Another Stellar Performance

JMU turned the ball over just 7 times in this game and scored 93 points on a stellar performance by Kirby Burkholder and Precious "P" Hall to improve the Dukes to a 6-6 record. In the first 5 minutes, Kirby Burkholder scored the teams first 11 points, recorded multiple blocks and steals to put the team ahead 11-2. JMU never trailed in this game. By halftime, JMU built a 22 point lead and would build on that in the 2nd half.

The team has been impressive the last few games, and something clicked, because ever since the Duquesne game, this team has played on a whole new level. Several players scored double digits. Kirby Burkholder had 27 pts, 8 rebounds, and 4 steals. Precious Hall had 12 pts (all 3pt shots), 6 rebounds, and 3 steals. Tarik Hislop, 14 pts, and 6 assist. While these players had the points, we cannot forget the others. , especially Jazmon Gwathmey who scored 7 points, but had 10 rebounds in this game. And who can forget Angela "Muff" Mickens? She finally came into the game around the 8 minute mark and played an exceptional game. She was amazing at the point position. Her passes are precise, twice she was able to dump the ball off to players inside for the easy layups-once to Crystal Ross and once to Kanita Shepherd. She also had some great steals and continues to be amazingly fast. She is great to watch. Crystal Ross is getting the moves down, but her shots are not falling in, but they will in due time.

The team is playing with passion and extremely good defense. Hall especially, defensively this team held GA Southern to just 44 points, 20 points in the first half. They not only interrupted passes, they interrupted shots and rebounded the ball very well, out rebounding GA Southern 41-24. They also caused GA Southern to turn the ball over 25 times.

With that said, it is now time to critique a little, not much, but just a little. JMU was up by 30 points and for a few minutes, JMU stopped playing offense and instead started to shoot the ball from the 3 on a consistent bases. Personally I have always believed that no matter what you run the offense, even though you are up 30+ points. The good, Coach Brooks calls a timeout and since that time out, the team started to run the offense like they should. Another critique is that a few times we did not follow our shots, that is going to cost us if we are not willing to follow our own shots, but again, cannot complain too much because the team did get 41rebounds in this game, a huge improvement from earlier games. Last critique, we still allowed some easy inside shots, but also allowed to be screened, allowing 3 point shots. Other than those minor mishaps, we are playing way better than before.

Lastly, I absolutely love that we ended the season with two blowout wins. Against Miane JMU won by 54 points and against GA Southern, JMU wins by 49 points. This should really pay dividends for JMU and for the psyche of the team. Toward the end of the game, JMU was playing 4 freshman on the court and not once did JMU skip a beat. There are no more OOC games, CAA play begins with UNCW on Sunday January 6 at 2 PM. Happy New Year everyone and hope all of you achieve your new year resolutions!

JMU wins 93-44.

Notes: Mad props goes to Jazmon Gwathmey for her 10 rebounds and to Kirby Burkholder for an exceptional game. Crystal Ross you are close, keep pushing, eventually everything is going to start going your way. Giggets, I hope you never take off that mask, for some reason you have that killer instinct with the mask. Also, mad props to everyone under the basket for never giving up and always fighting for the ball. We fans notice and the points scored are huge!

Game notes: http://www.jmusports.com/newLiveStats/Basketball/index.dbml?GAME_STAT_ID=709981&db_oem_id=14400

JMU Demolishes Maine

...Like a bulldozer destroying a pile of dirt that is in its way. The JMU Lady Dukes put on a clinic tonight and it was exciting to watch. Not to often do you get to watch a true thumping, especially one that is won by 54 points. I don't know where to start because the defense for the most part was dominant. There were a few times in the first half when Maine was tied or keeping it close that JMU allowed easy shots. That is, they would leave the #5 or #4 player completely open under the basket. But in the second half, JMU wouldn't have any of that. Tonight was about pure dominance, tonight Kanita Shepherd showed how strong she can be under the basket. Tonight Jasmine Gill showed how amazing of a player she has become-she had a great assist and the end of the game to Ross. Gill was going up like she was going to shoot the ball and then at the last possible second dumps it off to Crystal Ross for the easy layup. It was a sweet move. Precious "P" Hall is a player, she continues to impress and is quickly becoming one of my favorites. Can you imagine a trio of scorers this year in Hall, Hislop, and Burkholder? Talk about a threat. Tarik Hislop had a good game tonight scoring 14 points, but lets quickly talk about Destiny Jones who had 12 points.  Jones was tough tonight, she shot extremely well and she was strong driving to the basket or shooting the ball for the short jumper. She scored 12 points and hustled defensively. She was truly fun to watch. Tonight, she gets the mad props award, because she deserves it after her performance on the floor.

