James Madison University 58, College of Charleston 56
Top Performers:
Jackson Kent 17 pts (3-6 3pt), 5 rebs
Adjehi Baru 13 pts (7-12 FT), 13 rebounds
"He's not even that strong!"
That's what Coach Wojcik kept yelling at his players every time a Cougar picked up a another superfluous foul. Charleston's lineup was already bigger and more physical at most positions but any needless contact was already unnecessary and was going to get called a foul. Any time there was an over-the-back, an offensive push-off or a leaning screen called on the visiting team, all Wojcik could do was grit his teeth and squeeze his notes a little tighter as he reiterated that statement to his players.
"Guys if we keep this up it's gonna be just like the game two weeks ago!"
That's what came out of CDW's mouth when Anthony Thomas picked up his third personal foul in quick succession. In print these two phrases come across as explosive. After sitting as close to the bench as I was at this game, I can tell you that Coach Wojcik is not the in-game maniac he is sometimes portrayed as when the TV cameras pan by him. Each time Wojcik reiterated one of those two phrases his tone had a hint of pleading to it. He knew his guys were smarter than this and he knew they were more than capable of walking on to James Madison's floor and taking care of business.
This was another game the Cougars should have won, but things really did end up like two weeks ago against Hofstra. The Cougars built a double-digit first half lead, but a series of unforced errors in the form of turnovers, fouls and missed free throws caused them to unravel late in the game. Again, despite foul trouble from the team's best defender (AT) and shooter (Nori), the Cougars still could have won going up against a Dukes team missing Charles Cooke.
Wojcik was able to scrape by with minutes from Theo Johnson and Joe Chealey filling in. He also got stellar games out of Willis Hall and Adjehi Baru. The front court duo combined for 35 points and 21 rebounds. Willis provided the flash but Adjehi really provided the substance. Taking the "He's not even that strong" mentality to heart, Adjehi consistently looked physically unstoppable going one-on-one and was sent to the line multiple times after absorbing contact. Unfortunately his game could have been better from the stripe.
The final minutes of this one were brutal. Time after time the Cougars would hold JMU to a scoreless possession only to take the ball to the offensive end and hand it back over without even attempting a shot. Theo Johnson had a bad pass that went out of bounds, Baru got called for a walk and AT had an offensive foul with under 3 minutes to play to keep the Cougs from taking the lead back.
Then came the last play. Down two with 27 seconds to go the Cougars called timeout and drew something up. It looked like their first option was blown up pretty quickly so they went to Plan B. Chealey found Baru wide open under the basket. From where I was sitting it looked like Adjehi fumbled the pass and was at a bad angle with a double team headed his way by the time he collected it a split second later. Now, whether he should have gone up for the two (and possible contact) is obsolete now because he passed it out to Anthony Stitt for a contested three at the buzzer. The ball bounced off the rim and the Cougars dropped to 3-3 in conference.
It's another tough pill to swallow in the CAA. When the outside shots are falling the Cougars can hang with anyone. In this game almost half their shots were from behind the arc and they only hit 22% (5-21). Not having AT out there to drive the lane or Nori Johnson late as the teams only consistent shooter certainly hurt but the team needs another way to manufacture points when the threes don't fall because that scenario happens too often. I'm still holding on to a sliver of hope that when Canyon comes back he can be at least a threat to drive to the hoop or hit an outside shot opposite Nori. But his finger was still in splint yesterday and he's not going to be ready when the Cougars face the volume shooting William & Mary Tribe Monday night.
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