons' 17-point advantage, but DU went without a field goal for 2:44. Deshon Parker and Quinn Richey scored the next eight points for JMU, who cut the lead to 40-29 with 1:43 to play.

Parker ended with a game-high 23 points on 10-of-16 shooting.

Wynter ended the Dragons' cold spell with a three-pointer with 76 seconds remaining, but the Dukes scored two more times in the final minute to make the score 43-33 at the break.

Drexel made seven three-pointers in the first half behind Wynter's 3-of-3 mark from beyond the arc.

Green opened the second half with a trey just inside 30 seconds to give DU a 46-33 advantage, but the Dukes refused to be put away. The Dragons would not lead by 13 or more again until the 6:51 mark as the lead fluctuated between seven and 12 points.

A Bickerstaff layup at the 8:56 mark put the Dragons ahead 61-50, and the lead stayed at or above 10 points for the rest of the night. Twice the DU advantage hit 15, first on a Coletrane Washington three-pointer with 5:30 to go, before settling between 10 and 14 points.

Washington ended the night with a pair of treys and eight points.

The Dragons upped their shooting in the second half, making 15 of their 28 attempts (.536) while making 4-of-10 from deep. For the game, Drexel shot 47.5 percent.

The three-point line was less favorable for JMU, who shot 1-of-12 (.830) on treys.

Drexel returns to the DAC hardwood on Saturday, when it hosts Towson at 2 p.m. on Autism Awareness Day.