When the game first started, I was worried because Maine was playing extremely well, they were shooting extremely well, were getting the open looks and then about 15 minutes till halftime, JMU started to take over and by halftime were up 40-24. JMU rebounded extremely well tonight and allowed themselves to have second chances. They defended well, forcing Maine to make ill advised passes that would turn into interceptions or steals, or just turnovers. Maine turned the ball over 29 times, a testament to how good JMU's defense was tonight. Take this for example, JMU held Maine scoreless form about the 10 minute mark in the second half until just under the 4 minute mark-they also held Maine to just 10 points in the second half. Offensively, JMU shot about 61% from the floor and had contribution form just about everyone.

The last couple of games, JMU has really played well. You need these kind of games to build confidence and to develop good team work and I feel that the team has finally started to click. Keep it up ladies and "Get It Back!"

Final 88-34 JMU

Notes: Angela Mickens did not play. Transfer Lexi Carpenter officially became a Duke today and was dressed. She becomes eligible next year during the start of the second semester.

Six players scored double figures tonight. Tarik Hislop 14 pts, Kirby Burkholder 13 pts, Destiny Jones 12 points, Jasmine Gill, Precious Hall, and Toia Giggets all scored 10 points. Kanita Shepherd deserves a lot of credit for her performance in this game as well. She was unbelievably good in this game with many blocked shots, steals, and just outright good defense.

Game notes http://www.jmusports.com/newLiveStats/Basketball/index.dbml?GAME_STAT_ID=709980&db_oem_id=14400

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays

Just wanted to take time out of my Christmas day and wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday. This blog has only been in existence for little over a month and it has been an honor bringing all of you an opinionated blog post of JMU WBB. I really felt this was a much needed blog for the JMU WBB team who deserves the accolades after a great WNIT run. I hope that all of you will continue to read the blog.

If any of you have suggestions on how I can make this a better blog, please do not be shy. I may not know everything about basketball, but I am learning and would love to hear your thoughts. Again, thanks for being a part of my new blog and hope that all of you got what you wanted and will get what you want in the new year.

Your friend,

Chad
JMU WBB Fan Blog

Dukes Take Down American

I have to say, the team responded well tonight without their star defender Nikki Newman who suffered a fractured foot during the Duquesne game. Defense and rebounding were really good tonight out rebounding American 53-34, 11 of those going to Kirby Burkholder (15 pts) giving her a double-double. Defensively, JMU held American to 49 points, they defended the perimeter well, including getting rebounds inside. Take this for example, JMU was able to hold their two best scorers to just 6 points (Dumiak) and 7 points (Dobbs).It was for the most part a great game to watch.

Offensively the team made their shots, only a few times where I thought certain players should have done something else, other than what they did well. For example, Kirby had Hall wide open for a three point shot, but instead took the ball inside at the end of the half and ended up getting blocked. I personally felt that if she would have tossed the ball to Hall, Hall would had the open 3. Another example was Gwathmey, she was wide open for a short jumper under the basket, instead of taking the wide open shot, she dribbled once takes an extra step inside and gets stuffed. Other than the common mental errors, the team performed well. With that said, Gwathmey had a really strong drive to the basket which resulted in 2 points, plus the free throw try. It was a really nice move, I hope she continues to play strong. Tarik was calm, the team was relaxed. Kirby slowed down enough to make her shots, overall the team played well together. I want to congratulate Precious Hall, who is really becoming a great player, tonight she scored a career high 16 points. It was really neat to watch Kirby Burkholder and Precious Hall trade 3's at the beginning of the second half.

Tonight I have to give mad props to both Kirby Burkholder for her double-double tonight and to Precious Hall for her career high 16 points.

JMU wins 65-49

Note: Mickens did not play due to sickness. Game notes: As soon as they are posted, I will post it here.

I believe a recruit was at the game today. It could have been transfer Lexi Carpenter.

Last Three Non-Conference Games

So we are 3-6, with three more non conference games to go and we actually have the opportunity to improve our record to 6-6, that is, if we play like we are capable of playing. No game is a sure victory, but I honestly feel pretty good about the next three games. The best team of the next three will be American, a team that shoots well from the perimeter. The next two have a combined 2 wins under their belt, so we should probably win these games.

Key things that will contribute to JMU winning. Hislop has to control her emotions, she is the heart and soul of the team. If she isn't calm, cool, and collected during the game, she will not play well and neither will the team. Kirby needs to slow down. Our inside game has to pick up if we are going to be a contender. There is still time to salvage the season and "get it back," but if our inside game continues to allow easy shots or not being aggressive enough under the basket then it is going to continue to be a long season.

American December 21 7 PM

American will be coming into this contest at 5-4 and probably the tougher of the next three match-ups JMU will be facing.  They have two main scores, Jen Dumiak, a 5'10" G that scores on average about 16 points a game. From the 3 point line, she is making 47% of her shots, and from the 2 point, making close to 49% of her shots.The other scorer on the team is Alexis Dobbs, a 5'5" G, who on average has been scoring about 12 points a game, 3-4 assist per game, and is an excellent free throw shooter, making about 91% of her free throw shots. Defensively this team allows about 62 points per game, and averages about 32 rebounds a game. Looking at their Center, she doesn't appear to get a lot of points from the paint. It appears this team likes to take jump and 3-point shots. So defending the perimeter and rebounding are keys to this game.

