City of Basketball Love

Teddy Bailey (@TheTeddyBailey)
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NEWARK, DE.-- Delaware (5-8, 0-2 CAA) returned home after playing six straight on the road. Saturday's CAA home opener against James Madison (11-4, 1-1 CAA) served as the Blue Hens' third game in five days. The Dukes forced the Blue Hens to shoot 5-of-29 from the field in the first half as Delaware fell, 63-53. 

At first ...
James Madison jumped out to a 14-4 lead within the first eight minutes as junior guard Jackson Kent hit a pair of early 3-pointers for the Dukes. The Blue Hens were unable to cut the deficit to single-digits, as Delaware trailed James Madison at halftime, 35-20.

Turning point ...
After a dunk from senior forward Marvin King-Davis and a 3-pointer from junior guard Cazmon Hayes, the Blue Hens finally cut the deficit to single-digits, trailing 45-34 with 14:11 to play. The Dukes were quick to stop the Blue Hens' newfound momentum, however, as senior guard Ron Curry hit a pair of triples to give JMU a 59-43 lead with 6:28 remaining. The 16-point lead proved to be insurmountable for the Hens.

Shining stars ...
Sophomore guard Anthony Mosley stepped up for the Blue Hens yet again, as the Sanford grad earned his ninth start of the season for the injury-riddled Hens. Mosley scored a game-high 17 points and recorded his first career double-double with 11 rebounds. Cazmon Hayes added 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the free-throw line.

For James Madison, Jackson Kent led the way with a game-high 19 points and ten rebounds; Kent knocked down four of JMU's 13 3-pointers in the win. Curry was electric in the second half, scoring all 17 of his points in the final 20 minutes. Lower Merion product and Duke junior Yohanny Dalembert scored just three points and nine rebounds in the win.

Noteworthy Numbers ...
Delaware shot just 5-of-29 from the floor in the first half, which led to a 15-point halftime deficit. The Blue Hens were also 0-of-11 from 3-point range in the first half against the Dukes. James Madison was able to cease Blue Hen runs with the 3-point shot, converting on 13 threes against Delaware. 

Up Next ...
Delaware (5-8, 0-2 CAA) @ Northeastern (9-5, 1-0 CAA) (Jan. 7, 7:00 p.m.)
James Madison (11-4, 1-1 CAA) vs. Elon (9-5, 0-1 CAA) (Jan. 7, 7:00 p.m.)