Stifling Defense Secures 56-48 Win over Drexel, Stretches JMU's Win Streak to Five

Sunday, January 7

Harrisonburg, Va.

2 p.m.

James Madison University

4-08-7 | CAA

Drexel

2-110-5 | CAA

Drexel

JMU

Stifling Defense Secures 56-48 Win over Drexel, Stretches JMU's Win Streak to Five

1/7/2018 5:51:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

HARRISONBURG, Va. – Stifling defense down the stretch sealed the 56-48 victory for James Madison women's basketball (8-7, 4-0 CAA) over Drexel (10-4, 2-1 CAA) on Sunday afternoon.

A 15-0 run by the Dukes over the heart of the third quarter gave JMU an 11-point lead, its largest of the day, with just over 1:45 left in the frame. The Dragons, however, were able to counter with a 12-4 run of their own to cut that lead back to a single possession (41-39) with 6:35 left in regulation.

The Dukes answered by making five of their final six field-goal attempts while keeping the Dragons off the board on their final four attempts from the floor.

As a team, JMU shot 38.5 percent and kept Drexel to 33.9 percent shooting, including 27.8 percent from 3-point range. Senior Hailee Barron led the Dukes in scoring with 13 points off a 4-for-7 performance from beyond the arc, including seven points during the 15-0 run that put JMU out in front for good.

AT THE LINE
JMU made 19 trips to the line in the contest, converting 11 of them for points. The Dukes contained the third-best free-throw shooting team in the league to just six trips, where the Dragons made five of them count.

BACK ON THE BLOCK
For the fifth time in six games, the Dukes had at least six blocks in a game as they denied seven of the Dragons' attempts. Sophomore Devon Merritt led JMU with two blocks, her third straight game to tie her career high.
Redshirt sophomore Kayla Cooper-Williams made one block in the victory, pushing her career to total to 97. One more moves her into a tie for 10th in career blocks with Lauren Jimenez, two more moves her into a tie for ninth with Jennifer Brown and three makes her just the eighth Duke in program history to reach 100 blocks her career.

STILL OF THE NIGHT
88646

(See full gallery here)

FOR CONSISTENCY'S SAKE
Senior Hailee Barron came off the bench to make her 116th consecutive appearance for the Dukes, the 10th-longest streak in JMU history. She needs to appear in the next eight games to tie for the top five and nine games to move into sole possession of third all-time.
With her four made 3-pointers today, Barron pushed her career total of makes from beyond the arc to 119. She needs three more made 3-pointers to move into the top 10 and move passed former teammate Ashley Perez ('16), who finished her career with 121 made 3-pointers.

ON THE GLASS
Junior Aneah Young tied her career high in rebounds at seven to lead JMU on the glass. Of the nine Dukes to see action, eight pulled down at least one board as JMU edged Drexel in rebounds 36-35.

HELPING HANDS
For the game, both teams combined for 39 made baskets. Of those makes, 21 were credited with assists, including a 17-to-19 ratio by Drexel. The 14 assists by JMU ties a season high, led by a career-high tying five assists from sophomore Lexie Barrier.

UP NEXT
The Dukes close out a three-game home-stand on Friday, Jan. 12 at 7 p.m. as they host Elon in a rematch of the 2017 CAA Championship.