Maine December 28 7 PM

In all of their losses, the Maine Black Bears have lost by 17 points or more, with the exception of 2 games. They come into this contest winning thus far only two games. They are averaging about 53 points per game and are allowing about 66 points per game. Their best scorer is Ashleigh Roberts who is averaging about 11 points per game and averages close to 5 rebounds. On average they are a shorter team who has many guards and forwards. They do have a freshman center in Anna Heise who stands at 6'3" and offers about 7 points and 4 rebounds a game. Two other players to look out for that have good shooting percentages are Liz Woods and Danielle Walczak. On paper, they look like a good rebounding team, something that JMU really needs to work on. 

GA Southern December 31 2 PM

On paper, this team is not a very good shooting team, but neither are we at the moment. Per game, they only score about 51 points and allow about 65 points. They average about 32 rebounds a game, but like the Dukes, struggle in making their shots fall. Their tallest player is 6'3" F/C Danielle Spencer who averages about 5 points a game and about 4 rebounds a game. Their two main shooters are MiMi DuBose, averaging about 14 points a game. The other is A Knight, who is averaging about 10 points and 5 rebounds a game. She does have the tendency to turn the ball over so the Dukes may be able to capitalize and convert the turnovers into points.

Notes: Losing Nikki Newman for possibly the year is a big blow to this team defensively (fractured foot). She was the energy for long sustained defense and was the player that could find Kirby for the open looks. With that stated, the team did  pick up their game against Duquesne and with Nikki out, they can no longer depend on Nikki to get the defensive stops.

Props To The Lady Dukes

Even in a a loss, you can sometimes pull out the things they did well, and you can certainly pull out the things they didn't do well and this game had both. The first half featured two defensive teams battling it out and even though both teams were able to get shots off, few fell home. This was especially true for the JMU Dukes where they only scored 10 points from the field in the first half, with another 8 points coming from the free throw line. Duquesne by the end of the half took a 34-18 lead. The Duquesne defense is stout, probably the best I have seen to date and it showed. Their defense forced turnovers, blocked shots, got plenty of steals, rebounded well, and gave JMU fits throughout the game. But JMU battled back and in the second half put together a come from behind rally that would show how good JMU can be.

The second half was a different team, they still struggled at times to make their shots, but the energy they showed was great. They showed heart and they played to win. That is all you can ask for at times when the team is young (as far as playing together). With that said, the team needs to rebound the ball better, maybe the stats will say they didn't do badly in that stat, but it seemed like Duquesne was rebounding the ball for second chance shots all day long. Another problem is that we need to limit the turnovers and maybe that is credited to Duquesne's defense.

Gill had a really good game today, she scored 16 points, 6 rebounds and only had 1 turnover. She also played good minutes, clocking in a total of 29 minutes. Burkholder also had a descent game scoring 15 points and 8 rebounds. The bad news is that Newman went out with an injury early in the first half and never returned. Later in the game it was revealed that that she had ice on her right ankle. Hope it isn't anything major, but she would be a big loss defensively for the team. With that stated, my mad props goes to the overall team for never quitting, for playing 40 minutes, and pulling the team within 3 points for an opportunity to win or tie the game at the end of regulation. While it may not have been the best game, you played hard and for that, mad props!

Final 62-57 Duquesne. 

Gametracker notes http://www.cstv.com/gametracker/launch/gt_wbaskbl.html?event=1199253&school=cs&from=gtLite

UPDATE: A good presser by Coach Brooks. Talks about the various players, Newman's unknown injury that doesn't look good, and a few other things. http://www.jmusports.com//mediaPortal/player.dbml?POPOUT=1&db_oem_id=14400&id=1145505&catid=21611&start=4.541

Quotes From Various Coaches

I think these quotes are good quotes for the situation at hand. More specifically the quote on defense. Obvious yes, but to hear it from a different coach adds emphasis. These quotes can be found at http://www.coachlikeapro.com/basketball-coaching-quotes.html

Enjoy! 

"For us to be successful on defense, we must get back and stop the basketball, eliminate easy baskets, keep the ball out of the lane, and bother the shooters." -- Dick Bennett
 
"Players who are committed to the team first will find a way to help when things are going bad, they will do whatever it takes. Kids that are more into themselves will not do that. They will take care of themselves and get more individual when things are tough." -- Dick Bennett

"I concluded some time ago that a major part of success of a team, or of an individual, has a great deal to do with the intangible qualities possessed. The real key is in how a person see himself (humility), how he feels about what he does (passion), how he works with others (unity), how he makes others better (servanthood), and how he deals with frustration and success, truly learning from each situations (thankfulness). I believe those concepts are the essence of a good player, team, coach, or individual in any capacity in life." -- Dick Bennett

"Good teams become great ones when the members trust each other enough to surrender the Me for the We." -- Phil Jackson

"When you sub, tell player to give you three great minutes, and if you bust your butt, I'll give you an extra minute." -- Mike Krzyzewski

