TOWSON, Md. – Towson women's basketball earned its fifth consecutive win with an 84-73 victory over James Madison on Wednesday afternoon at SECU Arena. Kionna Jeter dropped her second +30-point performance in a row and fourth of the season.
Following a tight 89-85 win by the Dukes earlier this season (Jan. 3), the Tigers blocked the attempted season sweep, leading the game for all but 9:21 in the first quarter.
Jeter netted a total 31 points and shot 46.2 percent (6-13) from 3-point range. She is now averaging 26.4 points per game. The Spartanburg, S.C. native is now fourth overall on the Towson University women's basketball all-time scoring list. She has 1,441 career points. Next on the list is Danielle Barry with 1,555 points.
Aleah Nelson (13) and Shavonne Smith (10) also join Jeter in double figures. Nelson also contributed a game-high six assists.
Allie Kubek (8) and LaKaitlin Wright (9) contributed to the win for the Tigers, both scoring just shy of double digits. The two Tigers also tied for a team-best eight boards apiece.
Kiki Jefferson posted a double-double for JMU with 29 points and 10 boards.
Records:
- Towson – 10-3 (5-1 CAA)
- James Madison – 10-7 (6-4 CAA)
Key Stats:
- Jeter has scored 10 or more points in 21 consecutive games and 42 of her last 43 dating back to the 2018-19 season. As a Tiger, Jeter has scored in double figures 69 times in 75 career games.
- Smith has scored in double-figures 11 times this season, including nine of her last 10 outings.
- Nelson has topped the Tigers in assists in each of the 13 games this season. The sophomore from Baltimore is averaging 7.0 assists per contest.
- Nelson has scored in double digits in all 13 games this season. The sophomore guard has also dropped 15 or more points five times.
- The Tigers scored 26 points off the fast break during Wednesday's win, allowing no points from the Dukes in the category. The Tigers are the top transition team in Division I basketball, leading the nation in transition points with 34.3 points per game through their first 12 contests.
Postgame Quotes:
- Head Coach Diane Richardson: "We want to be fast and we want to play fast. I reminded (the team) that we are first in the country in scoring on fast breaks. We want to live up to that and if we continue to do that, we'll have some teams (worried)."
- Senior guard Kionna Jeter: "I feel good. I think I am playing at an elite level. I have a great team around me that is helping me out a lot. It's not just me, it's my teammates, too."
How it Happened:
- James Madison started off the game up 6-0 before a 3-pointer from Nelson cut the deficit in half.
- Jeter disrupted an 11-point run by the Dukes with 3:56 to go in the first quarter, scoring another 3-point field goal to make the score 16-8.
- The Tigers cashed in on two more 3-pointers, including one more from Jeter, to cut JMU's lead to 16-14 going into the second quarter. Towson shot 50 percent (2-4) from beyond the arc in the first.
- The Dukes would not see the lead again in the remaining three quarters of action.
- The Tigers mounted a 14-point run at 9:21 in the second quarter to take the 38-31 lead and end the first half.
- Towson netted 25 third-quarter points to James Madison's 17.
- The Tigers saw six different scorers during the 10-minute period. Jeter had her best quarter of the day, dropping 12 points and shooting 6-of-9 from the floor.
- To end the contest in the fourth quarter with the full-court press on, Towson saw its biggest lead of the game at 19 points.
- The Dukes attempted to make a late fourth quarter comeback with Madison Green netting a 3-point field goal with :51 to play and making the score 80-74. It was not enough though, as the Tigers scored the final three points of the game to secure the win, 83-74.
Next Game:
