Conway, S.C. – John Ojiako scored 19 points to lead four Coastal Carolina players in double figures, but it wasn't quite enough as James Madison survived a furious comeback rally to take an 86-76 win in the final regular season Sun Belt Conference basketball game for both teams Friday night at the HTC Center.
Coastal also got 16 points from
Jacob Meyer, 13 from
Jon Sanders, all in the last 7:30, and a career-high 11 points from
Miroslav Stafl. Ojiako also grabbed eight rebounds to fall just two rebounds shy of his 18th double-double on the season. The close loss gives Coastal an 8-21 overall record, with a 5-13 mark in the league.
James Madison opened up a 21-point lead and looked to be coasting to the finish line before Sanders came off the bench and ignited a wild rally that cut the Dukes' 19-point advantage to just three, at 75-72, with three minutes left. Coastal got seven points from Meyer and six from Sanders on the 17-3 run before the Dukes closed the door by making 8-of-10 free throws in the last 3:30.
Terrence Edwards, the team's leading scorer at 17 points a game, hit for 18 points to lead James Madison, which improved to 28-3 overall and 15-3 in the conference. It was the Dukes' 10th consecutive win, since losing to Appalachian State.
"Our guys believed, and that's what mattered. I have not been as proud of a group in a long time," said Coastal interim head coach
Benny Moss. "They took on a great team, one that might finish with 30 wins, and went tooth and nail with them. And our guys had fun."
Stafl started the rally with a pair of free throws that gave him a season high before Meyer and Sanders went to work. Sanders then made a couple free throws and scored on a pair of driving lay-ups before handing the scoring chores off to Meyer, who closed the comeback effort with an inside bucket and a 15' jumper. The two guards had 13 of the 17 points in the rally and combined for 25 points in the second half.
Coastal came out on senior night and showed a spark along the frontline. Ojiako and Stafl, who was making his first start, scored 15 of their team's first 24 points, giving Coastal a 24-21 lead. In the first 11 minutes there were six ties and five lead changes. But from there, James Madison went on a 14-0 scoring spree while the Chanticleers went five minutes without a point. When the dust settled, the Dukes had opened up a 38-26 lead, and they led 43-28 at the half.
Green had 14 points for the Dukes to lead all scorers in the first 20 minutes, while Coastal's standout was the 6'10" Ojiako, who had 12 points and five rebounds in a brilliant first half. Stafl, a 6'11" reserve on most occasions, contributed seven points, including his second three-point make of the season.
The lead grew in the second half to 17, at 49-32, on Bickerstaff's tap-in and it was up to 21, at 64-43, when Green drove the lane for a layup. But back-to-back buckets by Meyer showed that the Chanticleers were not ready to quit.
The Chants were almost even with the early season top 25 team in every statistical category. The margin of victory came from the Dukes' five more three-pointers and Coastal having 16 turnovers, as compared to just 11 for James Madison.
Coastal now heads to the Conference Championship at the Pensacola (Fla.) Bay Center, where the Chanticleers will play at 6 p.m. (ET) Tuesday as the 13th seed.
For complete coverage of CCU men's basketball, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalMBB (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram) or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at goccusports.com.
