JMU Set to Host CAA Favorite Northeastern Thursday

Thursday, January 8

Harrisonburg, Va.

7 p.m.

James Madison University

Northeastern

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1/7/2015 4:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball

2014-15 JMU MEN'S BASKETBALL

GAME #16

9-6 (2-0 CAA)

JMU Game Notes

9-5 (1-1 CAA)

NU Game Notes

Game Plan

James Madison returns home to face the CAA preseason favorite, Northeastern, Thursday night at 7 p.m. inside the JMU Convocation Center. Following this game, JMU will face four road games in the next five outings.
The game can be seen live on MadiZONE HD SportsNet, presented by the JMU Alumni Association. It can also be heard on the JMU/nTelos Wireless Broadcast Network and on the local airwaves at WSVA AM 550 and 92.1 FM.
This game is sponsored by Valley Mall and is JMU's Heroes Game. JMU will recognize police, fire, EMS and first responders of the community.

Scouting Report

JMU enters Thursday night with a 9-6 overall record with a 2-0 mark in league play while Northeastern comes to town with a 9-5 record and even 1-1 tally in the CAA. JMU is 7-4 at home this season while NU is 4-3 in true road games.
This is the 18th meeting between the two programs with the Huskies hold a 12-5 advantage, including a 5-2 lead in games played in Harrisonburg. NU has also won in its last two trips to the Convo.
In the previous meeting last season, JMU earned a gritty 49-46 road win at Matthews Arena in Boston on Jan. 29, 2014. Andre Nation scored 13 points while Andrey Semenov scored all nine of his points in the second half to lift the Dukes to only their second win ever at Northeastern.
Last time out for JMU, the zone defense continued to stifle CAA foes as the Dukes came away with a 61-50 triumph at College of Charleston on Monday. Ron Curry had a game-high 19 points and team-high six rebounds while Yohanny Dalembert had 14 points and Andre Nation contributed 12.
Trailing 26-18 with under five minutes in the first half, JMU held CofC scoreless for nine and a half minutes and outscored the hosts 43-24 over the last 25 minutes. JMU shot 50 percent for the second straight game while holding Charleston to 32.3 percent in the second half. It was the first time since 2007-08 that JMU started 2-0 in the CAA and was JMU's first double-digit CAA road win since Feb. 15, 2011 - a 72-61 win at Towson.
Comparing the two teams in Thursday's matchup, Northeastern barely outscores JMU on average, by a margin of 65.7 to 65.3. Defensively, JMU allows 66 points per game, as opposed to NU giving up 62.7 per outing. NU is one of the better rebounding teams JMU will face, with a plus-4.9 rebounding margin and JMU averages one less board per game than its foes. NU shoots 45.9 percent from the floor and 38 percent from beyond the arc while Madison shoots 43.9 percent and 31.5 percent.
Players to watch are JMU's Yohanny Dalembert and Northeastern's Scott Eatherton. Dalembert averages 10.7 points and a team-high 5.6 rebounds per game. He has nine games in double figures this season and has averaged a team-best 14.0 points through the first two conference games. Eatherton has four double-doubles this year and leads NU with 15.2 points and 7.4 rebounds per outing.
Following this game, JMU heads to Williamsburg on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 4 p.m. to face in-state rival William and Mary.

Previous 10 Meetings between JMU and Northeastern
2013-14: JMU 49, Northeastern 46, Jan. 29, 2014
2013-14: Northeastern 56, JMU 52, Jan. 15, 2014
2012-13: JMU 70, Northeastern 57, March 11, 2013 (CAA Title Game)
2012-13: Northeastern 66, JMU 64, Feb. 20, 2013
2011-12: Northeastern 68, JMU 56, Jan. 7, 2012
2010-11: JMU 75, Northeastern 69, Jan. 3, 2011
2009-10: Northeastern 73, JMU 61, Jan. 2, 2010
2008-09: Northeastern 60, JMU 55, Dec. 6, 2008
2007-08: Northeastern 73, JMU 55, March 7, 2008 (CAA First Round)
2007-08: JMU 68, Northeastern 65, Dec. 1, 2007
Northeastern leads 12-5 (NU leads 5-2 in Harrisonburg)