Georgia Southern University
13-5,3-3Sun Belt
James Madison
13-5,5-1Sun Belt
Second Half Surge Sends JMU Past Eagles, 72-51
1/18/2024 7:22:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Georgia Southern returns to action on Saturday at App State
HARRISONBURG, Va. - James Madison outscored Georgia Southern 21-9 in the third quarter to break open a two-point halftime game and pick up a 72-51 Sun Belt Conference victory on Thursday evening in Harrisonburg, Va.
The Eagles (13-5, 3-3 SBC) lost for the first time against their new Sun Belt rivals, while James Madison improved to 13-5 overall and 5-1 in the league with the victory.
Georgia Southern began the game by opening up a 15-8 lead, but JMU ended the half on a 6-0 run to close the gap to one point, 15-14.
The Eagles built the lead back to eight, 24-16, thanks to a 9-2 run to open the second quarter. JMU chipped away at the lead and took a two-point lead at the break, 33-31, on a transition three-pointer from Peyton McDaniel in the final minute.
Starting the second half, the Eagles tied things up on a Kayla Thomas layup, but another three-pointer by McDaniel at the 8:09 mark of the third quarter sparked a 9-0 run over a two minute and 35 second stretch that turned into a quarter-long 21-9 run. The Eagles could not get any closer than 13 points in the fourth quarter.
McDaniel led all scorers for the Dukes with 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the floor, including 3-of-6 from three-point range, while Olivia Mullins and Kseniia Kozlova each added 14 points. Georgia Southern was led by nine points by Terren Ward.
Stat of the Game
Georgia Southern was held without a field goal by the Dukes for a 12 minute and 30 second stretch covering the third and fourth quarters.
Quotables
Head Coach Anita Howard on the second half against the Dukes
"We allowed our shot selection and us not hitting shots to dictate our mood on defense, and you can't do that on the road. I thought we played a pretty solid game in the first half, but in the third quarter, we let the game slip away. We weren't hitting shots, we weren't looking to attack and we weren't looking to rebound. Those are three pillars of our program and when you don't do that, this is what you're going to get against a very solid JMU team."
Next Up
The Eagles travel to Appalachian State to take on the Mountaineers in a Sun Belt contest on Saturday, January 20, at 2 p.m. in Boone, N.C.
