Dukes Storm Back Late to Beat Tribe
The Dukes' Humpty Hitchens
After last week’s crushing defeat of Towson, I was looking forward to an easy victory over a rather weak William & Mary team yesterday. I was actually hoping it would be a laugher that I could turn off early to be honest. The Dukes did not deliver. Instead they provided a game that had me on the edge of my seat until the very end. JMU rallied late, really late, to beat the Tribe 84-79 in Williamsburg. JMU trailed practically the whole game and didn’t take the lead until 1:41 to go.
To say that this game was an emotional rollercoaster would not be accurate. It was more like 38 minutes and change of consistent frustration, followed by about a minute and half of excitement. JMU shot the ball well all night, but couldn’t contain William & Mary and trailed almost the entire game. Every time the Dukes made a run and looked poise to take control of the game, the Tribe would regain compusure and hold the lead. JMU trailed by as many as 10 in the second half. Down 77-70 with 3:29 to go, the Dukes woke up and finally took control of the game. JMU finished with a furious 14-2 rally to secure the win.
There are two ways to look at this game. You could say it’s just evidence that this JMU team isn’t as good as it’s 13-3 record. You could also say that it was a gut check win and proof that this Dukes squad has the toughness it needs to compete for the CAA crown. I’m choosing to go with the latter.
There is no debating that JMU’s defensive effort was disappointing in the first half. They lacked intensity and let another team light them up from long range. William & Mary went 6 for 12 behind the arc in the opening 20 minutes. It’s troubling for JMU that slow starts like last night’s have almost become the norm. It might be troubling for the rest of the CAA that JMU seems to be able to regularly recover and win without their A game.
The refs did JMU no favors last night, calling the game extremely tight. Five JMU players had at least 4 fouls. Somehow JMU was still able to physically dominate the Tribe on the glass. JMU outrebounded the Tribe 42-22. The Dukes’ foul trouble also forced Coach Brady to juggle the line-up throughout the game. Players took advantage of their minutes and 6 Dukes scored in double-figures. Humpty Hitchens led the way with 17 points, including 5 three pointers.
After a few relatively quiet games, Denzel Bowles appeared to get his mojo back in the second half. He had a rebound a put back to give JMU the lead with 1:41 to go and controlled the boards down the stretch. Denzel’s final line was 14 points, 12 boards, 2 assists, and 2 blocks.
I would have preferred for JMU to run away with it, but I came away from the game more impressed with the team’s toughness than I’d ever been. It’s still frustrating that JMU can’t seem to play a full 40 minutes, but at least they don’t give up. There were countless times last night where a lesser team would have. They also refused to panic. They trailed the entire game, but hung in there and finally took the lead with 1:41 left. Not at all what I expected, but a great result.
