JMU Suffers Ugly Loss at UNCW
JMU lost to UNCW 88-73 this evening down in Wilmington. The scoreboard said it was a 15 point margin, but it really wasn’t that close. UNCW is a very talented team, with some outstanding shooters. And those shooters came out of the locker room red hot. The Dukes did not. JMU managed only 24 points in the opening half. UNCW on the other hand, scored 47. JMU put together a few runs after the break. Don’t read too much into them though, because UNCW was in full “first half of the season JMU football season coasting home with the lead” mode. Garbage time “comeback” it was. The loss dropped JMU to 7-20, (5-9) and on a collision course for “Pillow Fight” Friday come CAA tourney time. UNCW moved back into sole possession of first place at 23-4, (12-2). Here are 3 numbers from the game.
.67
That’s JMU’s points per possession in the first half. And if you’re not up on basketball stats, that’s not good. It’s pretty awful actually. The Dukes shot only 9 for 26 from the field and turned it over 10 times in the opening stanza. Out of sorts and ineffective. Just a series of possessions wasted by not taking care of the ball and launching bad shots. UNCW on the other hand scored at an unbelievable 1.31 points per possession rate for the first half. As a result, the game was pretty much over at halftime.
3
That’s how many shots UNCW missed out its first 15 attempts. Damn. We told you they came out of the locker room red hot and we weren’t kidding. Last time these teams played, we noted that UNCW had a way of scoring so quickly and efficiently that they could extend a lead almost without fans noticing. It was impossible not to notice tonight. The game was over before most players broke a sweat.
718
That’s the number of different starting lineups JMU has used this year. That’s a slight exaggeration. However, the point is that it’s February and JMU still doesn’t have a locked in starting five. Obviously, injuries have played a big part in this. Tonight, Tom Vodanovich didn’t dress due to his injured ribs. And Yohanny Dalembert’s absence has definitely hurt. But injuries aside, Head Coach Lou Rowe still hasn’t found a core of players he can run out there game to game. The guys play hard for Rowe, even when they’re down big like they were tonight. In order to pick up a W or two in Charleston though, they’ve got to find a core group to lead the way.
I listened to the game but mostly tuned out at halftime. I don’t think Rowe can come up with any kind of core to run out there due to injuries and inconsistent performance. It’s really been a lost season since mid-December. I agree that team seems to play hard and usually does not get blown out like last night but they don’t have enough talent to win. I’m not enthusiastic about Rowe but this season doesn’t allow for Much of an assessment of his coaching abilities. But at some point we have to turn things round with the basketball program.
Great summary for a lousy game. Is Brady a 15 WAR coach? I am still wondering what the administration was hoping to accomplish with his dismissal. Or is Rowe what we thought he was– an inexperienced bargain caretaker? Oh for the days of Lou Campanelli.