Hazell, Dukes Dominate Fourth Quarter in Comeback Victory at Villanova

Sunday, December 15

Villanova, Pa.

2 p.m.

James Madison University

8-3,0-0Sun Belt

Villanova

6-6,0-0Big East

James Madison

Villanova

Hazell, Dukes Dominate Fourth Quarter in Comeback Victory at Villanova

12/15/2024 5:45:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

VILLANOVA, Pa. – Jamia Hazell registered 10 points in the fourth quarter as James Madison women's basketball outscored Villanova 20-9 in the final frame for a 71-67 triumph on Sunday afternoon inside Finneran Pavilion.

The Dukes (8-3) forced the Wildcats (6-6) to commit eight turnovers in the fourth, including three in the final 1:51.

JMU trailed by as much as 10 (58-48) with 0:22 remaining in the third before Annalicia Goodman converted on an and-one to make it 58-51 heading into the fourth.

The Dukes produced a 7-0 run halfway through the fourth, highlighted by a step-back jump shot from Zakiya Stephenson to give James Madison a 65-63 edge with 2:36 to go.

Villanova's Maddie Burke knocked down a pair of free throws to even the game at 67-67 at the 1:14 mark. After both teams traded stops, Ashanti Barnes came away with a rebound off a Jaliyah Green miss at 0:25 which led to a JMU timeout.

On the Dukes' possession, Hazell bled the clock and then drove to the basket for the go-ahead score with 3.6 seconds remaining. With the Dukes up 69-67, the Wildcats stepped out of bounds on the baseline, then fouled Hazell who sank two shots at the line to cement the 71-67 win.

Peyton McDaniel paced the Dukes with 13 points to go along with seven rebounds and two steals. Hazell finished with 12 points on an efficient 4-of-8 (.500) clip from the field. Kseniia Kozlova recorded 11 points and eight boards, while Zakiya Stephenson chipped in with nine points and tied her career high with four steals, all of which came in the final quarter.

Ashanti Barnes tied her season high in rebounds with nine and rejected two shots. Ro Scott registered nine points and four boards off the bench in 19 minutes of action.

For Villanova, Maddie Webber led all scorers with 16 points, followed by Burke (15), Jasmine Bascoe (11) and Bronagh Power-Cassidy (11). Webber also had a game-high three blocks, while Bascoe dished out four assists.

How It Happened
First Quarter – Villanova 18, JMU 17

Both teams went 7-for-17 (.412) from the field, but the Wildcats finished the first ahead by one (18-17) after knocking down 4-of-9 (.444) from three.

Second Quarter – Villanova 40, JMU 36

Leading 37-36 in the final seconds of the first half, Bascoe converted on an and-one to give the Wildcats a four-point advantage at the break.
Scott shot a perfect 3-for-3 from the field for six points in the second, while Stephenson chipped in with five.

Third Quarter – Villanova 58, JMU 51

JMU shot 5-of-19 (.263) from the field but came away with six second-chance points to keep the game within single digits.
Barnes and Goodman each added five points in the frame.

Fourth Quarter – JMU 71, Villanova 67

Villanova was held to just three made field goals (3-of-11) and turned the ball over eight times.
Hazell knocked down 3-of-4 (.750) from the field and 4-of-5 (.800) from the charity stripe.

Game Notes

JMU is 8-3 through its first 11 games for the second year in a row.
The win was the Dukes' fourth when trailing going into the fourth quarter since joining the Sun Belt Conference in 2022. Additionally, the victory marked the biggest comeback when down heading into the final frame.
Hazell eclipsed 1,200 career points, becoming the 24th Duke to reach the mark.
The Dukes held an advantage in points in the paint (38-26), bench points (17-10), points off turnovers (17-11) and second-chance points (16-4).

Up Next
JMU will head to Raleigh, N.C. for a road tilt at NC State on Dec. 19. Action inside James T. Valvano Arena at William Neal Reynolds Coliseum is set for 7 p.m. and will stream on ACC Network Extra.