Outside of the Massachusetts women’s basketball team, there was plenty of action happening around the Atlantic 10 women’s basketball conference this past week.
Virginia Commonwealth vs. James Madison (12/5):
In Richmond, Virginia, VCU hosted JMU in a low scoring affair, a 55-42 final in favor of the Dukes. The loss is the Rams fifth of the season and their third straight.
The Dukes’ Roshala Scott was the leading scorer, amassing 16 points on a 7-of-15 shooting performance. JMU had two other players score in the double digits in the win, with Peyton McDaniel and Kseniia Kozlova notching 12 and 10 points, respectively.
The Rams had a very slow start to the game, scoring just two points in the first three minutes while the Dukes scored nine. VCU ended the quarter strong, reducing the lead to just three points to make the score 16-13. With eight minutes left in the first half, the Rams took their only lead of the night when they temporarily made the score 19-18.
Later on in the half, JMU went on a 14-2 run over VCU, making the score 32-23 at halftime and giving the Dukes a big cushion heading into the second half. VCU had a strong start to the third quarter, going on an 8-2 run and cutting the deficit down to two points.
At the beginning of the fourth quarter however, JMU had extended its lead once again, this time a 12-point advantage. Later on, the Rams were able to cut the deficit to within eight points with under four minutes left but were unable to get any closer for the rest of the game.
JMU’s field goal and free throw percentages were key factors in the win. The Dukes scored on 38.9 percent of their field goals, while the Rams converted at just 24.6 percent. JMU scored on 76.9 percent of its free throw attempts, while VCU made only 60 percent.
The Dukes were able to attack the basket and make clutch shots when it mattered most. The Rams struggled to be consistent and couldn’t hold a lead for very long.
The Dukes are currently in first place in the Sun Belt Conference.
St. Bonaventure vs. Cornell (12/5):
The St. Bonaventure Bonnies had themselves an impressive win over Cornell, emerging victorious in a 56-54 final. Although the Bonnies currently hold a 3-5 record on the season, they are 2-1 in one score games.
The most impactful player in this game was St. Bonaventure’s Dani Haskell.
Haskell dropped an 27 points, 10 more than the second-highest scorer of the game, which was the Bears’ Rachel Kaus who had 17 points. Haskell made 5-of-12 attempted three-pointers and was efficient on free throws, going 4-of-5.
The Bonnies took a 25-24 lead going into the half. The Bears came out strong in the third quarter however, outscoring the Bonnies 18-13 and giving themselves a 43-37 lead going into the fourth quarter. With just seven minutes left in the quarter, the Bears increased their lead to eight. St. Bonaventure fought its way back into the game with an impressive 12-2 run, giving the them their first lead since halftime.
St. Bonaventure maintained its lead as Haskell made three out of four free throws to seal the win. The Bonnies’ next game is at the University at Albany on Saturday Dec.14.
Other A-10 Results:
The Miami RedHawks defeated the Dayton Flyers by a large margin of 17 points, with a final score of 60-43.
Saint Joseph’s defeated the Drexel Dragons in dominant fashion, 69-47.
Ivy League opponent University of Pennsylvania defeated La Salle 74-63, improving to 7-3 on the season while La Salle dropped to 5-5.
Brennan McGrevy can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter/X @BMcgrevy