“The best teams are team in any sport that lose themselves in the team. The individuals lose their identity. And their identities come about as a result of being in the team first.” -- Mike Krzyzewski

"Once practice starts, we work hard, and that's the best conditioning there is. Everything counts. Every little thing counts. Run hard, play hard, go after the ball hard, guard hard. If you play soft (what I call signing a 'non-aggression pact' with your teammates), you won't ever get into shape." -- Pete Carril

"Defense doesn't break down on the help, it breaks down on the recovery." -- Chuck Daly

"Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it." -- Lou Holtz 

Flames Cook The Dukes

The flames were flaming and the Dukes were being cooked for dinner and that is probably the best way I can describe tonight. I am sure Brown and company are enjoying their cooked meal of Duke Dog. It was a well deserved win for them. With that said, the Lady Dukes just didn't have it tonight. When the game started they were good defensively. They pressed, got rebounds, and made shots, and then 8 minutes left in the half, Liberty started hitting threes, started to get rebounds on both ends of the ball and suddenly, JMU found themselves down 8 at the half. 

It would be wrong for me to say that this team doesn't want to win, because they do. Every team that steps on the court, field, mat, or wherever wants to win. Tonight, I thought we held onto the ball to long, we didn't follow-up on our shots, we failed to rebound on offense. I will not say there were times where the team fought hard, because they did. But that doesn't negate a bad night on the court. Just how bad was the offense tonight? Well, JMU shot just 26% from the 2-points and were 15-56. In 3-point attempts, we were 6-22 at 27 %.  In other words, JMU shot just under 27% from the floor.

Defense, still the same story inside, and just like Richmond, we didn't defend the perimeter. JMU was burned multiple times from the three when Liberty was able to get open looks. I am not sure what to think or how to fix it and I am glad I am not Coach Brooks. Maybe we need to play man-to-man defense the whole game, maybe we should just run a simple triangle offense. Just don't know. 

Our players need to toughen up. Push the opposing players around a little. They need to take command and show who is boss. When Coach Brooks stated that we were soft, we are. If I were playing JMU, I would run up the middle all day long, and screen to allow the open three because at this point in time, JMU will not be able to defend against it. 

All is not lost though and there is still time to right the ship. You can see the disappointment in their eyes and in their demeanor. They need encouragement, they need confidence, they need the fans to say we believe in you and we know you will put it together. Lady Dukes, it is time for you to show us who you are, how tough you are. Go out there and bloody someones lip, be mean, stop being nice, because the greatest competitors in the world are competitors who go out and take what is theirs and they can care less if you are standing in their way. They will push the defender/ball handler over and use them as a stepping stone to get the needed prize. If you want to "Get It Back," then "Get It Back!"

Today's final 60-48 Liberty

Notes: The referring was some of the worst I have seen. With that said, I will not blame the refs for tonight's loss. http://www.jmusports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=14400&ATCLID=205820500

Update: Recommend that you listen to KB's post game presser. A very interesting post game with a lot of reflection. Talks about not playing as a team and pressing too much. Also talks about how the team just isn't trusting each other on the court during games. States that JMU is playing better on the road than they are at home.

Spiders Sting The Dukes - The Gemini Team

I think I am going to call this year's Lady Dukes, the Gemini team. Because you never know which team you are going to get. Will you get the team that played exceptionally well both offensively and defensively or will you get the team that we saw today? Today's team missed easy layups, didn't defend well, nor did they rebound well at all. It was a game that if they had gotten a few more rebounds, a few more layups and made some defensive stops, they would have won the game. I am going to give mad props to Precious Hall, because when it seemed like the Dukes were not getting it done, she would come in and give an offensive and defensive boost. She had a career high of 11 points today. So she gets the mad props award.

Richmond made their shots, including going 22-27 at the free throw line. Put that against JMU going 20-29 at the free throw line and you can see the difference. It just wasn't the free throw line that Richmond was dominant. JMU had no answer for Becca Wann who scored 21 points, but also retrieved 15 rebounds, many of those coming from the offensive end. She also went 2-4 from the 3 point line. Another player who had a big game and didn't seem like she missed much was Kristina King who scored 29 points. Richmond screened really well today and too be honest that is how on several occasions were able to get open three points. But another reason was because of missed defensive assignments. For example, in today's post game presser, Coach Brooks stated how Burkholder allowed 10 points in the first half while playing on defense. In other words, JMU was not disciplined on defense like they should have been.

JMU had three players who scored double digits. Tarik Hislop with 22 points, Kirby Burkholder with 14 points, and Precious Hall with 11 points. JMU's best rebounder was Crystal Ross who had 10 rebounds. A positive for Newman today, who did foul out late in the game, she recorded her 120th block and has moved up to 2nd in all time blocks.

Today's final 70-66 Richmond. Notes and video posted at http://www.jmusports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=14400&ATCLID=205819437

Also of note, JMU shot just 28% from the floor. Angela Mickens did play.

JMU's next game is against Liberty on Tuesday at the Convo at 7 PM. Let's hope that JMU finds their identity and players start to step up for the Dukes.

