Ball State’s Strong Start Stifles JMU

Sunday, February 11

Muncie, Ind.

2 p.m.

James Madison University

17-8,9-3Sun Belt

Ball State

21-3,10-1MAC

James Madison

Ball St.

2/11/2024 5:30:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

MUNCIE, Ind. – Ball State outscored James Madison women's basketball 27-11 in the first quarter in a wire-to-wire win, 72-57, on Sunday afternoon inside Worthen Arena in the finale of the MAC-SBC Challenge.

JMU (17-8, 9-3 SBC) was limited to a season-low two assists and committed 22 turnovers, which BSU (21-3, 10-1 MAC) turned into 22 points. The Dukes forced 12 Cardinal turnovers in the fourth quarter and outscored Ball State 24-18 in the final frame, trailing by as few as nine (60-51) with 5:13 remaining.

Junior Ashanti Barnes led James Madison with 13 points off the bench on 5-of-8 (.635) from the field and grabbed seven rebounds in 23 minutes of action. Redshirt junior Kseniia Kozlova finished with eight points and a team-best eight rebounds. Classmate Jamia Hazell and Carole Miller both chipped in with eight points, while sophomore Chloe Sterling came away with a career-high three steals.

Four Cardinals scored in double figures, led by Marie Keifer's game-leading 19, followed by Madelyn Bischoff (14), Alex Richard (11) and Ana Barreto (10). Richard paced all players with nine rebounds, while Ally Becki had a game-best five assists.

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter

Ball State jumped out to a 10-2 lead at the 5:39 mark, with the Cardinals shooting a perfect 4-for-4 from the field.
BSU's Hana Mühl knocked down a three-pointer with three seconds on the clock to give the Cardinals a 27-11 lead after one.
Ball State shot 10-of-14 (.714) from the field and 5-of-7 (.714) from three.

Second Quarter

James Madison went scoreless for 4:30 as BSU built a 32-14 advantage with 2:47 remaining in the half.
The Cardinals maintained their 18-point cushion for a 39-21 lead at the break.
The Dukes shot 1-of-10 (.100) from three, while Ball State scored 13 points off JMU turnovers in the first half.

Third Quarter

JMU cut the deficit to 16 (41-25) before BSU responded with an 8-0 run to make it 49-25 at the media timeout.
The Dukes held Ball State to one of its last eight field goals, but the Cardinals kept control with a 54-33 advantage after three.

Fourth Quarter

James Madison found itself down by 54-40 after three consecutive turnovers by BSU with 8:35 remaining.
With the Dukes trailing by nine (62-53), the Cardinals rattled off an 8-0 spurt to lead 70-52 at the 3:00 mark.
Despite forcing 12 turnovers in the final frame, Ball State held on for the 72-57 victory.

GAME NOTES

Ball State now leads James Madison 1-0 in the all-time series.
JMU held an advantage in points in the paint (36-30), bench points (34-21) and second chance points (24-8), while the Cardinals had more points off turnovers (22-8) and fast breaks (5-2).
Two assists are the fewest for the Dukes under Head Coach Sean O'Regan and the fewest since recording two at William & Mary in a 50-40 win on Jan. 22, 2012.
James Madison shot 30.8 percent (20-of-65) from the field and 12.5 percent (2-of-16) from three, the second-worst efficiency for the Dukes in both categories this season. The Dukes finished with a season-low field goal percentage of 27.0 (20-of-74) at Maryland (Dec. 20) and 11.8 (2-of-17) from long range against Eastern Mennonite (Nov. 6).
JMU went 15-for-20 (.750) from the free throw line, tied for its fifth-most efficient outing in 2023-24.
The Dukes' nine steals are the third-most for the team this season.
James Madison won the rebounding battle for the 22nd time this season, outworking Ball State 39-37 on the glass.
Ball State led by as much as 26 (51-25) at the 4:36 mark of the third quarter.

UP NEXT
The Dukes will pick up Sun Belt Conference play as they host Georgia State on Thursday, Feb. 15. Game time inside the Atlantic Union Bank Center is set for 5 p.m. and will stream on ESPN+.