By Andy Walter

NEWARK — Jameer Nelson, Jr. admits it.

Yeah, the Delaware guard took a few a glances at the scoreboard to see how many points he had on Monday night.

“Oh, for sure,” Nelson said with a smile. “For sure. It looked great.”

By the time he was done, Nelson had netted a career-high 30 points and the Blue Hens had themselves a comfortable 81-60 victory over James Madison is a CAA men’s basketball matchup at the Carpenter Center.

With the Dukes leaving to join the Sun Belt Conference, it’s the last time the two programs will meet as members of the CAA.

Nelson helped make sure the Dukes (5-9 CAA, 14-11 overall) are leaving with a four-game losing streak to Delaware (8-5 CAA, 17-9 overall). The 6-foot-1 George Washington transfer sank 5-of-11 three-point shots and went 9-for-9 from the foul line when he drew contact driving to the basket.

“You know, we lost the last game,” said Nelson, who had only eight points in the Hens’ loss to Hofstra on Saturday. “It’s just staying consistent with how I feel and taking every day the same.

“Nobody’s looking for their shot too much but I feel I had it going today. I just kept shooting.”

Delaware coach Martin Ingelsby liked the fact that Nelson had four assists and no turnovers in his big night.

“You can’t say enough about Jameer,” said Ingelsby. “That’s was one of those nights whee it was like, ‘Have a night. I’m not going to take you out of the game.’ We want the ball in his hands.”

Playing their third game in five nights, the Hens needed a win like this. The 21-point margin was their biggest of the season against a Division I program.
Delaware led only 32-29 at halftime before out-scoring JMU, 49-31, over the final 20 minutes.

With injured center Dylan Painter (ankle) back on the bench after playing a few minutes on Saturday, it was freshman Jyare Davis and sophomore Andrew Carr that — along with Nelson — really helped the Hens take charge.

Davis, who was 7-of-9 from the floor, finished with 14 points and 14 rebounds while Carr added nine points, eight rebounds and two blocks. The two big men combined for seven dunks.

Davis, the former Sanford School standout, earned his third-straight CAA Rookie of the Week honor earlier in the day on Monday.

A transfer from Providence, where he didn’t play last year because of a concussion, the 6-foot-7, 215-pound Davis is really starting to come into his own now. He was limited by injury and illness earlier this season.

“I come from a really religious family,” said Davis. “Throughout that whole process, everybody was just telling me that God has a plan for everybody. That’s something that I really just live by. I feel as though the plan is starting to come through a little bit.”

“Honestly, he might get Rookie of the Week for the rest of the season,” joked Nelson. “When you get a little recognition, it’s like, ‘Oh I can do this all the time.’ There’s no ceiling for him now.”

The Hens, who also got 12 points and five assists from senior guard Kevin Anderson, really don’t have much of a break before playing at Elon on Thursday night and at William & Mary on Saturday.

Even this late in the season, Delaware still seems to be evolving. Anderson was the only senior on the court for much of the second half.

“I thought that group that finished the game was really the difference-maker for us,” said Ingelsby. “The size, the physicality. ... It was a good team win for us.”

Of course, the Hens also never know when somebody’s going to have a big game individually — like Nelson did on Monday. While Nelson had 29 in a game at Iona earlier this year, he’s also had some quiet games, too.

“He’s super talented obviously — he’s so athletic,” said Ingelsby. “He’s still learning the game. At times he gets caught forcing things.

“But we’ve given him a lot of confidence. When he’s playing like that — those guards are playing off of each other — we’re even more dynamic.”

Free throws

While Delaware could certainly see JMU again as a non-conference opponent, the Hens have a 23-12 record against the Dukes as they leave the CAA. ... Ryan Allen tied the school record by playing in his 124h game on Monday.

Follow Andy Walter on Twitter at @DSNSports.