The Next Three Games Are Important For The Resume

The JMU Nation knows that the next three games are extremely important to win, just as it is important for the teams JMU is playing to win to help build their resume for the post season. I thought that after this past weekend's highs and lows that this would be a great segue into my 3 game review. I hope you enjoy it, it comes from Rocky Balboa, when he is talking to his son about winning and losing.

Love this quote from Rocky - "Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place and I don't care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard ya hit. It's about how hard you can get it and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done! Now if you know what you're worth then go out and get what you're worth. But ya gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers saying you ain't where you wanna be because of him, or her, or anybody! Cowards do that and that ain't you! You're better than that"

So when you are feeling down and out, not feeling like getting back up, remember the quote above.

Here is my review of the next 3 games. Tough match ups, but all winnable.

Richmond - We all hate them, they are like that nasty spider you step on when it comes close, they are okay from afar, but when they come into your domain, you just want to squash them and show them who is the real boss. That doesn't mean they don't have a good team, We all wish that Richmond would somehow fall in a hole, never to be heard from again. Obviously, that isn't going to happen. On December 2nd, the Spiders will visit the Convo in hopes of poisoning our post season hopes, but hopefully the Dukes are ready to squash their dreams leaving the Janitor to clean up the mess.

In the last 4 meetings, JMU and Richmond have been tied, each having two wins. Richmond however has won the last two meetings. Making this contest extremely important. The one thing I gathered while watching Richmond in Cancun is that they love to run the ball at you, they love to press, so expect a fast paced game from them. They seem to like the screens as well, so discipline is key. On paper, Richmond is shown to have a better better defense by allowing only 62 points a game. However, their offense is what is getting them in trouble-averaging just 58 points a game. With Genevieve Okoro's (6'0" F) season ending ACL injury, the Spiders will have to rely mainly on Liz Brown (6'4" F/C) who has been averaging about 8 points a game and 5 rebounds. If JMU wants to win this game, they need to box her and Becca Wann (5'10" G, avg 7 rbs a game) out and get the contested rebounds. Richmond also has two main scorers in Rachael Bilney (5'10") who has scored 15 points or more in several games and is a 3-point threat. The other main scorer is Kristina King (5'10") who is probably the bigger scorer than any of the Richmond players, she is probably more like Tarik Hislop, she can shoot the 3, but will make most of her shots inside the circle. Of note: Richmond beat Minnesota by 12 points, but lost to Green Bay by 31 points (without G. Okoro). While JMU beat Green Bay by 3 points, but lost to Minnesota by 18 points. Also, Okoro had a big game against Minnesota and recorded 17 rebounds and 12 points, while Ross was only able to retrieve 6 rebounds and 4 points. As stated earlier, rebounds and controlling the ball are key if JMU wants to win. Contest is December 2, at 2 PM. Richmond's RPI stands at #139 or #95 depending which you support.


Liberty - They may come out of the Big South Conference, but they usually field good teams. Each year it seems like they receive votes in the top 25 and while that is not the case this year, they are ranked in the College Insider Mid-Major Top 25 poll at 23. JMU has owned Liberty the last 6 meetings, recording wins in all 6. However, each contest has been closely contested, usually winning no more than 10 points, with the last two meetings being decided by less than 5 points. You can be sure that Liberty is going to come at JMU with everything they have, it is a victory that many in Liberty nation would love to relish. Defensively, Liberty has only allowed 62 points per game, including about 40 rebounds per game. On offense they average about 67 points per game. This team defends the perimeter very well, so Kirby Burkholder may not get many shots from 3-point range. Devon Brown (5'10") is by far their best player and has averaged about 17 points a game with a game high at 20 points. She can also grab the rebounds, getting about 6 rebounds a game. Their best F/C has to be Jasmine Gardner a 6'2" who records about 7 rebounds a game and about 6 points a game. Other players include Tolu Omotola (according to Liberty's notes, Devon Brown and Tolu have been a huge duo this season), Brittany Cambell, and Emily Frazier, among a couple of others. This team is a very good offensive rebounding team, so the key will probably be like the Richmond game, box out Brown and Gardner and keep them from getting second chance points and defensive rebounds.   December 4, 7 PM at the Convocation Center. Liberty's RPI stands at #139 or #172. Liberty struggles on the road and have yet to win a game on the road.

