Davidson College Sports Information

NORMAN, Okla. – Davidson guard Stephen Curry tallied 33 points, nine assists and four steals, and the Wildcats held James Madison to 35 percent shooting from the field in a 99-64 victory in the opening round of the Dick’s Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off at the Lloyd Noble Center Monday night.

The Wildcats (2-0) will face Oklahoma at 9:30 p.m. (EST) tonight (Tuesday), and the contest will be televised live on ESPN2.

Curry was one of five Cats scoring in double figures. Bryant Barr had 12 points, while Steve Rossiter, Andrew Lovedale and Brendan McKillop each had 10. Lovedale added 11 rebounds for his third career double-double, and Max Paulhus Gosselin recorded nine points, eight rebounds and three steals.

Julius Wells score 21 points off the bench for the Dukes (0-1), and Juwann James posted 10 points and 11 rebounds. Kyle Swanston scored 12 on 4-of-6 from 3-point range.

The Wildcats shot 58.5 percent from the floor, and canned 10-of-25 3-pointers, but it was their defense that set the tone early. After Lovedale hit a jumper on the ‘Cats’ first trip down the floor, James Madison had to call a timeout 23 seconds into the game because the Dukes could not get the ball inbounds.

The play helped spark a 20-2 Davidson scoring run, capped by a pair of Lovedale free throws, to start the game. The margin grew to as many as 23 points following a Curry jumper, but Swanston hit a 3-pointer with 28 seconds left, making the margin 50-30 at the half.

Davidson kept the defensive pressure on, holding the Dukes to 35.5 percent from the field in the first half and 34.5 percent in the second frame. The Wildcats had 10 steals in the game and forced 18 turnovers.

Leading 75-53 with 7:32 to play, Davidson put together a 14-2 run to open a 34-point cushion. Curry had 11 of the 14 points with Ben Allison chipping in a conventional 3-point play.

Game Notes: It was the first Davidson victory in the 24-year history of the NIT Season Tip-Off; the Wildcats are now 1-2 in the tournament… It was Curry’s 49th game with 20 or more points and his 16th with 30 or more… Curry moved into fifth on the Davidson career scoring list… It was the first time Davidson had five scorers in double figures since the 2007-08 season opener against North Carolina.

Curry Named SoCon Player of the Week

Stephen Curry has been named the Southern Conference Player of the Week for his performance in the first two games of the season. It’s the ninth time the junior has earned the honor, which is voted on by the league’s sports information directors.

Curry averaged 31 points, 9.5 assists and 6.5 steals in two games for the week while shooting 59 percent from the field and 46.7 percent from 3-point range. He moved into fifth on Davidson’s all-time scoring list and has now scored 25 or more points in his last six games, dating back to last season.

He fell a steal shy of the second triple-double in Davidson history against Guilford last Friday after collecting 29 points, 10 assists and nine steals (John Falconi – 17 pts, 12 reb, 11asst vs. Loyola 12/28/73). Curry tallied 33 points, nine assists and four steals against James Madison; it was the 16th time he has scored 30 or more points in his career.

Tonight’s game

The No. 21 Wildcats take on No. 12/14 Oklahoma in the second round of the Dick’s Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off Tuesday night in Norman, Okla. The game is slated to start at 9:30 p.m. (EST) and will be televised live on ESPN2 from the Lloyd Noble Center.