HARRISONBURG, Va. – Despite a game-high 25 points from Kionna Jeter, the Towson University women's basketball team dropped a hard-fought 89-85 decision to James Madison on Sunday afternoon in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) opener for both teams at the Atlantic Union Bank Center.
 
Shavonne Smith added 21 for the Tigers (5-3, 0-1 CAA). Aleah Nelson scored 11 points and finished with a game-best seven assists.
 
The Tigers used three big runs during a 34-point second quarter to take a double-digit lead into halftime. Towson led by as many as 15 points midway through the third quarter, but JMU rallied for the victory.
 
Kiki Jefferson had 24 points and 11 rebounds for the Dukes.    
 
Records: 

• Towson – 5-3 (0-1 CAA)
• James Madison – 5-3 (1-0 CAA)

• In the last 14:12 of the game, James Madison outscored Towson 40-21.  
• Trailing by three points after the first quarter, Towson hit 11-of-15 shots during a 34-point second quarter to take a double-digit lead into halftime. Jeter scored 10 points during the stanza.  

• The opening 10 minutes featured back and forth scoring with the Dukes leading 22-19. LaKaitlin Wright, who entered the game averaging four points, scored five and added three rebounds. Smith led the Tigers with six points on 3-of-5 shooting.
• Towson opened the second quarter with an 8-2 run. Jeter scored five during a 27-second period to give the Tigers the lead.
• JMU regained the advantage, 30-29, then Towson went on an 8-0 run to take a 37-30 lead. Jeter and Smith hit back-to-back three-pointers, while Narrie Dodson finished a fast break after a Bianca Glover steal.
• After Madison narrowed the deficit to 39-36 with 3:53 to go in the opening half, Towson went on another 8-0 run to push the advantage to 47-36 on a three-pointer by Nelson.
• Nelson, who had six first half assists, found Dodson just before the clock round down. The junior nailed a 15-foot jumper 3 seconds before time expired, giving Towson a 53-42 lead heading into the locker room.
• The third quarter featured runs by both teams. The lead was seven when Smith scored five points during a 7-0 run to push the advantage to 64-49 with 4:12 remaining.
• The Dukes then finished the quarter on 14-5 run to narrow the deficit to 69-63 after 30 minutes.
• Madison began the final 10 minutes on a 14-7 run to take a 77-76 lead on a basket by Kiki Jefferson.
• The teams then traded the lead. Smith gave the Tigers a 78-77 advantage with a coast-to-coast move. Jefferson answered to put JMU up 79-78. Jeter then made it Towson 80-79 on a layup with 2:18 to play.
• A bucket by Rayne Tucker and two free throws by Jefferson gave the Dukes an 83-80 advantage with 1:15 to play.
• Towson tied it at 83 on a pair of free throws by Jeter with 43.1 seconds to play.
• Jefferson put JMU up 85-83 on a driving layup with 20.6 seconds on the clock then went 4-for-4 from the FT line to seal the win.

• Today was Diane Richardson's 100^th game as Towson head coach. Her record is now 48-52.
• Jeter has scored 10 or more points in 16 consecutive games and 38 of her last 39 dating back to the 2018-19 season. As a Tiger, Jeter has scored in double figures 64 times in 70 career games. 
• Smith has now scored in double figures in seven of eight games.  

Next Game: 
Towson will host James Madison on Tuesday, Jan. 5 at SECU Arena. Game time is 2 p.m. Virtual season tickets are available now, get your personalized fan cutout today: contact Josh Behringer at 410-704-3330 or jbehringer@towson.edu.