Duquesne - The false Dukes. They are the posers, thinking they are Dukes, but we know who the real Dukes are and that is JMU. However, this will be the tougher test of the three schools. They come into this contest playing schools like UNC tough, losing by only 5 points. They beat Liberty by 17 points and Delaware (without Elena) by 4 points. They hold a 4-1 record and are also receiving votes in the latest polls. Defensively, they only allow 48 points a game, they force about 39 turnovers a game, but offensively they struggle, scoring about 59 points a game. Kirby is going to have a tough time shooting the 3-pointer in this game and will have to find other ways to contribute to her team. The good news is that JMU leads the last three meetings 2-1, but it will be tough getting this win at Duquesne. Their best scorer is 6'2" F Wumi Agunbiade. In the last three games she has scored at least 17 points and has record at least 12 rebounds per game, except one. Another good player is Jocelyn Floyd (5'8" G) who knows how to steal the ball. In the last two games, she has recorded at least 8 steals and scored 19 points, and 6 points respectively. Their best rebounder is probably Orsi Szecsi (6'3" G/F) who averages about 7 rebounds a game. Two other players you will probably see a lot of are April Robinson (5'8" G) and Belma Nurkic (5'8" G). The biggest thing with this team is protecting the ball and making your shots count. Ross and Giggets are going to have to be tough under the basket and push their weight around like the fierce warrior who refuses to give an inch. Hislop and Burkholder have to make their shots, because it is obvious that they like to play a high pressure defense. If we do not defend the paint in this game, we could be looking at a loss, so being tough, not forcing shots, and not getting frustrated are a must if JMU is going to win this game. Game is on December 16 at 2 PM at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. Duquesne's RPI stands at #50, or #55 and will be by far our toughest opponent in this 3 game stretch.

Last thoughts - Hopefully we can win all three games. The good news is that we play Richmond and Liberty at home. The bad news is we play our toughest opponent in this series at their place. I feel like we are coming together as a team and hopefully our inside game continues to improve. If not, we will be in trouble. The other good news is that we will have plenty of rest before Richmond and Duquense, so hopefully that works to our advantage.

Notes: Toia Giggets has been cleared to play and will be back. Angela Mickens who suffered a 2nd concussion has yet to be cleared. Will update this post as new information comes in, especially with Liberty and Duquesne.

Today's DNR had an excellent article on Tarik Hislop today. If you have an account with the Daily News Record, I suggest you read it. http://www.dnronline.com/article/a_major_get

Tarik Hislop Named ESPNW National POW

Mad props goes out to Tarik Hislop today. In case you haven't guessed, ESPNW named her the national player of the week. She had a huge tournament this past weekend. Scoring a total of 74 points in 3 days, includnig 7 assist and 6 steals. It would be an understatement to say that she didn't have a breakout tournament. In game 1 vs Green Bay she scored 32 points, including 7 of the 10 points (the other 3 was by Kirby Burkholder who hit the go ahead 3-pointer) in overtime. In game 3 against Wichita State she also recorded 30 points. The only game that she didn't have a breakout performance during the tournament was against Minnesota (game 2), but that game came with only 20 hours of rest and probably less than that if you count game study and leisure time. So it is understandable that Tarik and the team would be feeling the effects of a hard fought game against Green Bay.

This is a much deserved accolade for Tarik Hislop. Watching her play this past weekend you could really feel that she took the moment and made it her own. She took control. Whatever Coach Brooks told her, she listened. I remember watching her in the Green Bay game and the shots she made were just amazing, Green Bay had no answer for her. It just isn't this past tournament, Tarik has been steady in every game she has played in this year, scoring on average 18 points per game. Going forward, Tarik will certainly garner much of the attention, but hopefully that will also open things up for Kirby Burkholder on the three point line, after all that is what great players do. Congrats Tarik for a job well done, maybe Tarik can get more national attention as the year progresses. How awesome would it be if other team members can get national attention as well.

http://espn.go.com/womens-college-basketball/story/_/id/8675601/james-madison-dukes-tarik-hislop-espnw-player-week

UPDATE: Tarik Hislop also earned CAA player of the week

A Successful Cancun Trip

A valiant effort by the Lady Dukes and a stellar performance by Tarik Hislop (30 points), Jasmine Gill (10 pts, 11 rb), and Jazmon Gwathmey (8 pts, 9 rb) would give the Dukes a victory over a defensive minded team nicknamed the Shockers 63-58. You have to be excited for this team, especially after they started 0-2 for the season. Here you have a team that was having trouble finding itself, especially inside, and yet, in two of the three games was able to have good games inside. Even Ross who started off slow, really showed why she deserves the starting position at the 5 spot. Today's game didn't feature a single 3-point shot being made (0-13), nor did it feature big points for Kirby Burkholder (0 pts, 8 rb), it was all about defense, rebounds, and Tarik Hislop's breakout performance for the 2nd time in the tournament.

You would be hard pressed to say that this team didn't grow from this experience, you would be hard pressed to say that they didn't find themselves in this tournament. The fact that they did it without Giggets and without Mickens (in today's game, Concussion) says something. It says, they are finally coming together as a team. That doesn't mean they don't have issues. I still think they have a hard time defending big post players, but who doesn't have those issues, especially smaller teams? We are tall, but we are not bulky and that is what Minnesota had in yesterday's loss.

We should learn from this trip and we should be well rested and healed for the first home game in nearly a month against Richmond. Richmond was also in the Cancun Challenge and played the exact same teams as we did. So far they are 2-0 in the tournament. They beat both Minnesota and Wichita State. Let's see if they can beat what I think, is one of the best teams in the tournament, Green Bay.

