https://uncwsports.com/news/2020/1/1/men...-year.aspx




Seahawks, Dukes Welcome New Year

WILMINGTON, North Carolina – Two of the Colonial Athletic Association's oldest rivals get together again Thursday night when UNCW plays host to James Madison in a nationally-televised men's basketball tip at Trask Coliseum.

The Seahawks, 5-10, and Dukes, 7-6, meet for the 77th time overall and 73rd time as CAA members when the ball goes up at 6:35 p.m. on the CBS Sports Network. Both teams are coming off a pair of losses on the opening weekend of CAA play.

"We're coming off two games in three days and our heads are spinning a little bit," said UNCW Head Coach C.B. McGrath after returning from the five-day trip to Delaware and Drexel. "James Madison is a very good team and they have a couple of very talented scorers.

"We fought for 40 minutes against Drexel and it just didn't work out like we wanted it to. We're not into moral victories, but if we fight like that, we're going to get the breaks here and there. We didn't come out on top, but we battled for every rebound and got the loose balls."

The UNCW-JMU series is the second longest on record for the Seahawks, ranking only behind longtime state foe Campbell. The Seahawks hold a 41-35 edge in the series.

The Dukes, picked to finish fourth in the CAA's preseason poll, are coming off an 88-72 setback to Northeastern and feature two of the league's most explosive scorers in bookend guards Matt Lewis and Darius Banks.

Lewis is averaging 18.0 points and 6.8 rebounds and Banks is collecting 13.0 points and 5.2 rebounds for the Dukes, who rank second in the CAA in scoring offense and are playing at the 12th fastest pace in the country at 76.0 points per game.

The Seahawks opened the conference slate with an 82-68 loss at Delaware last Saturday in Newark, Del., before falling, 71-66, to Drexel on Monday night in West Philadelphia. Trailing 33-31 at halftime against the Dragons, the Seahawks started quickly in the second half and led by as many as five before the Dragons stormed back at the end behind sophomore guard Camren Winter, who poured in 30 points behind 11-for-19 from the floor and 6-of-9 at the free throw line.

Sophomore forward Marten Linssen paced the Seahawks for the second straight game and the fifth time overall with 15 points. Junior guard Mike Okauru matched his career high with 14 points, including 12 in the first 20 minutes, and freshman playmaker Shykeim Phillips collected 12 points.

The Seahawks are 4-3 on their home floor this season, beating Johnson & Wales, Campbell, N.C. Wesleyan and Emory & Henry. UNCW has lost to North Carolina, Mercer and Charlotte at Trask Coliseum this year.

Thursday's contest will also be carried over the air on The Breeze, 95.9 FM, with play-by-play voice Mike Vaccaro on the call. The game may be heard worldwide on the station's website, http://www.959thebreeze.com.

Seahawk Storylines

The Seahawks went winless (0-6) in December following losses to Stanford, Charlotte, Mercer, Vanderbilt, Delaware and Drexel.

UNCW owns a 41-35 edge in the series vs. JMU. UNCW won the inaugural game on Dec. 16, 1979, and took 14 straight from Jan. 20, 2001, through Jan. 10, 2008.

The Seahawks have won eight of the last 10 pairings between the two clubs, but the Dukes have taken two of the last three. The Seahawks have averaged 79.5 ppg over the last 10 outings with the Dukes. JMU rolled up a series-high 104 points in last matchup on Feb. 2, 2019.

The Seahawks are 22-12 against the Dukes at Trask Coliseum. The two teams have split the last 10 games in Wilmington

UNCW and JMU are squaring off for the 39th time in January. The Seahawks are 17-21 vs. the Dukes in games played during the first month of the year.

In the last matchup between the two clubs on Feb. 2, 2019, Banks scored 20 of his 22 points in the second half to help James Madison salvage a split of the regular season with a 104-95 victory at Trask Coliseum. The Seahawks jumped ahead by four points at intermission, but the Dukes caught up early in the final period and used a late spurt – keyed by stellar free throw shooting (30-of-33) – to hold off the Seahawks.

The Seahawks are playing the second of five games against Virginia opponents this season. The Seahawks stand 1-0 against Virginia foes after dominating Emory & Henry, 122-66, back on Nov. 26 at Trask Coliseum.

The Seahawks (72.9 ppg) and Dukes (76.5 ppg) rank 9-10 in the CAA in scoring defense. JMU does rank fourth in field goal percentage defense (.416), while UNCW is 10th (.449).

McGrath owns a 14-28 ledger against CAA opposition since taking over the lead chair in 2017-18. He is 8-10 at home, 4-16 on the road and 2-2 at the CAA Tournament.