HARRISONBURG, Va. – Sophomore Brooke Stewart scored a career-high 10 points, but the William and Mary women's basketball team fell 83-42 to 2014 Colonial Athletic Association regular season champion James Madison on Sunday. The game was played in front of 6,590 fans at the James Madison Convocation Center. With the loss the Tribe falls to 8-19, 5-10 in CAA play, while JMU improves to 24-5 and 14-1 in CAA action.
Stewart added three rebounds to go along with her 10 points. Senior Kaitlyn Mathieu and junior Jazmen Boone each finished the game with eight points apiece.
James Madison opened the game on a 15-2 run to take the lead by the same score with 13:07 to play in the first half. Kirby Burkholder started the scoring with the first five points. Toia Giggets followed with the next four points to give the Dukes a 9-0 advantage. Precious Hall pushed the lead to 11-0, before Mathieu scored for the Tribe. Hall then responded with a 3-pointer, before an Angela Mickens free throw gave the Dukes a 15-2 lead.
William and Mary used a 5-0 run to close to a 10-point deficit with 5:56 to play in the first half. The Tribe used a layup by Mathieu, and a triple by Stewart during the run.
The Dukes closed the final five-plus minutes of the half on a 24-6 run to take a 46-18 lead at the break. The run was sparked by Hall, who scored 10 points during the outbreak. Hall scored 15 points in the first half and Giggetts finished the half with 14. As a team, JMU shot 56.3-percent (18-for-32) in the first half to help build its lead.
James Madison opened the second half on 10-2 run, taking a 56-20 lead and take control of the game with 15:59 to play in the game. Giggetts hit a jumper, opening the half. After a Tribe basket, Jazmon Gwathmey sandwiched two layups around a jumper by Hall. The final basket came on a triple from Burkholder.
The Dukes built their second half lead to as many as 41 points, before picking up the 83-42 victory. JMU put four players in double-figures led by Hall, who finished with 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists. Giggets (19), Burkholder (18), Gwathmey (11) were all also in double-digits for the Dukes.
William and Mary returns to action in the regular season finale against Hofstra on Wednesday, March 5 at Kaplan Arena. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. The 2014 CAA Women's Basketball Championship is set for March 12-16 at the Showplace Arena in Upper Marlboro, Md.