UPDATE: Richmond could not hang with Green Bay and lost 79-48. They did beat Minnesota and Wichita State. 

Notes: Both Gwathmey and Burkholder fouled out. JMU went 2-1 in the Cancun Challege and improved to a 0.500 record at 3-3. Box Score http://admin.xosn.com/fls/14400/stats/wbasketball/2013/jmu1124.htm?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=14400

Gophers Trapped Dukes In The Hole

What can you say? Just yesterday the Lady Dukes came off one of their best wins in the season and perhaps in program history. But today, with less than 24 hours to play. The Dukes would fall in the hole that the Gophers built for them. The Minnesota Gophers shot just over 30% from the field in yesterday's game, but today against the Dukes they shot over 50%. So when the Dukes went cold middle of the first half, it was inevitable the Dukes would go down double digits. Even with 4 seniors on the team, the Lady Dukes are young when you count playing time and today it showed. It reminded me of the UVA game where they came out hot, but would go cold the rest of the game. In the UVA game, JMU had no answer for Sarah Imovbioh, their inside forward, today, JMU had no answer for Micaella Riche, their inside forward or Rachel Banham and Kionna Kellogg , both of whom had a stellar game against the Dukes.

The one thing I have learned about the team this year is they have a hard time defending big players. UVA had a big in Imovbioh. Maybe I am wrong on my assessment, but when we cannot defend the paint well, we lose the game. Ross is a big part of this game plan and JMU needs her to have games like she did against Murray State and Green Bay. It certainly doesn't help when one of your best players is out with a concussion either (Toia Giggets).

While JMU played tired, and certainly looked fatigued from yesterday's game,  they still played hard and that is all you can ask for when things just doesn't seem to go their way. When a team has a stellar day, it is hard to beat that team. Let's hope that JMU has a better game tomorrow and climbs out of the trap that Minnesota set for them and shocks the Shockers tomorrow at 1 PM.

Final: 80-62 Minnesota

Notes: Newman fouls out with about 4 to play. Riche of Minnesota fouls out with about 3 to play. Mickens was hurt, not sure how bad, but Coach Brooks thinks she will be okay. Gwathmey is really starting to shine as a player. Box score http://www.cstv.com/gametracker/launch/gt_wbaskbl.html?event=1157219&school=cs&from=gtLite

Big Win For The Lady Dukes As They Upset the #1 Mid-Major Team

When a team comes together and fights for a victory, you have to love them for their effort and tenacity. That is what the JMU women's basketball team did tonight when they beat a very good Wisconsin-Green Bay team in a back and forth showdown in OT 89-86. It was the first of three games in the Cancun Challenge that featured game highs for several JMU players. In my pregame thoughts I really thought that if Angela Mickens (8 assist, 5 points) were to play the point more, it would allow Tarik to focus on the 2 spot, and she wouldn't disappoint. Tarik scored a career high 32 points in this contest, including the game tying 3-pointer that sent the game into Overtime. Both Gwathmey (13 points) and Ross (13 points) scored double digits, including Kirby Burkholder who hit the go ahead 3 pointer (16 points) at the end of OT. With 24 seconds left, Green Bay's Stephanie Sension had the opportunity to put her team ahead, but would miss twice, allowing a rebound by Tarik Hislop. Hislop would be fouled with 0.7 seconds to play in OT and she hit both free throws sealing the game.

If you want to know how evenly matched these two teams were, all you have to do is look at the box score. In the first half both teams scored 37 points. In the second half, both teams scored 42 points. In overtime JMU scored 10 points (the final points of the game were Kirby's go ahead 3-pointer and Tarik Hislop's two foul shots) and Wisconsin-Green Bay Scored 7 points. http://scores.espn.go.com/ncw/scoreboard?date=20121122&confId=45

Here is another interesting observation. JMU was up by 3 points before the half, Green Bay had 14 seconds to score before the half and with 2 seconds to go Green Bay's Sarah Eichler hit a game tying 3-pointer going into the half. At the end of regulation with about 4 seconds to go, Tarik Hislop hits the game tying 3-pointer to send it to overtime. How strange is that?

Tomorrow the team will play another tough team in the Minnesota Gophers who lost to our December 2nd foe Richmond by 12 points. If JMU can have another performance like they did tonight, there is no doubt in my mind that they will win this game.

Side note: Box score http://admin.xosn.com/fls/14400/stats/wbasketball/2013/jmu1122.htm?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=14400

Also Newman fouled out with under 1 minute to play in regulation and Gwathmey fouled out in Overtime with about 3 minutes to play. 

The Cancun Challenge

Raise your hand if you have ever been to Cancun? Yeah, I'm not raising my hand, but the JMU women's basketball program is raising their hand. In fact, this will mark the third time JMU has participated in this tournament, the most of any team to date. As participants, they hold a .500 record at 2-2 and JMU is looking to improve on that record with hopeful victories over Wisconsin-Green Bay of the Horizon, Minnesota of the Big Ten, and Wichita State of Missouri Valley conferences.

