No place like home for struggling JMU

Struggling Dukes pick up second CAA win with victory over Tigers

CHRIS LABZDA / staff photographer Junior guard David Fanning led an early charge that pulled the Dukes out of a first-half deficit. Fanning finished the game with 23 points including eight field goals and five 3-pointers.

JMU walked away from the Convocation Center breathing a sigh of relief after its 86-75 win over Towson University Saturday. The Dukes, who had an 8-8 record overall going into Saturday's contest, were suffering from a slew of away games, which brought their conference record down to 1-6.
"Well, we really needed this one," JMU coach Sherman Dillard said.

With senior Tim Lyle and junior Pat Mitchell out with injuries, JMU had to run a different game. The Dukes moved to a four guard setup, passing the ball to run out the shot clock.
"It helped us with ball movement," Dillard said. "Our post guys got better touches, [sophomore Dwayne] Broyles stepped up again for us."

Broyles scored a career-high 21 points to help the Dukes past the Tigers.

JMU grabbed an early 2-0 advantage, but Towson quickly reacted with a 9-point lead. That's when Dillard made the crucial decision of the evening — taking two timeouts to get his team together.

He said, "We got off to a slow start; fortunately we were able to call two quick timeouts and put together some strong offense.

"I can't pinpoint exactly why we were sluggish. I thought it was important at that point to stop the slide. You can be a very fragile basketball team when you haven't had the wins. I told them to breath and they responded."

Junior guard David Fanning broke through his shooting slump to pick up a quick 6 points in two 3-point field goals, confirming the Tigers' fears about the junior.

Fanning's breakout helped JMU come from behind early.

Towson coach Michael Hunt said, "We can only hold a guy like Fanning for so long."

The Dukes took the lead at 17-16 with just over 10 minutes to play in the first half. JMU extended its lead to 46-40 by halftime.

At the start of the second, the Dukes mounted a 14-4 run en route to their first win since Jan. 12 against Hofstra University.

Fanning's shooting was right on target, as he sunk eight field goals and five 3-pointers, giving him the game-high total of 23 points.

"David did a better job of moving without the ball," Dillard said. "You have to pick and choose when you want to score. Of course every time he gets the ball he wants to shoot, but he did a better job of picking and choosing."

Fanning explained the Duke's ball movement against the Tigers. He said, "I just wanted to be smart. Big guys slough off their man to get me, so I just passed to (my) big guys."

The "big guys," juniors Ian Caskill, Kenny Whitehead and Younger combined to give the Dukes 24 points.

Caskill came off the bench to add his 13 points and three blocks, along with freshman guard Daniel Freeman, who added two 3-point field goals and 8 points overall.

"I just wanted to contribute the best I know how. To step in as a freshman, it feels great," Freeman said.

Dillard also was pleased with Freeman's performance. He said, "Freeman's overall game was solid. It's important that he continues to play this way. We've given him some quality minutes, and I think that will improve his confidence; it's improved my confidence in him."

The win edged the Dukes out of the Colonial Athletic Association's cellar and improved their series record to 12-2 over Towson.

Fanning said, "We have got to start somewhere, why not tonight at home?"

JMU takes on Old Dominion University Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Convo.