Dukes coast to victory over PanAmericana in exhibition

The maiden voyage of the head coaching ship that is Dean Keener began Thursday night in the Convocation Center when JMU hosted the barnstorming PanAmericana in a preseason exhibition.

The Dukes defeated the visiting Panteras 91-57.

Whereas the game doesn’t count in the grander scheme of JMU’s 2004-’05 season, it was Keener’s first time calling timeouts under the lights.

"I didn’t think much about it," Keener said. "I’ve been on the bench for 16 years as an assistant. This is what I do. I am a basketball coach and if you prepare just like a player, the game should be fun and there shouldn’t be a whole lot of surprises and there weren’t tonight."

Keener was hired in April to take over the position vacated by Sherman Dillard, who resigned March 7 after seven years as the Dukes’ coach.

Senior guard Daniel Freeman did his part to make Keener’s debut easier. The senior from Waynesboro led the Dukes offensively, going 10 for 16 from the floor and scoring a team-high 25 points — 18 of which came in the first half.

"Free played like a senior," Keener said. "He’s been through the wars and he understands what it takes to compete at this level.

"I think there is a sense of urgency in his game to say, ‘Hey, this is my last time through and let’s make sure we do this right.’ "

After a decent first half, the Dukes pulled away after the intermission. Mid-second period, JMU went on a 16-0 scoring run that saw baskets from five different players.

During that run, the Dukes stretched the lead from 55-42 to 71-42.

"There was about an eight-minute stretch in the second half where I thought we were pretty good defensively," Keener said. "We weren’t going to do anything outside of half-court man defense until we proved could stop them — and we did. The lead went from 12 to 20 to 25 fairly quickly because of the defense."

JMU’s starting five consisted of junior Jomo Belfor at point guard with Freeman and sophomore Ray Barbosa on the wings. In the front court, Keener started Chami and sophomore Cavell Johnson.

Barbosa played the first half but sat out the second with tightness in his hamstring. He finished with 6 points. Chami contributed 8, plus 6 rebounds.

"Gabe, for the first time with the lights on, made some good moves and scored pretty well," Keener said. "And Cavell played pretty well at the power forward and ended up with seven assists."

Johnson played well enough to post a double-double with 12 points, 10 rebounds and a dunk.

"I love it," Johnson said of his slam. "It’s a good momentum swing."

The junior college transfer, Belfor picked up 4 points and 5 rebounds in his Dukes’ debut.

"He’s like a microcosm of our team," Keener said. "We’re going to get better as we get guys back off of the injured reserve and Jomo’s going to get better, just as he gets game experience at the Division I level."

Greene-Long led the post-positions with 14 points.

"Eddie had a couple of possessions in the second half where he outran the transition and he had some lay-ups," Keener said. "But I think all four guys who played the post positions had some moments."

The Dukes open their season Nov. 20 in Philadelphia when they take on La Salle University at 6:05 p.m. the