Wisconsin-Green Bay nicknamed the Pheonix is a team that has been receiving votes in the top 25, so a win over them would be a big victory for the JMU women. They come into this contest at 2-0 with victories over Northern Iowa and Central Michigan. Their best players are Sarah Eichler (5'11" F) who is getting about 14 points a game, 6 rebounds, Adrian Ritchie (5'11" G) who gets about 20 points a game, 7 rebounds, and Stephanie Sension (6'3" F) who has averaged about 13 points a game, including 5 rebounds. The other two players that receive significant minutes are Lydia Bauer (6'0" F) and Megan Lukan (5'7" F). Thus far they have held their opponents to just 50 points a game. Game is November 22 at 6 PM. You can check out their stats here https://admin.xosn.com/pdf8/992589.pdf?DB_OEM_ID=22500&

 Minnesota, nicknamed the Gophers, is going to be another tough match up for the Dukes. JMU leads the series 2-0. But this years Minnesota team looks like a descent team from the B10, but with a ton of Freshman and Sophomores. They have two players that are standouts and the rest are there to help. Rachel Banham (5'9"G) on average scores about 20 points a game and 3 rebounds, Micaella Ritchie (6'2" F) scores 18 points and 8 rebounds. Their other starters should consist of Sari Noga (5'10" G), Kionna Kellog (6'1" G/F), and Mikayla Baily (5'9" G, named B10 Freshman of the Week). Minnesota has held their teams to an average of 60 points a game. They have wins over Washington State, Villanova, Ohio, and Maine. Game is on November 23 at 3:30 PM. You can check out their stats here http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/minn/sports/w-baskbl/auto_pdf/2012-13/stats/season_stats_20121118aaa.pdf

Wichita State, nicknamed the Shockers, will probably be the easier of the three opponents JMU faces, however, they did play LSU close. They do not score a lot of points, but they have kept their opponents on average to 53 points a game (LSU scored 72 points). They really do not have one player that stands out above the rest, but they do have a team that works together. Much like Minnesota, Wichita State relies on their bench heavily. So, the potential starters-Jessica Diamond (5'7" G) scores on average 12 points with 4 rebounds, Jasimen Gordon (6'2" C) 11 points with 5 rebounds, Alex Harden (5'11" G/F) 10 points with 6 rebounds, Michelle Price ( 6'1" F) with 8 points and 5 rebounds, and the other potential starter could be Jasmine Jones (5'9" G). Game is on November 24 at 1 PM. Stats https://admin.xosn.com/fls/7500/stats/wbasketball/2012-13/teamcume.htm?ATCLID=652945&SPSID=61199&SPID=2852&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=7500

I am no Kenny Brooks, but I would start Angela Mickens at the point and Tarik at the 2 spot. Tarik seems comfortable at the 2 and plays extremely well from that position. JMU also needs to find ways to get Kirby open, in the last game she was shut down because of the focus being strictly on her, however, when that happens, JMU needs to do what they did against Murray State, hammer the inside. Hopefully Chrystal Ross, Jasmine Gill, and Toia Giggets became embolden after the last game, especially Ross. If they can have good games inside, that should open the wing for Kirby to hit her 3 point shots.

JMU has a good breakdown of each team in their game notes http://www.jmusports.com/downloads2/518002.pdf?ATCLID=205750582&SPSID=71014&SPID=8110&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=14400 and on their sports page. They also have links to video stream if interested, but it looks like it could cost a little bit of money to watch the games.  http://www.jmusports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=205750582&DB_OEM_ID=14400

Why I Am Blogging About JMU WBB?

Hey everyone, I wanted to start a blog dedicated to JMU's women's basketball program because not enough attention is paid to them. I know the Daily News Record does a good job locally, but not many other news sources follow the women's basketball program. It is my goal to write about the various games that JMU will be playing. I am hopeful as I learn the game of women's basketball that this blog will become more insightful and fun to read.

So a little about me. My name is Chad. I am 34 years old and I live in Harrisonburg, about 2 miles from campus. I have always followed JMU sports but only became an avid supporter in 2008 when the JMU football program made their semifinal run. I also became interested in the WBB program about the same time.

The JMU women's basketball programs is an exciting program to watch. They play with heart, they play with a goal in mind and every game brings something to cheer about. For example, in the 2012 WNIT Quarterfinal, Kirby Burkholder comes in late after sitting for a while because of foul trouble and hits back to back 3's to put the Dukes ahead. Then in the final minute and twenty seconds she comes from nowhere and makes an amazing layup. Another example is the last game (Murray State) when Angela Mickens, the freshman point guard went to the basket for a layup and somehow ends up standing on her two hands. It was a great moment in the game that made you feel that after a 0-2 start that things are finally starting to turn for the better. JMU ended up beating Murray State 71-51 and improved to 1-2.



JMU women's basketball has a lot to offer. It has a great following, a great atmosphere, a great coach and staff, great players, and most of all a winning tradition. I hope that you will find this blog interesting and informative.